My Annihilation addiction led me here and, honestly, I wouldn't have it any other way.

The Dead of Summer is the first book in a YA queer horror series with Annihilation meets We Were Liars vibes, and I think I'm slowly being converted into a horror enjoyer (although reading about slime coming out of your nose and mouth freshly recovering from a sinus infection is a bit of an experience). This book reminded me a bit of the books I've read by C.G. Drews, which is 100% a compliment. I'm still new to the horror genre, but I really, really loved the vibes of this book, and the storytelling format enhanced the experience too.

Ollie Veltman has only just returned to the tiny island he calls home when a plague beyond comprehension erupts, forcing the Suds (Ollie and his sort-of ex-friends) to reunite to uncover how this new sickness may be tied to the history of Anchor's Mercy. Part of the story is told through Ollie's eyes, and the other is explained through epistolary format, including diary entries and interviews from a scientist assigned to study the incident at Anchor's Mercy three weeks later. The pacing is quite quick; the alternating sections helped to keep me interested whenever things began to slow down. I was drawn in from the very beginning with the Annihilation vibes, and I also loved the survival aspect that reminded me a lot of The Last of Us. I didn't manage to call any of the plot twists so far (holding out hope for book 2), but I appreciated the shock factor, and I'm excited to see the implications play out. The story was super suspenseful as a whole, and the body horror was so creepy, I loved it. The ending was cruel. I can't believe I have to wait another year.

The cast of characters was super fun to see, especially in such a tense setting. I really liked Ollie as a protagonist. He's sweet and cares deeply about those he loves, but he's also not afraid to be sarcastic sometimes. I liked seeing the relationships between him and the others strengthen over time. Elisha was super cool and definitely one of my favorite characters with how strong she was in the face of everything. I feel like I didn't know Bash as well as I did Elisha, but I do really like what we saw of him on the page. I didn't get great vibes from Sam at first, but I didn't hate him... The interviewer character is probably my favorite side character so far (aside from Elisha), and I'm excited to see how they tie into book 2.

The Dead of the Summer is a YA queer horror novel that perfectly combines the vibes of Annihilation and The Last of Us, the setting of We Were Liars, and the queer horror aesthetic of all of C.G. Drews' books.

4.5/5

Finally, I have an excuse for saying something reminds me of a Betrayal haunt.

I've been meaning to read The Haunting of Hill House since last fall (I wanted a spooky read to start the fall), so I was excited to finally get around to it. When I found out it was the inspiration for the board game Betrayal at the House on the Hill, I was even more excited.

Because this isn't a genre I frequently read, I won't go as in-depth as my typical reviews. I liked the vibes of this book, but I didn't love the execution. All the reviews hailed it as the scariest read of the year and claimed it gave them nightmares, so maybe I'm missing something because I didn't really get creeped out much at all. There were some scenes that started building on that horror vibe, but they ended too quickly for me to be properly impacted. I did like all the references I could see that Betrayal had pulled from, though. The characters were a bit flat; I didn't care much for Eleanor. Again, I liked seeing what caricatures reappeared in the board game. The whole thing reminded me of House of Leaves, and I felt a similar disappointment toward it as well.

I'd like to revisit The Haunting of Hill House in the future when I can allocate more brainpower to actually deciphering some of the symbolism, but for now I'm content to enjoy the vibes and how it connects to Betrayal.

3/5

Searching for ways to fill the hole The Poppy War left in my heart, and I ended up here.

I really wanted to like Dawn of the Firebird. The idea of a revenge high fantasy sounded right up my alley, as did the comps, so I requested it on Netgalley the moment I saw it. Unfortunately, I think I'm siding with most of the other reviewers. This wasn't an objectively bad book - it's clear the author has a vision, and I think there were a lot of points of high-quality storytelling - but I struggled to get through it and almost DNF'ed, which is kind of crazy because I haven't DNF'ed a book since I started using Goodreads 3.5 years ago. Also, in this book's defense, life has been busy, and me getting sick may have decreased my motivation to actually read as well as my ability to absorb information.

I want to briefly focus on the worldbuilding just because it's the main part of the story that I really enjoyed. The magic system (while I admit I don't know the roots of it) was super cool, and I enjoyed the mythos of Adam and Nuh. I didn't 100% understand how all of the magic worked, but I liked what I did grasp and thought the idea of heavenly magic was cool.

After a series of tragedies in her childhood, Khamilla ends up enrolled as a spy in the enemy's army academy. She's ruthless, cutthroat, and won't let anyone stand in the way between her and her goal. The issue? I can't really tell you much about what her goal was. Blame my reading comprehension issues - they're definitely partially responsible, which is what I get for running on not enough sleep - but I just struggled to follow the plot. I found the pacing to be pretty slow in the middle; the beginning and end were fine. I actually really liked the beginning, but by the time I reached the end, I didn't care much for the characters and just wanted to finish the book. The premise of revenge was interesting, but it felt like we lost focus on that, and I didn't 100% understand what was happening and where the plot was going. It started so strongly, but after the first quarter, I struggled to care. I really wish I could've stayed focused and engaged, but apparently my attention span is too short.

The biggest struggle for me was characters. I'm not good with names, so a dramatis personae would've been super helpful (or just a vocab section in general). I liked Khamilla as a protagonist; I think she displayed the appropriate amount of youthful ignorance, and she was compelling to follow in her arc. However, the only two characters I cared for besides her were Eliyas and Cemil...both of whom are objectively bad choices. I tried to care about other characters, but couldn't put names to faces, and also, there were so many of them that they kind of fell flat.

All that being said, I do think Dawn of the Firebird has the potential to be someone's favorite book, even if it's not mine. If you're a fan of high fantasy with Islamic-based worldbuilding, morally grey but super cool FMCs, and complex casts of characters (and if you don't mind slow pacing), I'm sure you're more likely to enjoy this book. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the free e-ARC!

2.5/5