3,5/5 stars

Thank you Crooked Lane Books & Netgalley for the ARC.

The Black Cat Detectives is a cute cozy mystery featuring three black kittens and an aspiring magician whose boyfriend turned up dead at her biggest gig and who's been framed for his death.

The plot follows the usual cozy mystery tropes, and you never really know who's done it until you've finished the book. It was a bit darker than I expected, though it's far from being weird or offputting. Some details felt like they were added randomly, like the lie detector horses or Mila's rich family backstory, but overall it was straightforward.

Of course, we have cats. Lots of them! Three kittens are at the center of the story, and they happen to have magical powers. I found that idea super fun and it made them extra cute and lovable. They all have very different personalities but I sometimes found myself confused by their tone and the POV switch during each chapter. Perhaps that is simply an ARC quirk and will be edited in the final document though, so take this with a grain of salt. Mila, the main character, is a nice girl, but I think I would have liked her to be more comforted/surrounded by people. She read as a quite lonely character throughout the book despite the story saying otherwise. I liked that she's estranged from her rich family and became a magician instead - it adds a little spice to her personality and motives.

The worldbuilding is quite good and I would have loved more info on Corvin's Crossing, why cats can do magic, how Mila came to be a magician, more of her tricks, etc.

It's a chill and easy read, with some good, interesting ideas.

Thank you Interstellar Flight Press and Netgalley for the ARC.

I just love a short horror story with a stupid main character. Club Magritte is a story with multi-layered tropes about morality; it starts with a poor misfit man, jobless, living with his elderly mother, and he is as pitiful as you expect him to be. It touches on gambling and (stupid) financial debts, and ends in cannibalism. It fulfills its role perfectly: it's gruesome, creepy, and saddeningly realistic. I loved the writing style in Club Magritte: short, but not expeditious, impactful but not overly in-your-face. This novella is a perfect creepy read when you really have that "I want something gritty and disgusting but I don't want to be sad over it" itch.

Club Magritte is perfect for seasoned horror readers who can handle morally evil things and thoughts and body horror. It's definitely the gore-y horror kind, and not the psychological horror one, so be warned going into it!

A really sweet cozy mystery about a girl who gets a second chance at life through the will of her late aunt and who has to fight for her new house and new life while getting closure and finding love. The dialogues were a bit funky while trying to be serious sometimes, but it’s all cozy mystery charm! I even shed a tear at the end. 🥲 Thank you Netgalley and The Book Guild for the ARC!