This is a book that I’ve been meaning to read for so many years after being obsessed with the Carmilla web series as a teen. While that adaptation and the source material are obviously wildly different, Carmilla still stands out as a classic piece of literature with so many contemporary iterations and inspirations. What I really loved about this reading experience was the introduction and footnotes by Carmen Maria Machado. The introduction delves into the real-life inspiration for Carmilla, and how Le Fanu’s fictionalization of it is actually a disservice to the story, but that a modern reading of the story from the perspective of it being about the demonization of queerness (specifically queer women) can be found in the text. I found this reading of the story to be much more interesting than I would have had I read it without that context, and I think that Machado is what really made this book accessible to me as a modern reader. Reading Machado’s notes along with the text had me itching for more discussion on this book, and I definitely plan on doing further reading on it from a critical standpoint, which I feel like was the point of this edition.

What a delightful reading experience. The seaside town, the bookshop, the bakery, the cozy tavern - I wanted to live in this book. I loved the new characters (Fern especially!) and getting to see a younger, more inexperienced Viv. Fern and Viv’s friendship was probably my favorite character dynamic in this series as a whole. The way that they helped each other actualize things about themselves that they never considered possible was so beautiful. Honestly, the romance in this book paled in comparison to the development of this friendship, but I can’t even be mad at it because I loved Fern and Viv and everything they taught each other so much. That isn’t to say that the romance was bad or pointless - I actually think that Viv learned some valuable lessons with Maylee as well, but my book-loving heart just felt more connected to the bookshop storyline. As with Legends & Lattes, I thought this story struck the perfect balance between the mundane and the fantastical, creating the gold standard of cozy fantasy in my eyes.

Part heist/hostage-thriller, part Shining-esque paranormal horror story set at a remote hotel in the Australian wilderness, this book was a fun ride from start to finish. As a seasoned thriller reader, I liked the thriller-to-horror ratio that is struck in this book. The bank heist scene was an excellent, fast-paced way to start the story, and the home invasion and hostage portions of the book made for a unique setting for the supernatural elements. This author was not afraid to kill off characters, and some of the kill scenes were pretty brutal, which I always have to respect in books that are supposed to be horrifying. I liked the idea behind the paranormal horror, but I honestly thought that the backstory of the hotel and the original murders that happened there sometimes seemed more interesting than the plot at hand. I would gladly read a prequel from the perspective of the first family that lived there - the description of the crime scene that was found after their murders was probably the most memorable image of this entire book. I did actually appreciate Rueben’s character, despite being frustrated at times with the fate of all these people being in a preteen boy’s hands, he ended up gaining so much courage by the end and I felt myself rooting for him wholeheartedly. The slow but steady ramping up of both the supernatural being at the hotel and the frustration and rage of the criminals holding the family hostage was well-paced, but when you have so much buildup, it’s tough to stick the landing. While I found the ending perfectly satisfying, I did kind of want one final gut-punch at the end.

This is one of those young adult books that I wish I had read in my own young adult era. Even from the perspective of an adult, I can say without a doubt that this book is such a much-needed addition to the young adult space, with its conversations about grief and death, indigenous representation, and asexual representation, along with the charming storytelling and strong, determined, and intelligent female main character. Ellie was just so lovely, and her ghost-dog companion, Kirby, was such a wonderful little addition to the story. I knew going into this that the main character was asexual, but I loved that it was just a stated fact and not necessarily a journey that Ellie had to go through. I was a little worried that there would be a plotline about her friend having a crush on her and her having to come out to him as asexual, but that thankfully wasn’t the case. Ellie and Jay’s friendship was so refreshing to read in that sense. Ellie’s parents were also a refreshing aspect of this book. They believed in Ellie and didn’t write her off as just a child, giving her the respect and support that she needed from them without conflict. The way that magic worked in this world was another thing that really surprised me (like, who knew that this was kind of a vampire book? Not me!) - it was all so casual and realistic, and the indigenous ties to magic and the land were so beautifully written.

This is absolutely required reading for any Twin Peaks fan. I honestly would say that reading this before watching Fire Walk With Me adds a lot of context that makes that movie experience even richer, as if I thought that was even possible. Jennifer Lynch understands Laura’s character so deeply, to the point where I actually had to remind myself while reading that Laura Palmer is not a real person who wrote this diary, that this is a work of fiction. The way that Laura’s voice changes over time was so excellently done - from her 12-year-old self who understands very little, to her 15-year-old self who doesn’t understand enough, to her 17-year-old self who knows too much. This is the story of Laura slowly unraveling what is happening to her, raging against it internally, and eventually living a double life out of desperation for escape, all while no one around her seems to see any of it. Your heart breaks for her at every stage of this story. From watching the show, we understand the broad strokes of what happened to her, but to read it from her perspective was a completely different level of devastation. I found her relationship with Bobby to be particularly illuminated in this book, which is a relationship I was never totally clear on after watching the show. I also loved seeing Laura and Ronette interact, and how they cared for each other through their teenage years, especially knowing about their last night together in Fire Walk With Me. This was just so perfectly done.