Mindy's Book Journey

  Title: My Unbeating Heart Author: Eli Wilde Genre: Historical Horror Published: 7/23/23  Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the copy for review.   Rufus Hobster is a vampire who hires a man to record his life story which takes us on a journey to 1800's London. This is the story of a new vampire on a path of discovery of himself and human kind.  This is an atmospheric vampire story. There is a modern day timeline following Rufus as he works to record his life story, and there is a past timeline that weaves in chilling true events from 1800s London. The 1800s timeline is especially atmospheric. A dark grand tale of all the confusion, love, and mistakes in an immortals life. It is a dark tale to capture the imagination. I recommend My Unbeating Heart to fans of vampire stories and like a historical timeline. My Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars

  Title: The Darkest Night: 22 Winter Horror Stories Editor: Lindy Ryan Authors: Gwendolyn Kiste, Tim Waggoner, Josh Malerman, Hailey Piper, Stephanie M. Wytovich, Clay McLeod Chapman, Lindy Ryan, Christopher Brooks, Eric LaRocca, M. Rickert, Lee Murray, Cynthia Pelayo, Christopher Golden, Tim Lebbon, Kelsea Lu, Jessica McHugh, Nat Cassidy, Rachel Harrison, Thomas Hutson, Kristi deMeester, Sara Tantlinger, Darcy Coates, Jeff Strand, Mercedes M. Yardley, Jamie Flanagan Genre: Horror Published: 9/24/24 by Crooked Lane Books I received a copy for review through NetGalley.   This anthology is the perfect read for the holiday season. The 22 stories are all winter themed with chilly snowy settings. A handful are specifically holiday themed and so much fun.  The Mouthless Body in the Lake by Gwendolyn Kiste: A spooky and haunting start, but I wish it was not in 2nd person. (3 stars) Cold as Ice by Tim Waggoner: Another 2nd person story with a creepy creature. (3 stars) Chil...

  Title: Alien Clay Author: Adrian Tchaikovsky Genre: Science Fiction Published: 9/17/24 by Orbit Books I received a copy for review through NetGalley.   Discover the planet Kiln with Professor Arton Daghdev.  Imprisoned at an alien work camp by the tyrannical group The Mandate, he uses is skills as a xeno-ecologist to uncover the secrets that make the hostile planet tick. Can Daghdev and the rest of the prisoners survive Kiln and the Mandate? This novel is a politically charged survival tale with a good bit of fascinating biology to discover about a very dangerous planet.  It is a wonderful underdog story about fighting against tyranny and unfamiliar nature. If you love political stories, survival stories, and science fiction stories this one will definitely appeal to you. I highly recommend it for fans of science fiction.   My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Title: The Bloodless Princes Series: The Dragonborne Blade #2 Author: Charlotte Bond Genre: Fantasy Published: Oct. 29, 2024 by Tor/Macmillan I received a copy for review through NetGalley.    Sir Madilleh and High Mage Saralene take on a very dangerous quest to go into the afterlife world to get a favor from the leaders of land of the dead. This is a fantasy series full of adventure with a page count under 200 pages. The main characters are amazing strong women with a bit of a romance between them. There is an amazing adventure full quest at the center of each book. I would recommend this to fantasy fans with sapphic elements and looking for a shorter read. My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars  

  Title: Necessary Poisons Author: Andrea Blythe Genre: Horror Poetry Published: October 7, 2024 by Interstellar Flight Press I received a copy for review from the publisher through NetGalley.         Necessary is a collection of found poetry published by the wonderful Interstellar Flight Press. This collection has a lot of emphasis on poisonous plants and manuscripts. The poems were created by taking pages of The Plant by Stephen King, which is an unfinished epistolary novel, and blacking out words until a new poem emerges. I really find the way that the poetry was created really interesting, and I would love to try this method.       It must be difficult to create poems only using the words of others. Some of the poems were not as impactful, because of they seemed to lack a central story. This is the tricky part of only using the words on a single page. However, there were a few poems that were unbelievably good and inspiring....

  Title: Chopping Spree Author: Angela Sylvaine Genre: Horror Published: 9/24/24 by Dark Matter Ink I received a copy for review from the author.   16 year old Penny works at Thredz in the Eden Hills Mall that her father owns. When someone starts some mischief killing people off Penny and her friends will need to stop the killer before disaster strikes. This is a fun 80s style mall slasher that is completely unpredictable. There is some great commentary on consumerism and greed as is appropriate in a mall. Penny makes a great final girl to rout for. If you like slashers with 80s vibes and YA protagonists than I would recommend checking this one out. My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars