Mindy's Book Journey

  Title: Mister Lullaby Author: J.H. Markert Genre: Horror/Thriller Published: I received a copy for review through NetGalley.   Strange things happen inside the tunnel in the town of Harrod's Reach. Mysterious murders, people found in comas, and a man becomes obsessed with the sound and voices he hears in a seashell found in the landlocked area. The door between another world and our own is weakening and monsters are trying to get through. Mister Lullaby has an interesting premise that mixes the fantastical and horrific. Despite intriguing odd occurrences happening in and around the tunnel and the possibility of a serial killer the first half of the novel is a bit disjointed and a slog. Several points of view leads to a delayed investment into the characters and their stories. Around the 50% point the stories start to converge in a satisfying way leading to a fight of good versus evil that is quite enjoyable. I would recommend this novel to those that might enjoy a mix of horro

  Title: Hellweg's Keep Author: Justin Holley Genre: Science Fiction Horror Published: November 14, 2023 by Flame Tree Press I received a copy for review through NetGalley.   FBI agent Kendra Omen and a team of paranormal investigators with unique talents travel from the planet Terra to one of its moons Zeta One. They need to investigate the disappearance of a group of miners from the titanium mine below the surface. They become haunted by horrifying visions and what they find in the caverns below the mine is a nightmare in itself. The characters in Hellweg's Keep are all very memorable whether likable or not. Most are likeable, especially the leader of the group Kendra. The dread and tension is set right away in the first part of the book. Then the team goes subterranean and the claustrophobia helps to boost those feelings through the roof. I am a huge fan of science fiction horror and this was the scariest I have read so far. I would recommend looking up content warnings b

  Title: Under Her Eye: A Women in Horror Poetry Showcase Volume 2 Editors: Lindy Ryan and Lee Murray Genre: Horror Poetry Published: November 7, 2023 by Black Spot Books I received a copy for review through NetGalley. Under Her Eye is a heart wrenching horror poetry anthology all centered around domestic issues facing women. Each poem tackles abuse that makes home an unsafe place. There are over 100 poems by different poets with many different styles so there is something for everyone. Some were straight forward and brutally honest. Others played with metaphors with horror tropes and some were abstract. Since there are such different styles some fit my taste more closely than others which is common with any kind of anthology. However, I have found some new authors to seek out. This is a very important topic and there are resources for women dealing with domestic violence in the back of the book as well.  I would recommend this collection for those who enjoy dark poetry and can handle

  Title: Cold, Black, & Infinite Author: Todd Keisling Genre: Horror Short Story Collection Published: Sept. 1, 2023 by Cemetery Dance Publications I received a copy for review through NetGalley.   Cold, Black, & infinite is a collection of sixteen short stories including three stories that were never previously published. The stories were all very well written and compulsively readable.The stories are separated into three sections Cold, Black, and Infinite.  The Cold section includes five stories that take place in cold settings including The Happytown Yuletide Massacre a Christmas slasher story and Black Friday which is a brilliant zombie story. The Black section includes five stories that are very dark or deal with black magic. These are the stories that will really make your skin crawl.  In the Infinite section there are six stories that are on the strange side and most are cosmic horror. The story Holes in the Fabric was based in the same town as Keisling's novel De

  Title: The Thing in the Woods Author: Matthew W. Quinn Genre: Horror Series: The Long War Book 1 Published: January 1, 2017 I received a copy for review from the author. James moves from Atlanta to small town Edington his senior year of high school, and Edington locals don't seem to like outsiders. James is thrown into danger after a local challenges him to a ATV race threw a backwoods area that reveals an ancient evil living in the pond. Now James must take on a cult that worships the creature to save himself and those close to him. This YA horror book is the first in a series that has a lot of bite. There are some typical high school problems, but I would only recommend this book to very mature teens that can handle swearing and gore. There was some racism that was not fun to read. It takes a while to get going, but this book turns into a really great creature feature with a fantastic showdown in the end. I would recommend this book to fans of creature features with cosmic