The Demon Rift

This started out by confusing me and then just keeping me wondering. I enjoy a story that has monsters of both the human and otherworldly variety but this one did not really fully immerse me at any time. The blurb is a little deceptive because it makes it sound like one thing when it turns out to be something else altogether, though I will not divulge how it differs. The story jumps around a lot, mainly through time but also locations can change from chapter to chapter and sometimes sections. Once you know who is being targeted and why it seems unnecessary to continue moving through time.

The story is kind of predictable once you get into it and it is also a little overblown. With all of that, I never felt any dread or even a little frightened by what was going on. The characters while well drawn in most cases still did not make me like them enough to ever fully care about what was happening or going to happen to them. Plus the added headache of trying to keep straight who was related to who made me less than happy since I had to keep looking back to remember. I mostly just wanted to know how things were going to end for each. The locations are all familiar in that I know where they are even if I have never been there myself.

The story is told in a non-linear manner which makes it sometimes hard to follow. The ideas behind the story are interesting and I liked them, which is why I wanted to read it. The problem is that it didn’t hold up to what I expected.

The story begins in Victorian England in the year 1894 in the home of a minor noble who has brought together others for an evocation of evil. A young serving girl is curious and hides away to observe what these rich people are doing which requires her to do extra work. As the gathered nobles start their incantations something on the other side of a barrier finds the new life within the girl and decides that using it can further its goals. The child is touched and changed in his mother’s womb and so it begins.

Fast forward to 2004 in Ohio on Christmas Eve and we will find the culmination of all those years in between. The evil has grown up and needs to feed in order to open the door between world that will devastate the human race.

There were some glitches in the narrative with sentences ending abruptly leaving out words obviously in several chapters. The demons and the rift itself do not show up very often and when they do are less than scary. You also have words used in the wrong way or order and the wrong words being used on occasion, but you can usually figure out what is being said.

I liked this well enough though it did not tick all the boxes for me when it comes to a novel I know is supposed to be horror. I would recommend this to anyone who likes horror or supernatural stories.

My rating: 💖💖💖

Minion

Upon visiting the bookstore, I inquired with the clerk about a commendable vampire novel, and he recommended this particular one. I am immensely pleased that he did, as I was swiftly engrossed by the narrative. It revolves around a Vampire Huntress (envision Buffy but with an extra dose of sass) who is also a spoken word artist. The underlying themes are spiritual yet resonate with real-world authenticity. This novel marks the beginning of a 12-book saga that transports readers across the globe, reimagining the age-old battle between good and evil in an exceptionally captivating manner. Within its pages, one will encounter numerous figures from biblical and mythological lore, yet the tone remains far from sermonizing.

I deemed it an excellent introductory novel and believe it would appeal greatly to anyone fascinated by vampires and those who vanquish them.

**The narrative persists in its allure, and the mysticism interwoven throughout continues to provoke thought and wonder.

My Rating: ❃❃❃❃

A Stone Kissed Sea

I enjoyed getting a chance to really get to know Doctor Lucien Thrax after having met him in earlier novels. This revealed a great deal about him as an individual while also giving us the chance to meet his Sire, Saba, and the other ancients who have made cursory appearances since the original Elemental Mystery novels. The characters have all become more textured and nuanced as the series has progressed giving more depth and life to the world they inhabit. Knowing that this is the last novel set in this particular world made it bittersweet.

Lucien has been working on a cure for Elixir for the past three years without any luck, though he has had a few breakthroughs in detecting usage. The elimination of Elixir is very personal to him due to a loss he suffered because of it, it has also caused him to build a wall around his heart. Dr. Makeda Abel is a human under the aegis of Katya who has been funding the work of Lucien into the Elixir problem. Katya has also been funding the research of Makeda into human blood diseases and their possible cures.

Katya decides that even though Lucien has been working very hard and is making her money he could use some help. Makeda is sent to collaborate with Lucien, even though he would prefer to work alone. Lucien for his part does not take it well and does everything he can to make things difficult for Makeda, and because she would prefer not to be there she does not immediately fall in line. Though both of them are brilliant they cannot see what is right in front of them.

Power, Passion, and Politics. These are three things which drive the vampires as well as the humans in all our stories. You get a healthy dose of all three here as things go from good to bad to worse and back to good again. There is some good action along with a few steamy scenes that are fairly tame, though still hot enough for most. I believe fans will be more than happy with how things play out here.

** I listened to this for my second go with this as I have for the previous books in the series. It is just as compelling when listened to as when you read it. The narrator is fantastic and gives voice and life to all the characters. Enjoy this both ways.

My rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Ravaged

I enjoyed reading this book as much as I enjoyed reading each book in this series. I love meeting new characters and also getting updates on the characters from earlier novels, but unfortunately, rarely any of the mates. Every time I start reading a book, I get pulled into the story and find it hard to put down until I finish, but I have to stop often because sleep and work get in the way. The world they inhabit is like ours but with a subtle twist.

Ever since Aiden stopped aging, he has been struggling with his dark impulses. Unlike his brothers who only had to deal with one dark impulse, Aiden is fighting against multiple ones such as bloodlust, sex, violence, and death. His work with Ronan has helped him to keep the darkness at bay, but he’s starting to lose the battle. He hopes someone will take him out before he gives in.

Maggie Doe had a difficult upbringing and always dreamed of having things she never had especially her own home. However, her life takes an unexpected turn when Aiden is rushed into her ambulance. Aiden has lost all hope for his future, but Maggie’s arrival brings a glimmer of hope back into his life.

This book has a good balance of mature themes, including sex, violence, and gore. It can be enjoyed as a standalone or as part of the larger series. I am excited for more young readers to experience it.

I found this book just as engaging as the others in the series. Tavia Gilbert’s narration is excellent and she brings each character to life, regardless of gender. I highly recommend it.

My rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Day Shift

The story continues seamlessly a few months after Manfred has taken up residence in Midnight and he is more a member of the community. The characters are already well established and I like them all, even Olivia. The town seems to be changing in subtle ways that the residents cannot do anything about. Several stories are going on in this book that relate to individuals and then come back to the group. This is an ensemble that works well apart but even better when they come together to help each other.

People say there is no such thing as bad publicity but in Midnight where the residents value their solitude it can be deadly. Olivia Charity is an anomaly in a town of secretive people. No one really knows what she does for a living, only that she is beautiful and dangerous.

While in Dallas on a working weekend, Manfred finds out just how dangerous Olivia really is when a couple she is seen in their hotel winds up dead at the end of the evening. Things take a turn for the worse when one of Manfred’s regulars dies during their reading, and her son makes claims that could put Manfred in jail as well as bring the eyes of the world to Midnight, Texas. Olivia is told to help Manfred get rid of his problem and she reluctantly agrees.

Sookie gets a mention here and a character from Dallas who hasn’t been seen in a long time. Things get a little more mysterious in some instances and we get some explanations for other things. I enjoyed this a great deal and think anyone else would too. This is a three-book series and should be read in order.

My rating: ✺✺✺✺

A Christmas Haunting at Point No Point

This is another author that I have never read before and it seems to have become a theme during Christmas that I find new authors that I like. This is said to be a stand-alone novel but I think that even though it can be read without having read the previous books it still might be a good idea to read them to lend more context to the story. Reference is made to situations and people from previous books which can make it hard to understand what is happening sometimes. This was a really good ghost story with subtle but very interesting and well-thought-out imagery.

Steven’s brother and his family are coming for a visit during the holidays after years of staying away. To make things more comfortable for his brother he decides to rent a location for their vacation that will be neutral and hopefully help everyone enjoy themselves. Steven settles on Point No Point, the oldest lighthouse in the region, which offers the lighthouse keepers’ house as their vacation spot. The family finds their holiday turning into a nightmare as they start to notice changes in each other and try to figure out the haunted secrets of Point No Point things take a turn for the worse.

This was a very enjoyable story that had me from beginning to end as I tried to figure out what was going on along with them. The characters were fantastic and the scenery was what you would expect from the Pacific Northwest right down to the weather. It gave me great visuals. The slow build was perfect and added to the atmosphere that was being built within the house.

I would definitely recommend this book.

My rating: ✮✮✮✮

The Haunted Forest Tour

This is the first thing I have ever read by this author and it was a nice introduction to his work. It was not something I was immediately drawn into but it did not take long for me to see that I was going to enjoy it. The characters actually made this whole story for me because I liked them almost from the start and was rooting for my favorites to get out alive. Which is pretty foolish when you have a story that you know is going to have a high body count. You get some standard monsters and some not-so-standard monsters, the main thing is that they are some evil monsters.

Four years ago a forest popped up in the middle of the New Mexico desert on the outskirts of Cromay, a small town that was taken unaware. There were not a lot of survivors that day but those who got out told tales of creatures that made the skin crawl. It didn’t take long for someone to come along and see the possibilities and so the Haunted Forest Tours began.

Christopher Brummit was having a very bad day but then he gets a call from his mother, Mindy, telling him that she has gotten tickets for the Halloween Haunted Forest tour for the two of them. He is excited and does not give his problems any further thought. When they arrive they go through the presentation and finally board a tram that will take them into the heart of the forest instead of the usual trip on the outskirts. What they find inside that forest will be with them forever if they can manage to make it out with mind and body intact.

There is quite a bit of action to find in this story. Some might find it gory, and it does have a bit of gore but nothing too excessive. While I liked the end I think that it was anticlimactic in a lot of ways, it just seemed to be very abrupt. This was a well-paced, roller coaster ride through a monster-filled territory that will thrill most and scare some. I would recommend this to anyone who likes horror with some light comic relief!

My rating: 💫💫💫💫

12:07: The Sleeping

I have never read anything by this author before and found that I do like them, though this book could have been a little shorter. While I appreciate the attention to detail from character development to the nuance of the plot, it could have been toned down to make the thriller aspects a bit more thrilling. The supernatural was well represented as were the religious aspects but I never felt any true sense of urgency while reading. That’s not to say that I did not enjoy it because I did, it just never fully engulfed me.

Sleeping collects the Unwanted, a child not created/born from want. They are the guardians of the underworld who feed on tormented souls. When they enter our world they are the ones who haunt those they believe belong in Hell. The Sleeping is relentless and employs whatever means are needed to obtain the souls of those they have laid claim to.

James has seen The Sleeping since he was five years old and has been fighting them since that time. They continue coming for him and he hides as best he can from them, but the things he does keep him firmly on their radar.

No real action to speak of, not scary, just not. As I have said it has a decent story with some characters that will make you hate them or love them but you will feel something about them. I just wish there had been more going on besides all the explaining about what this is and what that is. But someone will enjoy it.

My Rating: 🌠🌠🌠

Some Will Not Sleep

Some Will Not Sleep: Selected Horrors by Adam Nevill

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


After reading all the stories and giving each an individual rating I have averaged it out to 2.41 stars for this book. Some of the stories were better than others which is always the case when reading any type of anthology or short story collection. The problem for me was that I did not really find any that I felt truly could be called horror, at least by my standards of the genre. There were some creepy moments in say “Where Angels Come In” or “Mother’s Milk” both of which I liked and a few others. Then you have the ones that I could not figure out why they were even included here like “To Forget and Be Forgotten” which I could not even describe after reading because it did nothing for me or “Florrie” which pretty much gave me the whole story in the first two paragraphs so that I had it figured out right there.

I still want to read something else written by this author since this was my introduction to them. The characters and locales were fine. I could feel for them in a lot of instances and so the writing was not a problem. I would recommend this because though it did not scare or really give me chills that might not be the case for others.



View all my reviews

The Curse of the House on Cypress Lane #0

The Curse of The House on Cypress Lane: Book 0- The Beginning by James Hunt

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The book didn’t grab me right out of the gate but it got more and more interesting as I got to know the characters and their situation better. While the buildup is slow, it is not exactly subtle. You can pretty much all the connections immediately. This particular book is a novella that purports to be the beginning of things but that is inaccurate because what has been going on obviously began much further in the past than this. But it would have been nice to get some of that background about the house and the people who set things in motion. I have never read this author before and maybe just need to see what his process is for developing stories since everyone’s is slightly different.

The house at the end of Cypress Lane is large and with a history that is entwined with the town of Ocoee, Louisiana. The Cooley family becomes entangled in that history and must fight to stay alive in a situation, not of their making. Owen Cooley has been out of work for the past 6 months with no opportunities in sight. When he is offered a job after a phone interview which would mean a drastic relocation of his family he jumps at the chance without even trying to get any information about the place he is going. This is one of those times when if it’s too good to be true, then you should look behind the curtain. He should have looked for his family’s sake.

This did intrigue me enough to make me want to continue reading about this house and its inhabitants. It did not scare me but it does have an atmosphere of darkness that worked for me. I would recommend it to those who want a horror read with potential.



View all my reviews

If you ever wanted to know what fear and desperation looked like, Owen would tell you to go down to the local unemployment center and look in the eyes of the men and women waiting in line to speak with a clerk. Beyond the bouncing legs, fidgeting fingers, and long exhales riddled with anxiety, you’ll find the worst combination of fear, anger, and hate swirling around their souls. Anger for failing, fear for failing again, and a hate for everything that put them in their situation.

The Curse of the House on Cypress Lane By: James Hunt