The Scarlet Alchemist by Kylie Lee Baker

It has some of the vibes of A Magic Steeped in Poison...but darker
The number of Fullmetal jokes I want to make.
It's the ducks being named after vegetables for me.
must find duck memes
*Stares into the abyss until next October.
416 Pages

Starling House by Alix E Harrow

So apparently it's spooky season in my reads... And by spooky I mean gothic.
One of my favorite hyper-specific tropes--the caretaker of a house/place that is dangerous...No we're not going to look at that in therapy.
THE CAT THE CAT THE CAT THE CAT.
also I love Arthur and the cat together.
like...he has a sword.
Can we just appreciate Opal trying her best. Because like.
Is this commentary greed and the environment and slavery in the past and now. Yes it is. Love it.
400 Pages

A Prayer for Vengeance by Leanne Schwartz

So I love Milo. I am Milo. Must Protect.
Could I overthink about the symbolism of changing in and out of statue form.. yes.
But also it's hecka cool.
368 Pages

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

It's the rivals to lovers and the spooky house by the sea.
"You don't have to pick up a sword. Survival is bravery too."
There's fae and a fairy king
It's not sorcery of thorns, but like... they share some flavors.
I just love the character chemistry and the concept and the magic.
When a specific scene reminds me of The Rescuers.
Pretty sure this is going on my 2023 Favorites
*When a character is called pedantic and you realize that's what you are.
376 Pages

If I Have to Be Haunted by Miranda Sun

WHAT IS IT WITH SWIM TEAM MEMBERS AND GHOSTS.
This might hurt me.
The red string theory. 😏
It's the enemies to lovers that have known each other since childhood.
Must protect sweet cinnamon roll boy.
Chef's kiss
*Reads epilogue: EXCUSE ME.
368 Pages

Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas

As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters—her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But something more sinister lurks near the ranch at night, something that drains men of their blood and leaves them for dead.

Something that once attacked Nena nine years ago.

Believing Nena dead, Néstor has been on the run from his grief ever since, moving from ranch to ranch working as a vaquero. But no amount of drink can dispel the night terrors of sharp teeth; no woman can erase his childhood sweetheart from his mind.

When the United States attacks Mexico in 1846, the two are brought abruptly together on the road to war: Nena as a curandera, a healer striving to prove her worth to her father so that he does not marry her off to a stranger, and Néstor as a member of the auxiliary cavalry of ranchers and vaqueros. But the shock of their reunion—and Nena’s rage at Néstor for seemingly abandoning her long ago—is quickly overshadowed by the appearance of a nightmare made flesh.

And unless Nena and Néstor work through their past and face the future together, neither will survive to see the dawn.
 

Pages: 371

Cage of Dreams by Rebecca Schaeffer

**It's a sequel**

"....not independence, it's isolation" quote... like... boof.
The number of therapy quotes about healing and fear and growth and trauma I want to underline.
It's the open conversations about fears and worries for me.
The last chapter/epilogue. Like...Don't do that to me. Like... that's hinting.
368 Pages

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

I'm rereading it for Curse for True Love. (which comes out at the end of October)
When I wasn't sure if I was mixing up the plot with another story, but I was right.
The magic. The mystery. The intrigue.
Me watching/waiting for Jack to show up
437 Pages

Foul Heart Huntsman by Chloe Gong

**It's a sequel**

You know what sounds as good as "that's my wife"... "I am your WIFE" best thing you ever gon get

They included one of my favorite tropes. fkdlsfjkldsfdjkl
They do talk about blood and needles and stuff.
....hears the phrase "burning red" ...sus
I don't even know why, but like...reading this book gives me LWYMMD tour entrance vibes

So this might have benefited from a re-read so that I have a greater grasp of the outer characters...but I'm screeching. My babies. All of my babies. With confirmation that my theory was right.
*me waiting for someone to die because Chloe Gong could kill me.
*Finally understands the titles.
593 Page

The Troop by Nick Cutter

 

Once a year, scoutmaster Tim Riggs leads a troop of boys into the Canadian wilderness for a three-day camping trip; a tradition as comforting and reliable as a good ghost story and a roaring bonfire. But when an unexpected intruder -- shockingly thin, disturbingly pale, and voraciously hungry -- stumbles upon their campsite, Tim and the boys are exposed to something far more frightening than any tale of terror. The human carrier of a bioengineered nightmare. An inexplicable horror that spreads faster than fear. A harrowing struggle for survival that will pit the troop against the elements, the infected ... and one another.

Pages: 407

The Wake-Up Call by Beth O'Leary

Beth O'Leary owns me.
#sharedtrauma
*lays on floor crying because miscommunication but it's not the annoying stupid miscommunication, it's just stupid.
Can we just let Mandy take a nap.
But like.... I feel called out because apparently my handwriting is bad.....She's me.
416 Pages

Godkiller by Hannah Kaner

It was ok. The concept sounded interesting, but like....
290 Pages

Unnecessary Drama by Nina Kenwood

I just want to brag real quick about how I figured out the narrator was Australian because honestly I'm proud that I caught that.
It's the watching Vampire Diaries for me.
It's the younger sibling trying to take care of the older sibling and always feeling like they have to be the responsible one and that they can't ever be out of control.....
320 Pages

Julie's books

 

Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.

Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.

Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.

After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.

Pages: 400

Peter Aykroyd spent his childhood watching his family's parlor seances through the crack of a basement door. Here, for the first time, Aykroyd tells the strange and delightful story that inspired his son, Dan, to make the mega-hit, "Ghostbusters." Part history, part family legend, "A History of Ghosts "starts in 1848 in upstate New York, where the spiritualist craze first began. Aykroyd introduces the reader to notable mediums while telling the story of the development of spiritualism, interweaving a personal history marked by a fascination with ghosts and spirits with the larger narrative about the role the paranormal has played in our culture. Such legendary figures as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini appear and vanish.

Pages: 256

Silence and Shadow by Erin Beaty

**Sequel**
Netgalley ARC.
Publication Date: Oct 2, 2023
WE GET MORE SIMON CONTENT. SOFT BOI.
✨World building ✨
*Goes and buys the book because the cover is so pretty and because the story is pretty.
Did I want Simon's perspective. Yes. Do I understand why we don't have it. Also yes.
There's another serial killer and there's old school sleuthing.
I know that's an epilogue and it's an ending--and it's a satisfying ending to a duology, but I want more. Because I love them. Short stories....bonus chapters.... I don't care. I just want more fluff.
464 Pages

Blood and Moonlight by Erin Beaty

I love this book so much. I love the atmosphere and the characters... I'll be over here.
I love the saint references. Saint Dymphna references. The mental illness representation.
The Stalking Jack the Ripper vibes. The Criminal Minds vibes.
Simon. Must protect. I love him.
The moon powers
(it's a reread for the sequel)
464 Pages

Mad About You by Mhairi McFarlane

Mad About You by Mhairi McFarlane

Despite being an in demand wedding photographer, Harriet Hatley isn't exactly in love with the idea of romance and weddings. After a disastrous proposal from her now-ex, she is desperate to move out and move on. Cal Clarke has very different views on romance and marriage, but after his own wedding-related catastrophe, he finds himself with a room to sublet. Cal and Harriet are total opposites with their own secrets to hide. When Harriet's deepest secret comes to light, her world is left in pieces, which Cal helps her put back together. If Harriet can face her past with her career, friendships, and reputation at stake, happiness might just be waiting on the other side.

432 pages.

A Kingdom Discovered by Deborah Grace White

THE DROPOFF

When you get deeper into an organization and see even more of the problems and evil... Specifically the withholding information for "the good of the people" and spreading misinformation....
DRAGON
454 Pages 

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer

When your nightmare is actually your worst fear, and you become your nightmare
Can we just...get Ness some anxiety medications...or like...actual therapy that works.... Maybe some EMDR.
I love Cyril. I always will.
I'm rereading it for the second book
384 Pages

Enchanted to Meet You by Meg Cabot

Did I decide to read this book because of the title and the fact that the cover is purple...yes
Hey look, they have purebloods in here...
I know her name isn't Karen...but like...she's a Karen and I vote we get rid of her because she's awful.
Must protect Jess.
Derrick has a motorcycle. That sells it
368 Pages

This Dark Descent by Kalyn Josephson

I won't have blood spilled on my nice clean floors.
"gentleman and a scholar"
demi representation. demi representation.
It's the cat on the shoulder for me.
lol he has to hold the pinecone
"less dead"
411 Pages

Forget Me Not by Julie Soto

Ok but a wedding planner and a florist who has tattoos... Like. peak cinema
The 27 dresses vibes.
*immediately wants to go and get more tattoos.
I love him. I love him so much. I want twelve.
I would like a bonus epilogue please

Two creative people working together. chef's kiss. They're goals.
They really said the workaholic who refuses to need anyone needs a hufflepuff.
This is the "I don't believe in love" I can get behind.
Not saying it's a slytherin and a grumpy hufflepuff...but like...
Ok so Ama is iconic. Just... the entire third act. I love it.
The amount of screeching that happened while I read this book...I'm surprised I didn't get a noise complaint from my neighbors
352 Pages