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The Monster of Elendhaven
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
48 posts | 43 read | 58 to read
A black tide of perversity, violence, and lush writing. I loved it. Joe Hill Debut author Jennifer Giesbrecht paints a darkly compelling fantasy of revenge in The Monster of Elendhaven, a dark fantasy about murder, a monster, and the magician who loves both. The city of Elendhaven sulks on the edge of the ocean. Wracked by plague, abandoned by the South, stripped of industry and left to die. But not everything dies so easily. A thing without a name stalks the city, a thing shaped like a man, with a dark heart and long pale fingers yearning to wrap around throats. A monster who cannot die. His frail master sends him out on errands, twisting him with magic, crafting a plan too cruel to name, while the monsters heart grows fonder and colder and more cunning. These monsters of Elendhaven will have their revenge on everyone who wronged the city, even if they have to burn the world to do it. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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Fortifiedbybooks
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Gruesome, intelligent, and macabre! Think “Penny Dreadful“ Steer clear of this if you don't like graphic violence. Book 2 for #readathon and 65 points for #Scarathlon #TeamWhoYaGonnaCall

FlynnDewey Nice! Glad it was a good read! 5mo
14 likes1 comment
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Fortifiedbybooks
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Day 14 #Scarathlon Photo Challenge - Monster. I'm hoping to read this during Dewey's 24-Hour #Readathon next weekend. #TeamWhoYaGonnaCall

FlynnDewey Have you read this one? 5mo
Fortifiedbybooks @FlynnDewey not yet. I'm pulling most of the books for the photo challenge from my TBR. This one will be near the top of my readathon pile. 5mo
FlynnDewey If you do, I look forward to your thoughts. I'm a sucker for neat book covers. This one is really cool! 5mo
12 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Andrea4
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Bailedbailed

1/2 way thru this short novel & bailing B/c: 1) I'm bored. 2) I do not care at all about these characters. 3) probably b/c the author spends more time romanticizing the horror rather than developing character, backstory, or plot. 4) the "Monster's" verbiage really strikes discordant at times and totally takes me out of the experience.
Thank you, bye, next.

(Ethan turned 3mo recently.)

Gissy Happy 3 months Ethan🥰🥳❤️❤️❤️ 9mo
Andrea4 @Gissy thank you!!☺️ 9mo
19 likes2 comments
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Andrea4
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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So as it turns out, the two books I picked up from the library today, simply because of the fact that they are both on my TBR and the only ones that we're both available today at my local branch, are by two Canadian authors.
Woo!

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Roary47
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Mehso-so

3✨This was a very graphic and gory read. The monsters seems to be better people than the normal people. The crazy relationship between Florian and Johann kinda worked in a messed up way. I had trouble following along and would have liked more depth. It is a small book, but think the idea and plot were great. I just would have liked more. Read for #LMPBC @Littlewolf1 @Lauranahe @LitStephanie It is also my June #Doublebookspin @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Great progress!!! 2y
15 likes1 comment
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Roary47
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Might be hard to tell, but enjoying the patio while it is actually raining!! Still a little hot here, but at least the rain is cooling it down substantially. 😮‍💨

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Lauranahe
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

This a very short (157 pjs) dark fantasy. There‘s a monster, a sorcerer, a revenge plot, murder…very dark and twisted and fun. Like a neo-Clive Barker.

15 likes1 stack add
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LitStephanie
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
Pickpick

Very strange and very disturbing. A young boy on his own becomes a murderous monster who cannot die. Eventually he meets up with a sorcerer who might or might not also be a monster. I don't want to give anything away so will leave it at that. #lmpbc #groupd #round14

LitStephanie @Lauranahe I mailed this to you Monday, along with a treat as my apology for being late. Should be there today! 😁 @Littlewolf1 @Roary47 @suvata 2y
Lauranahe Thank you! And no worries about being late! It‘s not like I don‘t have other books to read, ya know? 2y
Lauranahe Wait—I think you were supposed to send this to @Roary47 ! I have her book as well. I can forward it on to you, Shelly, or go ahead and mark up both then send both on to you. Which would you prefer? (Also, thanks for the treat! ☺️) 2y
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LitStephanie @Lauranahe crap! You were below me on the list of names. What is the proper sequence? 2y
Lauranahe My list goes @Littlewolf1 then you then @Roary47 then me. What do y‘all have? 2y
Roary47 Yes same I have @Littlewolf1 sends to @LitStephanie who sends to me and then me to @Lauranahe 2y
Roary47 @Lauranahe to answer your question why don‘t you go ahead and mark both up and send them together to @Littlewolf1 She can get me the book I haven‘t read and get them back to @LitStephanie 2y
Lauranahe Sounds good! 2y
Littlewolf1 I‘m just checking it to see if you got The Child Thief yet 2y
Lauranahe I did! I‘m sorry, I was off litsy a couple days. I‘m starting it now! 2y
12 likes10 comments
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TracyReadsBooks
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Happy New Year!

I read so many great books this year. My Top 15 in no particular order:

The Wizard Hunters
Sacred City
The Monster of Elendhaven
Fevered Star
Gallant
Daughter of the Deep
Dreyer‘s English
Deacon King Kong
Razorblade Tears
Four Lost Cities
Any Way the Wind Blows
The Troubled Girls of Dragomire Academy
Kaleidoscope
Dark Rise
The Age of Dinosaurs

On to 2022!!!

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TracyReadsBooks
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Wow wow wow, this novella is dark & gothic & murder-y af & I loved every single word. A monster, a sorcerer, a dying city, & a diabolical plan combine in this debut which reads like anything but—the writing is excellent & really assured. If you‘re a fan of The Library at Mount Char you will almost certainly like this book. Likewise if you‘re a fan of horror. No sooner did I finish it than I wanted to start over & read it again. It‘s that good.

LitStephanie Ok now I might have to go find The Library at Mt. Char. Great review! I just finished it. 2y
TracyReadsBooks @LitStephanie Oh yeah, The Library at Mount Char is so so good. Dark, murder-y, twisted in all the best ways. I highly recommend it, particularly if you liked this one. 2y
30 likes3 stack adds2 comments
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TheRiehlDeal
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Mehso-so

I was a little disappointed that I didn‘t end up liking this as much as I thought I would when all said and done. Though, I did like the dark, horror-ish descriptions! Plus, the narrator did a very good job reading this; most likely why I finished it. Nonetheless, I‘m intrigued what Giesbrecht writes next.

3.5 ⭐️
11/12/21

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StaceGhost
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Wrapping up my #20in4 tonight with this atmospheric work @ulrichyumiodd I agree! Beautifully written 🫀total time ~12hrs

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WanderingBookaneer
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Loved this display at my local B&N.

BookmarkTavern Those are some gorgeous looking covers! 😍 2y
Lauram 2! I‘ve only read 2 from that display. Going around and counting how many I‘ve read from bookstore or library displays is one of my favorite pastimes. 2y
WanderingBookaneer @Lauram : I do the same! 2y
67 likes3 comments
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BookishMadHatter
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Hooray for lazy Sundays

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night_shift
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

I enjoyed this strange, dark little world built and these two despicable yet somehow lovable characters.

45 likes2 stack adds
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RyanMHoward
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Earlier this year I read The Monster of Elendhaven by Jennifer Giesbrecht.

This was a short but wicked read! A killer who cannot die forms an eerie, yet almost touching bond with a secretive sorcerer in a seemingly cursed town. It‘s violent and macabre, but also surprisingly tender at parts. This dark little debut is captivating! I enjoyed it, and very much look forward to what Ms. Giesbrecht writes next.

#ShortReview #JenniferGiesbrecht #Horror

24 likes3 stack adds
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aperfectmjk
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Panpan

I finished this one with just minutes to spare for #cyoreadathon. I'm not sure what my problem is, but I'm just not a big fan of fantasy. I found this one boring and unmemorable. Oh well, on to the next one. #Scarlathon2020 #TeamHarkness #bookspinbingo

@StayCurious @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks At least it's off the list! 3y
32 likes1 comment
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aperfectmjk
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Up next a Digital Library Read! Keeping the momentum flowing. #bookspinbingo #Scarlathon2020 #TeamHarkness #cyoreadathon

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SassenachTheBookWizard
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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It's been a depressing few days so been staying off socials mostly. Read these

keys_on_fire I hope things turn around for you! 🤗 4y
69 likes1 comment
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Asktheletters
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Because who doesn‘t need some perversity on a wet Sunday morning.

9 likes1 stack add
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Briary
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Easter Readathon was fun and I finished up nearly all I wanted. Only Nine Goblins by T. Kingfisher was left hanging, but oh well.

Oh and one short story missing from the picture is the wonderful A Witch's Guide to Escapes: A Practical Compedium To Portal Fantasies by Alix E. Harrow.

If only return to reality wasn't so jarring.. 🙈

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e.c.vitoria
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

This was delightfully brutal, reminded me a lot of Vicous 🖤.

10/10 💫

Reecaspieces Love the pic! 4y
e.c.vitoria @Reecaspieces Thank You! 😊 4y
12 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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e.c.vitoria
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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14 likes1 stack add
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Aaronlisa
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

I read this between Feb 12 & 13th and gave it 4 ⭐️. My only real complaint about this book was that it was far too short. Although the story was compact and tight (and it made sense to be a novella), I found that Giesbrecht‘s world building was such that I wanted to stay longer in the world of Elendhaven.

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overtheedge
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
Pickpick

A monster. A murder. A plot for revenge. This is a twisted and horrific dark fantasy novella.

A quick but engrossing novella. Looking for more from this author.
3.5 🌟

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brennahawleycraig
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Mehso-so

First two books of the year. Both I would say are 3.5/5.

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ablachly
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Dark and twisty and gay and I loved it.

19 likes1 stack add
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Owlizabeth
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

What a weird, dark little book of death and magic and myths and revenge and hate. I‘m not sure it made total sense, but I really enjoyed the writing. 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

44 likes1 stack add
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ulrichyumiodd
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

“Monster was the best, his favourite word. The first half was a kiss, the second a hiss.”

I absolutely loved this novella. It was dark, twisted, and violent, though not scary - which I much prefer; scary stories aren‘t always for me. I fell in love with the writing style and the characters. The last chapter was intriguing, as if it only hinted at the last piece of the puzzle - but that was okay with me.

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aeeklund
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Miya and I have made cocoa and settled in with our third @DeweysReadathon book! Someone is enjoying spooky book season! #miyacatsprite #miyareads #catsoflitsy #readathon #novellasnovellasnovellas

valeriegeary Such a cute pic 4y
30 likes1 comment
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Lizpixie
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Bk2 of #DeweyOct #Readathon & Bk5 of #24B4Monday I really enjoyed this novella about a Monster that cannot die & his Master. It was a story of darkness & revenge, of plague & of healing, of love but most of all hate. The hate of both for the city that reviled them for so long. It was dark & twisted and I loved it🖤 #Scarathlon #TeamSlaughter 11points + 10 #PointsTotal-1,479

Andrew65 That‘s a lot of books finished. 👏👏👏 4y
40 likes1 comment
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Jadams89
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

A thing with no name that can‘t be killed. A sorcerer with a tragic past. A plague that will serve revenge to everyone that ever wronged them. I enjoyed this book! +11 (team theme/post) #TeamStoker #scarathlon #24b4monday

BeansPage 🧟‍♀️ 4y
21 likes1 comment
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Lizpixie
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Got in an hour before having a nanna nap, but I‘m back and ready to go! Not gonna make 24hrs for the #DeweyOct #readathon but I‘m very happy with my #24B4Monday time. This book is interesting so far. Johann is a street rat in Elendhaven until he discovers he can‘t die. Styling himself The Monster of Elendhaven, he meets Florian the wizard & together they cause trouble all over the city. #TeamSlaughter #Scarathlon 1point + 5 #PointsTotal-1,458

Andrew65 And so you should be, that‘s a stunning time 🙌🙌🙌😍 4y
Clwojick 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 4y
BookwormDownUnder Awesome time! 4y
38 likes3 comments
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RainyDayReading
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Bailedbailed

Kind of surprised that I‘m putting this one aside since it‘s not very long at all (only 160 pages) and it sounded so up my alley. But I got halfway through and was just bored. I wasn‘t really compelled by the story to find out what was going on. I wasn‘t charmed by the characters and I flicked to the end and did a bit of skimming and what was there wasn‘t enough to make me want to keep going 🤷🏼‍♀️ I might give it another try later.

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RainyDayReading
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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My book actually fits the #monster prompt for today‘s #ChillingPhotoChallenge so far it‘s dark and gritty and I am thoroughly enjoying it! Perhaps I‘ve finally found something to break my slump. #teamslaughter #scarathlon @Clwojick

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ladym30
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Starting this today!💀💀

35 likes1 stack add
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BookishGamer87
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
Mehso-so

I'm finding that I'm reading a lot of meh books lately. This wasn't nearly as creepy and scary and badass as I was hoping for just going by the synopsis. It was just meh.

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shaynarae
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

This novella was so much fun to read. Especially after the slog through the sea of wordiness that is Brandon Sanderson, picking up a book that is cutting, evocative, and gripping while being 10x shorter than the last book I read was so refreshing. If you can handle some cold, dark, creepiness, and violence, grab this little bugger this month.

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Lizpixie
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Congratulations to @Librarybelle on her 200,00 litfluence milestone! A book I‘d most love to read is the tagged book. It‘s been compared to Gideon the Ninth and I loved that book very much. It has all the right elements, a city by the sea, Magic, monsters & horrible people doing horrible things who get taught a lesson. What‘s not to love? #200Kgiveaway

Librarybelle Thank you! Sounds good! 4y
41 likes1 comment
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Easytiger
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

#scaryscavengerhunt
Matte cover and character death

#TeamStoker #scarathlon
3 points

BeansPage 🧟‍♀️ 4y
19 likes1 comment
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Skeebies05
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Panpan

🤷🏽‍♀️ I just don‘t know about this one. For some reason I kinda hated it. It was too long for a short story but not enough depth for a novella? Just did not dig this one at all

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Skeebies05
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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I have these two on audio. I started Monster the other day. It‘s ooooookkkkkk. I‘m not sure what is going on in my head but nothing is ringing my bell lately.

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AshleyKorinE
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Mehso-so

Gearing up for Halloween picked up a monster book to end September and start October and didn‘t love it! It suffers from the same thing most novellas do, there‘s so much story and not enough info for the story. I wanted more monsters and got more romance which I didn‘t hate but it wasn‘t fully fleshed out so I didn‘t get to enjoy it either. I‘ll read other books she writes and this was fun but maybe next time there will be more!

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Sweetkokoro
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Panpan

This was such a let down. I had my hopes up for it, it sounded so cool but it ended up being nothing. The monster part barely exists it‘s in the beginning and the end but the middle just becomes this weird romance story, and it just like happens there is no reason or build up for it, then there is magic, tales of gods and revenge it just starts going in so many directions, It was a mess.

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Ashley_Nicoletto
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Gearing up for October this morning. 🎃

65 likes3 stack adds
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cleoh
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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#7days7covers #covercrush day 6!

seven covers in seven days, no explanation!
tag someone new each day!

@keepingupwiththepenguins have you been tagged yet?

readordierachel Love this cover! 5y
keepingupwiththepenguins Thank you!! 😘 😘 5y
74 likes2 stack adds2 comments
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BekahB
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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I enjoy reading horror all year round, but I love this time of year when horror reading lists start popping up online. I already have a lot of these suggestions from Bustle on my shelf and wishlist, but I found a few more to add to my TBR. 👻

https://www.bustle.com/p/20-new-horror-books-for-readers-who-take-spooky-season-...

Karkar Thank you for sharing- there were a bunch I added! 📚📚 5y
underthebelljar Ooh thank you!! My TBR just grew! 5y
LauraJ It‘s the best time of the year! 5y
JoScho Thanks for posting! 5y
59 likes4 comments
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Liberty
The Monster of Elendhaven | Jennifer Giesbrecht
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Pickpick

Holy cats, I loved this so much! Tor is trying to kill me with book joy this year. A 160-page-long gothic grotesquerie, with a deliciously disturbing monster romance. I‘m going to slide this book between my fourth and fifth ribs like Johann would his blade. It would make a great starter before reading GIDEON THE NINTH, or a perfect dessert when you‘re done.🖤🗡☠️

aa_guer2021 Fascinating. And I have that statue. 5y
111 likes14 stack adds1 comment