Welcome to Litsy!

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This book is a powerful example of how storytelling can be both transportive and informative - shedding light on the historical and ongoing impacts of systemic racism, offering education and humanization. It was brutal to read at times, but also impactful and important. The ending had me completely hooked. Days later, I‘m still haunted by this brilliant ghost story. #Aardvark #AardvarkBookClub

Set in the Jim Crow South, a boy stands up for his sister and is then sent to the Reformatory for boys where evil dwells in human form and in spiritual form. A terrible historical background within a fantasy horror story. Courage and strength wins out.

Wow. Very good. This was so hard to read at times. I was on the edge of my sanity during the last part. Like trying to watch a scary movie while covering my eyes. Haddock was the epitome of evil. I was plotting his death the entire time. The haints were as much as a character as any of the others. I knew this had to be based on real events, which made it even more horrifying. 4.5 stars

I‘ve been wanting to do @silentreadingpartyrva for years but Father Time never aligned for it to be possible. I didn‘t know what to expect but I also didn‘t know that this was what I needed until I needed it. The whole experience was a vibe! Reformatory far it feels as if Mrs. Due will either have me crying or ready to fight someone. Shoutout to my daughter from another momma for my special bookmark.

I‘ll tell you honestly, Mr. Loehmann…this doesn‘t feel to me like the country we say we are.

5⭐️
A supernatural Nickel Boys. Couldn‘t put it down.

I never have a word for #weirdwords but thanks to the tagged book I now do! Though it‘s probably not weird for a musician.

Absolutely heartbreaking story from beginning to end. I feel like everyone needs to read historical fiction set in the Jim Crow south. This book was written so well and I was completely immersed. It was a little long which I felt several times throughout the book, but I don‘t think I would have been as invested if it wasn‘t. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

May‘s finished #bookspinbingo card
6 bingos
2 DNFs (& 2 more that I probably should have)

Tagged book was my favorite read of the month!

@TheAromaofBooks

This was heavier on the historical drama vs horror than I realized it would be but I was engrossed by all aspects of this story & desperate to find out what would happen next.

Grateful I got to hear Tananarive Due speak about her personal journey writing “The Reformatory” and her thoughts on Jim Crow horror, as well as the Salem Horror Festival‘s theme of “the horror within” as it applies to her work. Loved her terrifying & thought-provoking novel! #horror #racism #ghosts

Well that wraps up March. It was an awesome reading month from the beginning. What did you read this month? Any new faves?

The Reformatory
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Empire of Silence
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All Systems Red
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I also squeezed in a few audiobooks. You can check out my full wrap up and reviews here: https://wildwoodreads.com/2025/03/31/march-2025-wrap-up/

Picked this #audiobook at random on Libby, and all I can say is "what a great choice!" This one deserves a solid 4.5-5 stars.

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Starting The Reformatory today. See what all the praise is about.😁

I should have read The Reformatory sooner. This is one of those books that sticks with you long after you finish it. It‘s an important message wrapped up in an addictive story. If you haven‘t read it you need to immediately. I don‘t care what your preferred genre is this is an important story that everyone needs to experience at least once.

https://wildwoodreads.com/2025/03/10/the-reformatory-review/

Definitely my favorite book of February!

This is nothing short of a masterpiece.

Drop what you're doing and read this book.

Trust me.

Absolutely fantastic book. I had all the feels while reading it. Just…heartache and hope and terror and light and darkness and sorrow.

Happy Birthday, @wanderinglynn! Lynn is celebrating her special day by hosting a book giveaway. 🎉🎂🎁💗 #49bdaygiveaway

Got my #aardvarkbookclub box. The hardcover The Reformatory book is gorgeous. It came with the original cover, but I'm going to shelve it without it. Too pretty not to.

Monthly books! #Aardvarkbookclub #Bookofthemonth #botm

For Aardvark, full box again (🫨🫨), incl their book of the year (tagged), which, yes, I woke up at 530a to make sure I could secure (8aET is 6a here), plus these 2 I just… can‘t… pass… up. @AardvarkBookClub

For BOTM, a little lackluster, but I picked this interesting sounding thriller + getting the next issue of their short story subscription. Must… actually start that series soon… 🤔

New month for #aardvark and once again I filled my box! (My excuse that I‘m having surgery next week and may not be able to get to the library.) I couldn‘t miss out on The Reformatory again even though I‘m a bit worried about the length. The other two are mystery/thriller tropes that work well for me. What did everyone else pick?

My top five reads in 2024. I am really disappointed that I haven‘t seen The Reformatory on any “best of” lists. It is one of the best literary horror books I‘ve ever read. It was definitely my favorite book of the year.

Aardvark Book Club's 2024 Member Choice Winner was just announced. This special edition is so pretty! I'm definitely adding this to my January box. Hopefully I can snag one of the signed ones.🤞🏻

#aardvarkbookclub

Getting to the end, what will be my favorite of the year?! No idea, though this month my favorite was The Reformatory by Tananarive Due. I also went through my 5 stars for the year and added two standouts for my bonus - Where He Can‘t Find You by Darcy Coates & Ruin Me By Midnight by Ginny B. Moore. #readingbracket2024

This is an excellent and horrifying historical thriller based on Southern reformatories. Not an easy read, but so well written. I highly recommend. 5⭐️

A light day at work means I get to finish this! I can‘t put it down at this point and was almost up WAY too late reading it 😂

This is eye-opening historical horror. Ghosts play a big part in the book, but they are not nearly as terrifying as the living during the Jim Crow era. The book made me wonder how much has really changed. We still have the school to prison pipeline.

This is a fairly long book, and it is worth every page. I loved the main character, 12-year-old Robbie Stephens, and I was on the edge of my seat worried about him.

This was heavy - well written but I found it dragged on way too long. And the haint element was hard to get into, as anything other worldly tends to be for me. (43)
⭐️: 3/5

I am surprised about how much that I liked this book because this is a dark subject for this long of a novel; however, the writing is engaging and I felt the author's love for the subject and ended up racing through it. Also there's a spooky element that both illustrates the violence of the novel and adds a lighter, unreal element that makes the whole thing a bit more palatable.

This was engrossing but too difficult for me to read while grieving. I will pick it up again. I wish there was another button for this exact situation.

Haunting in more ways than one! Spooky ghosts, child abuse & racism plague a Florida reform school in the 1950s. The onslaught of cruelty young Robbie & his sister Gloria encounter can be difficult to listen to, but plot twists and a compelling, ghostly ending make it worth it. #ghoststories #horror #StokerAwardnominee

Currently reading this historical fiction ghost story about a 1950‘s reform school for boys in Jim Crow Florida.

Hard to put this one down!

#ghosts #abuse #racism #historicalfiction #ghoststory

This horror novel is set in a haunted reformatory in Florida in the 1950s. The ghosts in the reformatory are nowhere near as scary as the people running the place. The racism and hatred in this book left me breathless. The author includes references to historical people and cases, which had me looking up the true stories. The characters are well-rounded and the writing is propulsive. I am looking forward to reading more of this author‘s work.

3.5⭐
𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐬⇩
-Robert‘s POV was by far the more interesting one.
-The haints were a stand-out.
-It sheds light on the deplorable conditions these children were subjected to.
𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬⇩
-Gloria‘s POV, while necessary to the story, could‘ve been shaved down quite a bit.
-Multiple POVs with only one narrator, an additional male narrator would‘ve been best.
-Too long…or at least too long for me, although, plenty of people will find this a pro.

Only good thing about getting pneumonia is audiobooks. This very scary read, which is up for the Shirley Jackson award for best novel is a truly scary look at haunting of the supernatural and societal kind in the Jim Crow American South.

That was intense!

This is a book that is going to stay with me long after today.

I am speechless with how much I want to talk about this but also aware I don't have all the words I need to use to express how amazing this book really is. At moments, I was left breathless, hair raised and goosebumps all over from the tension and fear radiating from the pages and in some moments just held in suspense at what I was hearing as Joniece Abbott-Pratt narrated this book

My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/juz1nuZOlAg

Enjoy!

#indiebookstoreday #bookhaul - just supporting the local indie with @JenReadsAlot

"Black history is Black horror."

I honestly have nothing else to say.

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I said what I said 😋

Two 5‘s, two 4‘s, two 3‘s. Titanic one just released 4/2

This book is exceptional. I am blown away, wrecked, and in awe. I both didn‘t want to put it down and had to take breaks from the brutality. Due honors every boy abused, tortured, and/or murdered in schools of this type. This is my first read from her. It won‘t be my last.

A little over 50% done and I can‘t put it down.
@rachelsbrittain

This book was truly amazing. I could feel the raw emotion dripping off the pages. You really did care for these characters. This book made me laugh, cry, shout, and get angry. I do have to say, I think it could have been shortened. I think Gloria's perspective could be cut or at least most parts. At times, there were information dumps that made the pace get very slow. I think that would have taken this amazing book to a spectacular book. 4.5/5

True fact: #litsypenpals make birthdays extra special! Thank you so much @Beck9lol for all the literary birthday love! I can‘t wait to dive into all of these gems and the houseplant book will give me good tips for future plant babies and help to care for the ones I have. 🌱🪴📚 The puzzle looks like so much fun! I‘m blessed to have an extraordinary, thoughtful and kind book friend! Thanks, Becky, for making my birthday a special one! 🥰📚🎂

Think Nickel Boys + ghosts. It's actually really clever what the author does with this. I recommend this for sure. This was my November Aardvark pick.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

#Aardvark @AardvarkBookClub