Oooo, so dark and creepy! It starts off cozy and then turns on you. A very disturbing read that has many possible interpretations.

#BookSpin #BacklistReadathon #10BeforeTheEnd Number 3

Fun collection of short comics to read in small sections.

Are we in #1 or #4?

I was a little intimidated by this but was immediately engrossed. Might help that it was inspired by one of my favorite books (though not a retelling, I don't think.)

#10BeforeTheEnd #BookSpin

“Why is it all Mr. Dibbler's films are set against the background of a world gone mad?“ said the dwarf.

Sol's eyes narrowed “Because Mr. Dibbler,“ he growled, “is a very observant man.“

Reminds me of one of my old fav cartoons: a man is reading in a hammock, and books are flying towards him while he swats them with a fly swatter and yells “wait your turn!“

Another down for #10BeforeTheEnd ! Gee, that only leaves 8. 🤦🏻‍♀️

I previously bailed on this but for some reason was really interested in trying the sequel, so gave it another go. I still found the narrator on the irritating/immature side, particularly her views on romance novels -- which I *love*, but don't over-idealize. But the love interest is super sweet and the scavenger hunt throughout Seattle is a lot of fun.

Hello, babies. Welcome to Earth. It‘s hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It‘s round and wet and crowded. At the outside, babies, you‘ve got about a hundred years here. There‘s only one rule that I know of, babies—:

God damn it, you‘ve got to be kind.

1. Hmmm. Dots are cuter, but then I'm cut off from pride flags.

2. This is a given. I'm always reading library books!

The only thing I didn't like about this book was that I wanted even more. It's so interesting to learn about the progress of Sarah Andersen as an artist and a person. I was amused that she saw herself as moving away from “relatability“ in her recent work, because it's still her hallmark for me, even when the main character has bat wings.

(The image isn't from this book, btw, but it illustrates what I wanted to say perfectly.)

It was nice to have three serious contenders for this week! The other two were The Talk by Darrin Bell and Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday.

We need this book now more than ever, and it and 9 others are available as free ebooks at https://www.haymarketbooks.org/blogs/517-ten-free-ebooks-for-getting-free

Free for 2 weeks. You do need to make an account, but don't have to give them a credit card or any info other than a name and email.

Really liked this contemporary romance. There were a couple of plot points that made me go “hmmm“ at first and then it turned out they really added to the story.

I'm finding this a very calm, easy read which is just perfect for today.

I like that Halle is mentioned as being a larger size than the other girls she knows and absolutely nothing is made of this. It's just a fact that comes up when she needs to borrow clothes.

#ComfortReadathon @BookwormAHN

I have a bad feeling about where my book is heading... 😬

Later on me and Charlie recited our Torah for him, but we did it the way Cab Calloway would, including the Hi-De Ho's.

A beautifully realized graphic memoir about growing up biracial/Black in America. Bell has always turned his struggles and insights into powerful words and pictures, thereby also earning a living and a Pulitzer prize. But as his baby son gets older, he has to reckon with everything he's learned in order to prepare him for what he'll face. Very touching and meaningful.

#NFNovember

(Ugh. I know this board is hideous but I'm too tired to redo it.)

Books with an * are also on my #10BeforeTheEnd list.

But it's also my last month of free KU so I may just mood read, who knows. 😂

She hadn't had a chance to work through the pros and cons, or check it for safety from every angle. For heaven's sake, she hadn't even written it down and nothing *counted* until you wrote it down, which meant that Dani was currently engaged in the highly dangerous practice of loving Zaf without a permit.

#31By31 Readathon: 34 books read!

#BacklistReadathon: read 1 book by Jackilyn Johnson, and 2 and 1 DNF by T. Kingfisher.

#TBRTarot Less than 100 pages: How to Make Friends with a Ghost

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub total points: 20756!

Thanks to @Jadams89 for being our group leader and @PuddleJumper for doing such great organizing in such a short time!

My November #BookSpin list. This includes quite a few of my #10BeforeTheEnd books, so I hope I can get four of those read.

#WeeklyFavorites

Perfectly fine horror, just not my cuppa.

Possibly the scariest book I read this month. Definitely the scariest cover!

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 Book #33
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon

I loved this complicated queer romance about grief, identity, Jewishness, family of all kinds, and showing love even after death. It's not at all spooky or scary, but very warm and tender

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 book 33!
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon Letter R

My kind of pumpkin.

#Spookoween

1. I was in a fun musical version of “Dune,“ so I'm going to wear my fremen costume. Will probably be the closest I've ever gotten to recognizable cultural relevance for Halloween. 😂

2. A Sorceress Comes to Call was very creepy but balanced with positivity, so more up my alley than total horror.

https://wondermark.com/c/1552/

Truly horrifying! 😂

#Spookoween

Man, I don't even know about this book. I love when I relate to what I'm reading, but it's like this somehow listened to all my hard emotions of the past 4 years and just vomited them onto pages. The main character even has my nickname, just to wig me out more.

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 Book 30
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon Letter T #Witchathon

I see my future.

#Spookoween

This very much written for me, a former child who was saved by books. It goes over the edge into too syrupy at times, but still satisfies-- and it's a nice change from the cliche of “you met your life-saving artist and he's a real dick.“ This author isn't perfect, but does not let us down.

And my first full bingo card for #HauntedShelf! I love cards like this because they're subjective. It's really fun coming up with meaningful associations.

I don't watch much horror, but “Carrie“ is an amazing movie.

I finished after all, and it's a low pick. There's very little in the way of worldbuilding, so if you're not deeply invested in the vibes and romance there's not much left -- and these aren't really my vibes. The romance is pleasant, once the heroine stops acting like a 5 year old. I probably won't continue the series, but who knows?

It did finally get me #HalloweenAtoZReadathon bingos. 😁

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 book 26 #Spookoween

Game of Thrones parody, I think? I haven't read or watched that.

I am DNFing like there's no tomorrow! Or more accurately, like there are limited tomorrows and I don't want to waste them on books I'm not enjoying.

So far these cute, funny villain stories that are trendy right now aren't working for me at all. 🥱 #HailTheBail

#HauntedShelf team #FrightClub

Nothing wrong with the book, it's just far more dark and creepy than I can handle right now.

Two fantasy choices this month, unsurprisingly I guess. My #BookSpin for the month was excellent. Unfortunately the #DoubleSpin, a sequel to a book I enjoyed, turned me immediately off. It leaps right into lusting and sexytimes, before we're even gotten a chance to get to know the characters again, and that is so boring to me.

Luckily I'm a proud member of the #HailTheBail squad. 😁

One of my most obscure old favorites, because it never made it into paperback. (The library journal reviews weren't great, which makes me long for magic so I could go back in time and smack some heads.) It includes a series of many different kinds of magical adventures -- mermaids, pixies, witches -- but the chapter featuring a lonely ghost girl is truly... haunting.

About 30% in and trying to decide whether to keep going. The main character and her friend are ridiculously vindictive, IMO. I don't enjoy enemies to lovers romance when it just seems petty.

A pick because it's clever, well written and brings up interesting questions. I didn't enjoy a lot of the reading experience though, and kind of hate the way the author chose to end it. I strongly advise checking content warnings if you're a sensitive reader and/or a parent.

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 Book 24 #Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon Letter N #PSReadathon

Happy #Spookoween!

Cynical Kay discovers that corny religious youth groups have a badass secret -- they're actual demon hunters. But if they don't learn to work together -- Catholics, Evangelicals, Jews and Wiccans -- the demons might succeed in hunting them.

This is funny, scary, and somewhat gory. I was irked by the casual response to Kay's legit concerns about Evangelical groups as shown above, but it is explored more later, though still not in great depth.

#10BeforeTheEnd @ChaoticMissAdventures

I've got some overlap with my #BookSpin list, because some numbers haven't been hit this year.

A professional declutterer is used to dealing with unpleasant surprises... but a dead body is new. Interesting premise and backstory, but the prose is often sloppy and the solution of the mystery isn't very satisfying. It almost feels like Brett would rather have been writing a sad, misogynistic novel.

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 book 22
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon letter B
#PSReadathon book 1

A teen in literal thrall to her mother and a middle-aged woman fearing for her susceptible brother work together to fight their extraordinarily powerful enemy. An almost unbearably anxious read, but the horror is well balanced with kindness, comradeship, and love. (There's an understated but very tender romance.)

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 Book 20
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon
#BacklistReadathon

Ooooooo..... is there anything more horrifying than.... eeeeeee.... academic writing! 🙀 Trust it to make even a hilarious, unique show seem boring AF. Though after slogging through the first half of the essays, I was rewarded with some actually interesting and insightful content in the second, so it wasn't a complete waste. Really only for superfans though.

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 Book 19
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon

1. No, but my kid has. Luckily it was candy corn so I'm not tempted. I will definitely be hitting up the after Halloween sales though. 😊

2. Mental health's important.

#two4tuesday @TheSpineView @Sace

Readable and compelling but I might have liked it better if I wasn't already a fan of Johnson's Stevie Bell mysteries, because the similarity in tone only made narrator Marlowe seem meh in comparison to Stevie. It doesn't help that she completely submerges her own personality for love, with great success too. 😬

#HauntedShelf #FrightClub #31By31 Book 18
#Spookoween #HalloweenAtoZReadathon letter F and two bingo lines!