​Cory and Greg have been best friends since high school despite being completely different people.  Now, in their fifties, the men's lives have taken very different paths. However, they still meet up for their annual hunting trip in the Canadian Rockies.  While on their trip, Cory and Greg follow a large monarch Elk into the Tochquinlan Range, a sacred but uninhabited area of the First Nations People.  Cory's grandfather told him stories of his ancestors and the Shaman who turned to evil and is believed to now be a Skudakumooch, a ghost which.  After Cory and Greg enter the Tochquinlan range, their luck turns sour.  They are hunted by a grizzly with haunting grey eyes and the Elk leads them into the hoodoos. Cory seems to be obsessed with finding the Elk at all costs.  As the Elk leads the pair into a cave system, they will learn exactly what that cost is. 

Skudakumooch, the ghost witch.  The title alone was enough to pull me in.  I loved that this is based on Native American folklore and it led me to look into more Native stories of the Skudakumooch.  The writing is a slow burn of suspense building as the two men travel into the woods.  As the Skudakumooch appeared in different ways, it wasn't always apparent what the Skudakumooch wanted from them.  The descriptions of the Tochquinlan Range, the hoodoos and the especially creepy cave added to the uneasy feeling of the story.  The men's relationship was another important part of the story that I enjoyed as Greg reminisced about their time growing up together and began to pinpoint the times people said strange things about Cory.  I did want a little more out of their friendship, but the connection was still good.  As the Skudakumooch grows in power and presence the grotesque and horror elements of the story come into full view as chaos erupts.  There was also an underlying theme of environmental preservation; however, I'm not sure that the Skudakumooch is the protector or the destroyer. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

Raven Birchfield is new to the small town of Half Horse, Illinois.  Raven, her mother and little brother, have inherited her Aunt Bestla's house along with all of it's belongings.  Now Raven is the new kid at school and just wants to fade into the background.  However, Raven attracts the attention of popular and pretty Janelle all too quickly when she is caught staring at Janelle's boyfriend, Dex.  To make matters worse, Raven has dug up a strange box in her backyard, opposite a graveyard.  The box contains a book of children's stories and a necklace.  After Raven finds the box she begins to hear whispers of the name Mary in the wind and becomes very attached to a watering can in her shed.  Eventually the force of Mary takes over and Raven learns what it's like to have her every desire granted. 

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary is a young adult fantasy that creatively uses nursery rhymes as a vehicle for suspense and a tool to help facilitate change.  The story is fast paced a quick read.  The preface quickly interested me in the story as Raven said that she was the Mary in the nursery rhyme, whether she liked it or not.  Raven's character is a junior in high school and she is facing a lot of the same issues a typical high school does.  However, the story is narrated from her point of view and her voice and inner-monologue seems a little more juvenile than the age she should be.  Although, through becoming Mary, Raven does grow and I hope to see the impacts of this in the next book. I did like the device of the nursery rhyme characters, the book and crystal transporting Raven.  There is some explanation of how it works and why, but I hope there will be even more questions answered in the rest of the series.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

​Raven Birchfield is just recovering from her possession by Mary from the nursery rhyme, Mary, Mary Quite Contrary.  After finding an old book of rhymes and a pendant that her Aunt Bestla left behind, Raven has been taken control of by the characters in order to be taught a lesson.  This time, Patience Muffet has gotten a hold of Raven's best friend Candy.  Raven doesn't know that Candy's home life is in turmoil, especially with her stepfather,making her the perfect victim for Patience.  On top of that, Raven unexpectedly starts getting attention from football player, Brett.  Candy happens to have a huge crush on Brett and is hurt by Raven's behavior.
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Muffet is the second book in the young adult paranormal series, Once Upon a Rhyme.  I highly encourage reading the first book, Mary, Mary to begin with in order to get to know Raven and Candy as well as how the nursery rhyme book works. Muffet picks up shortly after the first book leaves off and focuses on Candy, but is still mainly told from Raven's point of view.  I was surprised that Raven still seemed immature and didn't put the clues together about what was happening with Candy's stepfather a little more quickly.  However, I did like the lesson that Patience Muffet provided to the girls.  I especially liked Patience's look in the other realm.  Although, I'm still wondering about how the nursery rhyme book works and why a graveyard of 16th century English people ended up in Illinois. I hope the Raven keep learning from the lessons and hopefully her little brother will learn something in the next book as well.  

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

Raven Birchfield's life isn't getting any easier.  After dealing with a possession by Mary of the nursery rhyme Mary, Mary Quite Contrary and helping her best friend Candy through a possession by Little Miss Muffet, it seems that it is her brother Johnny's turn.  After Raven's mom forgets about Johnny's birthday, Raven rushes to find him a present.  After sifting through her Aunt Bestla's things, Raven finds a blue bomber jacket that she knows Johnny will adore.  Raven figures out just a little too late that the jacket is connected to Little Boy Blue and her brother has turned into an overconfident, boastful, thief.  To top it off,  Raven and Johnny's father who left on Johnny's seventh birthday has return inexplicably and their mother accepts him back with no questions.

Blue is the third book in the Once Upon a Rhyme series and should definitely be read after Mary, Mary and Muffet in order to get to know the characters and how the nursery rhyme possessions work. Blue follows the same pattern as the first two books; however, now Raven has a better understanding of how things work and a friend she can trust with the craziness.  Blue's possession was a little different since his evil characteristics weren't shown outright. Raven and Candy liked Johnny a lot better as Blue and so did he, but Blue's possession was the darkest and had the most potential for harm.  I'm still confused about how a bomber jacket is tied to a 16th century historical figure as well as why the graveyard exists.  Although, the intrigue has built up with the return of Raven's father as well as the growing connection that Raven's classmate Dex seems to have with everything.  



This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

Sisters Wren and Sage have always lived in the woods of the small town of Stillwater, NY.  Their mother kept them hidden away and without any influence of outside society.  Mother always told them of the dangers and evils of the world outside of their homestead.  However, Mother left Wren and Sage months ago with their sick little sister Evie in order to get her medical treatment.  Mother has yet to return and supplies are dwindling as winter approaches.  When a man comes to their cabin in search of them, the sisters panic and flee into the woods.  They arrive at Nicolette Gideon's home on the outskirts of Stillwater.  Nicolette offers them help and the girl's sudden appearance creates a stir in the small town as well as opening up some mysteries from the past. 


The Stillwater Girls is a gripping thriller that I binged in one day.  Told through alternating points of view between Wren and Nicolette; I was immediately caught up in Wren's circumstances trying to survive a winter in the New York woods with primitive supplies.  Nicolette's viewpoint took me a little longer to get into, a wealthy woman in her 30's who believes her marriage is struggling due to a emergency hysterectomy 10 years ago.  I did like that I could not figure out the connection between the women until closer to the end of the story.  The pacing of the story was steady as suspense builds with the sisters having to flee and Nicolette not knowing where she stands with her husband.  As their stories intersect, mysteries unravel.  The ending tumbled together quickly and I was thoroughly unprepared for the revelation at the end and the secret that was held on to for so long.  Overall, The Stillwater Girls is a consuming psychological thriller with plenty of twists and turns.


This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

​Ritchie Naughton's life is falling apart.  After returning home on a break from work one afternoon, he discovers his long-time girlfriend in bed with a football player.  The shock triggers a heart condition that Ritchie never knew about.  After all this, Ritchie makes a decision to move back to New Jersey and into his sister's basement. Ritchie finally he  finds a job as a staff photographer at a local paper.  The paper has an older camera for Ritchie to use, and is only inscribed with the name Denlax.  Along with his newspaper gig, Ritchie reluctantly agrees to work for his uncle in order to provide picture proof of his aunt's infidelity.  With this side gig, Ritchie finds that the camera produces disturbing images of other worlds.  Soon, the Denlax drags Ritchie into a dangerous world with extreme consequences.


In the House of Mirrors is a slow-burning horror that sucked me in with great characters and a unique plot.  From the beginning, I never quite knew which way the book would take me and that made me keep reading.  All of the characters, human and otherwise were thoroughly created.  The camera itself was the most intriguing, bringing is elements of horror, supernatural, and the occult.  The mystery of the Denlax kept me guessing as the pictures with imperfections soon showed separate worlds and beings that moved within the picture, sort of like an otherworldly camera obscura.  I loved the history behind the camera and the story that was passed down along with it.  As Ritchie learned about the camera, he began to change, but not as I would have suspected.  The pieces started to fall together as the story wrapped up and the horror, suspense and gruesomeness of the acts that the camera precipitated.   Overall, an intense and different horror read.

​Ellen, Sue and Tanya are all empty-nester's looking for a project to keep them busy.  Ellen comes across a beautiful 1860's Greek revival with lots of potential in San Antonio. All three friends like the house, but they find out several other sales have fallen through due to the house being haunted.  A haunting just gets the ladies more interested in the house and the hold a seance.  Immediately, they receive confirmation of the ghost.  Neighbors confirm what they experience.  As they explore the house more, the Greek revival's attic opens up more mysteries to the history of the house with medical equipment and pictures of women who were patients.  Ellen, the most skeptical of the groups digs into the identity of the ghost, her family and if she is a ghost at all.

The Mystery House is a fast paced mystery with many little twists and turns as well as elements of paranormal and psychological horror.  I had a hard time feeling like I got to know the three women as characters, however, I was very drawn in to the mysteries of the house and the ghost.  From the beginning I thought that the ghost was very unique, not very scary, but with definite purpose and not hesitant to show herself.  This is all part of one of the many little mysteries that are unraveled.  More than the ghost, I was interested in the many woman who had lived in the house when it was a rest home.  The plot delves into the backstory of a few of the women who were related with letters and diary entries, but I think a lot more could have been developed in the women's past in order to intensify the horrors of the house.  Overall, a quick, multifaceted mystery perfect for Halloween season.

​Highshcooler, Stella Blunt has just received the worst news of her life- her mother has gotten a new job and they will be moving from Nova Scotia to Vancouver.   Stella is on the heavier side, tends to say what she thinks and knows kung-fu, making friends is not her forte. Stella puts on her big girl panties, as her dad says and makes the best of her first day at her new school.  Stella hears a wide variety of fat jokes, and her chemistry lab partner, Howard apparently can't do much except ogle and drool directly at Stella.  Stella is having a hard enough time without the one person at school who might have a lower social status then herself crushing hard on her; but the next day Howard is completely different- polite, charming and interesting.  Howard can't help but be around Stella and a relationship forms, but Stella knows that Howard and his family are different.  As soon as Howard spills the beans about essentially being a zombie, an outbreak happens.  They all seem to want Stella's brain in particular and the Feds are blaming Howard's family for the whole thing.


Chemistry is a play on the Twilight series that fixes many of the criticisms that Twilight garnered.  Stella herself is outspoken, not afraid to ask questions, tough and not your typical body type.  Stella's parents are also very present, supportive and hilarious.  They are involved in her life and have plenty of awkward conversations, just like real highschool kids have to go though.  One of my favorite lines was " ...while I completely acknowledge and recognize that you are not responsible for men's reactions to you, teenage boy's brains do tend to shut down when they see a pretty girl. "It's all about the boobs," said my father."  Howard also isn't your typical pretty boy and because of his condition, he is seen as an outcast.  However, because of his elongated time as a teenage boy, he has a gentle nature and a lot of insight.  I did like how the Z03818 virus was explained and how Howie and his family were still more on the living side of the virus than the dead.  The romance in the story did move pretty quickly with love found within a matter of days.  Although, the action, mystery and suspense of the zombie outbreak was on point and was a great blend of conspiracy, danger and chainsaw actions.  Overall, a perfect read for paranormal romance lovers!

Something is wrong in the town of Bailey, something lurks in the river that seems to take its toll on the town in  a longstanding pattern.  After Josh loses his older brother, Callum to the river, he finds Kate and Gabe.  Kate and Gabe have also lost their fathers to the water.  Since each of the deaths, the teens have seen strange things surface in the water, images of their loved ones, hallucinations and dreams that seem more like memories.  With the help of the town historian, they try to solve and stop the plague that haunts Bailey. 

Dark Wood Dark Water presented and intriguing mystery and a multi-layered horror story.  It did take me a while to get into and to sort out all of the characters.  There were quite a few characters introduced at the beginning and the chapters switched between their points of view.  This made it difficult for me to place how everyone fit together.  Once the three main characters were together,this was a bit easier.  I enjoyed the connection to the past and the uniqueness of the curse, however I was left confused with some of the characters that played a part in the curse. I am still unsure as to what role Alma and Richard played and I'm not sure they were even necessary to the plot.   Josh, Gabe and Kate were well thought out and were characters that I cared about.  I would have loved a little more information as to how the curse began in the past, it seemed like the originator of the curse was dabbling in some dark arts that may have been rooted in Bailey even before the curse began.  The horror elements kept me reading as they ranged from haunting to gruesome to psychological.  Overall, a unique young adult horror that could use a bit more polishing up.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. ​

Sylvie Mason has always been the good daughter compared to her sister, Rose. Sylvie and Rose's parents have given the girls an interesting life- to say the least. Their parents made a living by helping people who are haunted, they often took objects or even people into their home. Sylvie and Rose's life changes drastically after Penny, a doll and Abigail, a troubled girl come into their lives. After their parents take these cases, their parents are killed. Rose is left as Sylvie's guardian and 14 year-old Sylvie is the only witness to her parent's deaths. As Sylvie tries to recollect what happened that night, she recounts her strange life in order to figure out who or what actually killed her parents.

Help For The Haunted is a creepy murder-mystery that seems to be inspired by the life of the Warrens. The narration skips back and forth between time from Sylvie's childhood and the events leading up to her parents deaths and after Sylvie's parents have died, the result of this is slightly disorienting, but brings us into Sylvie's mindset. As the story unfolds, the battle of the natural versus the supernatural begin to unfold as Sylvie tries to determine what really caused all of the strange events in their lives and who really killed her parents. I was very intrigued by Penny and Abigail and why they were believed to be haunted as well as their real sources of power of people. Rose's character was an enigma, as well as an important part of the story; it seemed that no one understood her, including her parents that were supposed to be able to help children who were struggling. The ending wrapped up rather quickly as Sylvie exposed the truth of her family .Overall, a suspenseful crime thriller with plenty of supernatural elements that will keep you guessing.

​Griffin Rinaldin is a thirteen year old boy that is dealing with a lot of crap. His abusive father recently died and now Griffin has been diagnosed with Depersonalization disorder, where Griffin feels like he is outside of his body and looking at himself from someone else's point of view.  Griffin's sources of comfort in his life are his cousin Tanner, whose father is also abusive as well as his Grandfather Soren.  Soren tells Griffin stories of a mysterious young man with red hair taking revenge on abusers.  The stories are meant to help Griffin with coping strategies, but the red haired boy begins to take form in Griffin's life and Griffin is seeing him more and more often along with his out of body experiences.  


The Disembodied is a gripping psychological horror story that slowly pulls you in by weaving together different elements from both the natural and supernatural world.  A unique narrator and well developed characters fascinated me and made the book difficult to put down. All of the characters felt very real; they made mistakes, they felt real emotions and tried their best to get through everything.  Perhaps the most terrifying thing about the book is that most of the horror elements are firmly rooted in the natural world: abuse, mental illness, and addiction are all prevalent throughout the story.  My favorite parts however are the stories that Soren tells of the red-haired boy throughout history; these are great ghost stories that would stand on their own.  Overall, a thrilling and powerful story of love that masterfully combines elements from the horror world.

​Dr. Anton Kronberg is England's leading bacteriologist.  Dr. Kronberg is called in to investigate a case of a cholera victim floating in the city's water supply.  While the fact that the victim died of cholera is pretty clear cut, the way the disease was received and how the body  found its way into the water supply opens up to many more mysteries.  When Sherlock Holmes is also brought into the case, Dr. Kronberg has even more to fear as Holmes quickly discovers Dr. Kronberg's secret that Anton is really Anna Kronberg.  Holmes and Anna find a tenuous relationship as the case brings them into dangerous scenarios with devious men and treacherous plots.


The Devil's Grin is an engaging Victorian Era mystery.  Dr. Kronberg is a very interesting character.  Her choice to live as a man in order to practice medicine is honorable, yet has many difficulties and bears the consequence of death if found out.  Since she could legally practice medicine as a woman in other countries, this seems like a strange and dangerous predicament to place herself into.  Other than that, I really enjoyed the sharp and witty writing, the mystery and the passion behind Anna's character.  The mystery was a slow burn and grew on me with a series of well crafted layers that started with what seemed like a simple case but quickly grew into a large conspiracy that took Anna under cover.   Another interesting aspect of the story was Sherlock's character, a tortured soul and amazing detective, yet very different from the classic Holmes character.  Overall, an engaging historical thriller in Victorian London.