howlinglibraries's reviews
1797 reviews

Rest Stop by Nat Cassidy

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

 
Is this the feeling of being broken? He wonders. Or is it the process of breaking?

I've heard a lot of hype surrounding this novella, and I can certainly see why. It's a gruesome, suspenseful little thing with lots of fangs and pincers (literally and metaphorically), and I really enjoyed it. There's a dark humor to the whole thing, but moments of long-standing generational pain and cynicism are woven throughout it in a way that tugs at your heartstrings. The ending left me reeling a little bit, and I'm probably never going to look at gas station restrooms the same way.

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy! All thoughts are honest and my own.

Representation: Jewish MC and author 

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Seven Rabbits by Timothy King

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dark emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 God DAMN, I love a good vengeance story.

I loved the way this story was told, alternating chapters between present and past events. It gave us a chance to get to know and feel for the victims without being bogged down with massive info dumps or overly long and gratuitous assault scenes.

I'm usually really wary of horror books featuring sexual assault as a main premise because many of the more extreme ones I've read handled it VERY poorly, but it was easy to see the care and respect the author handled those scenes with. There are quite a few painful moments in this book that will break your heart and make you rage.

Overall, Seven Rabbits was beautifully written and I can't wait to read more from this author!

Buddy read with Misty

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This Cursed House by Del Sandeen

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 dnf @ 20%

I don't know what it was, but the writing wasn't working for me at all. 
How to Flirt with a Hellhound by Shannon Mae

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5.0

 Okay, this was SO CUTE and I really need to continue this series and check out Shannon Mae's other work soon. Dex and Toby were adorable together and I genuinely enjoyed the mystery/thriller subplot! I love suspenseful rom-coms like this, where enough of the book is happy and cutesy that I can get invested in the worrisome events without ever having any doubt that the characters will get their HEA.

I'd 100% recommend this for Alice Winters fans (and it reminded me that I need to read more of her books too) as well as fans of Onley James' Necessary Evils series!