noellesmagicallibrary's reviews
388 reviews

It's not that I didn't like this book exactly, but at 56% I still felt like there wasn't much happening. Once I realized this I decided it wasn't worth my time to listen to the (approximately) last 3 hours.
I wasn't invested in these characters and I had a very hard time following along with the names/places. That's specifically a "me problem", I would be able to follow along much easier if I was seeing those names. 

If I wanted to try this book again I would definitely try the physical book instead of the audio. The narrator is great, I just couldn't follow along well enough to enjoy the story. 

Lamar Giles, you got yourself a new fan. I loved this book so so so so much. Don't get me wrong, it is a HEAVY book but it's written incredibly well.

Ruin Road reminded me of a Stephen King novel in the best ways -- cursed objects, people acting badly, death of characters, sacrifice and a bit of an adventure. As a Black teen living in a low-income neighborhood, highschool football star Cade wishes people would stop being so afraid around him. He quickly learns that a little fear is actually a good thing. 

Thank you a million times over for the advanced copy, I'm now going to buy all of Giles' other books.

 

Everyone's been talking about this book right now and for good reason. It's gory, suspenseful and creepy. You usually can't go wrong with a serial killer novel.
I almost finished this book in under 24 hours.


The infamous serial killer Father Silence seems to have some fans because even though he was sentenced to death, children are still going missing under similar circumstances. One of those children is the daughter of detective Tess Claibourne. She's particularly close to the case because her dad was one of the detectives who made the arrest. And now with her daughter missing she will do anything to solve this case.


You'll find:
creepy cults
animal head masks
repressed memories
dissociative identities
drug/alcohol addiction

I was given an advanced copy for review, all thoughts are entirely my own. Thank you Crooked Lane Books and Netgalley for the opportunity 

This song has been playing in my head all week.

In usual Brom fashion, this book is equal parts dark and endearing. Evil in Me is not a light read by any means. It focuses on possession, mental health, murder and punk rock in the 1980s.

Ruby is in trouble. She's always in trouble actually. But this time it's because of the ancient ring she placed on her finger. Now she's possessed by a demon and her soul will be taken by Lord Sheelbeth. In order to save her soul, she needs to create enough magic to get the ring off.


I'm still not really sure what Richard's involvement in the story really adds to the plot. I liked his dialogues, although unhinged they were also interesting. But unless I missed some information, he doesn't seem essential.
I loved the descriptions of the demons. They are twisted and sick in the best ways.
I also loved the imagery of the demon Vutto dressed as a drummer in the band. 

This book mentions child death multiple times and may be triggering to some readers.

Such Lovely Skin imagines demonic hauntings in a digital age. Twitch streamer Viv has had the absolute worst summer of her life. She is racked with guilt over the death of her little sister.

After taking a hiatus from gaming, Viv opens a link for a new indie horror game. It's an escape room in an abandoned house, complete with possessed children skittering up the wall. To move on to the next room, Viv must tell a hooded character her darkest secret.

Too bad demons thrive off of guilt.

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I did not want to put this book down, I was hooked from the first few pages. The details about the little sister (Riley's) death were difficult for me to read and I do caution people to consider this before picking up the book because it's a big part of the story.

A demon doppelgänger who commits horrible acts to isolate you from friends and family sounds like an actual nightmare. It made for a really creepy book.


 I was given an advanced copy for review, all thoughts are entirely my own. Thank you Page Street YA  and TBR Beyond / Colored Pages Tour for the opportunity 

With an expected 5 hours left of listening to this, I just couldn’t do it. I don’t like these characters yet and I really don’t care about their pasts or what happens in the past. The bits we learned about the cult so far aren’t interesting. 
I was going to give up closer to the 15% mark but I thought maybe it would get better with a little more time. It didn’t. 

 The Lies of Alma Blackwell is a supernatural mystery and horror for young adults. Set in a small, dreary seaside town, this gothic horror is the perfect start for the fall season.

Over a century ago there was a fatal train accident in Hollow Cliff. The Blackwell family has been thought to be both the cause of the derailment and the reason why the resulting vengeful spirits of the passengers stopped killing the town’s residents.

Alma Blackwell had magical capabilities. She used her powers to forge a lifelong vow binding herself to Blackwell House, allowing the spirits to freely roam within that space. Every generation, one member of the Blackwell family is given access to the remnants of Alma’s magic and continues to uphold the vow.

Present day, Nev has just graduated high school and is preparing to take the vow at this year’s summer solstice. But before that happens and she becomes tethered to Hollow Cliff forever, she needs to solve the mystery of her mother’s disappearance.


I will always love books about ghosts and witches. While a lot of the story is told from Nev’s perspective, the author also used an interesting device to have flashbacks from a different POV.
The cover is gorgeous and tells you exactly what kind of book you picked up -- “a sweepingly romantic gothic mystery”.



I was gifted a copy for review, all thoughts are entirely my own. Thank you Union Square & Co. and TBR and Beyond Tours for the opportunity 

Absolutely adorable — I listened to it twice. I love this educational and funny field guide to capybaras.
Production for this audiobook is amazing.

I didn’t know these Young Zoologist books existed before I saw this ARC on NetGalley and now I need to collect them all for my son’s library. 

This Book Kills is one of the best YA murder mysteries that I’ve read in a long time. It also features one of my favorite locations: school campus. Specifically, a posh boarding school in England.

The most popular boy in school is found murdered in the woods on school grounds. The circumstances of his death are exactly like the details in Jess’s short story for class. 

Jess is determined to clear her name and help find the real killer. The police are incompetent and the private investigator is not the most helpful. Now that Jess has inserted herself into the investigation she has become a potential victim herself. 

I loved this story from start to finish. Jess is an amazing main character and I loved her growth through this story. The secondary characters are great too! Even the ones we aren’t supposed to like are interesting and fully developed. 

The mystery kept me guessing and everything made sense. 
I will look forward to any future books this author writes. 

 
 

So funny and sweet. I absolutely loved Pedro's graphic memoir.

His story takes place during the 1970s in California and Mexico. The family travels to their hometown in Mexico to bring Abuelito to the states. He's getting older and having a hard time tending to the land so he's going to live with the family in California.
Additionally, Pedro has a lot of siblings and they all get a little spot light through out these pages.

I loved the addition of Spanish. Don't worry. You don't need to know the language, there are translations at the bottom of the pages when needed.


Bring this book home today. It deserves a spot on every book lover's shelf.