Review: The Faceless One (The Faceless One #1), by Mark Onspaugh

Title: The Faceless One (The Faceless One #1)

Author: Mark Onspaugh

Format: E-galley

Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "In 1948, when he was just a boy, Jimmy Kalmaku trained with his uncle to be the shaman of his Tlingit village in Alaska. There he learned the old legends, the old myths, the old secrets. Chief among them was that of a mask locked in a prison of ice, and of the faceless god imprisoned within: a cruel and vengeful god called T'Nathluk, dedicated to the infliction of pain and suffering.

Now all but forgotten in a Seattle retirement home, Jimmy finds his life turned upside down. For when an unwitting archaeologist pries the mask free of its icy tomb, he frees T’Nathluk as well. Stuck in spirit form, the Faceless One seeks a human to serve as a portal through which he can enter our reality. The Faceless One can control—and mercilessly torture—anyone who touches the mask, which means there is no shortage of slaves to ferry it across the country to its chosen host.

Yet the Faceless One has foes as well: Stan Roberts, a tough New York cop whose pursuit of justice will lead him into a dark abyss of the soul; Steven, Liz, and Bobby, the family of the doomed archaeologist; and Jimmy Kalmaku, who must at last become the shaman of his boyhood dreams." 

My Opinion: The Faceless One is an ancient evil, a "cruel and vengeful god called T-Nathluk." The shamans of the Tlingit tribe in Alaska have always watched over this evil and made sure it stayed buried and encased in ice. Unfortunately, there are no more shamans in the village and a couple of anthropologists have unearthed the mask that imprisoned this evil god, and all hell is about to be unleashed on the world, unless a group of strangers can work together to reimprison it.

I thought this book was a great horror story, written by a new name in the world of horror, Mark Onspaugh. This was a great debut novel that introduced a unique evil and a group of very likeable characters, with a delicious amount of sit on the edge of your seat possession and torture thrown in for good measure. Because this book was well written, it was a really quick read, with good even pacing that moved along quite nicely. Just when I thought I knew where the story was going, it would take a turn and go off in a whole new direction, and the ending was a nice twist.

In summary, I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to reading the second book in the series.

5/5 stars.

I received a copy of this book free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: Horrificata Book 1: School's Dead Boring, by D.I. Russell

 

Title: Horrificata Book 1: School's Dead Boring

Author: D.I. Russell

Format: e-book

Source: NetGalley

My Opinion: "Desmond Kingsley loves football and HATES school – especially science.

So when he’s trapped in detention with outcasts Dee, Craven, Todd and complete lunatic Blob, while someone unleashes chemicals at the school, turning almost everyone into mindless shambling corpses…or worse, he’ll have more than his grades to worry about!"

I love horror stories so when I had the chance to read one with my teenager, I was excited to see if he would love it as much as I did - and I wasn't disappointed! He loved it! He's not a huge reader, so the fact that he read the entire book quickly told me everything I needed to know about it. Of course, I read it myself so we could discuss it (gotta throw some educational conversation in there!), and we actually liked all the same parts. I thought the characters were great and the story was a lot of fun. There was just enough "gross" in there to keep it interesting, and there were some great twists regarding how the zombies came to be and who was behind it. 

This book is recommended for the 12 to 18 age group and I agree with that recommendation. It has enough humor thrown in with the gore to keep that age group interested. Anything that gets kids reading is a good thing, and I think this book fits that bill.

In summary, I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

5/5 stars.

I received a copy of this book free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Bleed More, Bodymore (Bodymore #1), by Ian Kirkpatrick, audiobook, narrated by Kieran Regan

 

Title: Bleed More, Bodymore (Bodymore #1)

Author: Ian Kirkpatrick

Narrated by: Kieran Regan

Format: audiobook

Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "HORROR IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN EVIL OVERTAKES THE HEART.

Joey’s a Baltimore mechanic. One night, she receives a call from her best friend, asking for his car to be picked up from the infamous body dumping grounds of Baltimore: Leakin Park. When she arrives, there’s little more around than a stalled-out car and a couple of ravens, so she leaves only with the car. Back at the body shop, it doesn’t take long for the smell of rot to permeate the trunk. Inside? A corpse. The cops said her friend did it. His absence is his guilt, but Joey knows better. She will find her missing friend and she will prove his innocence.

But something isn’t right in Baltimore. It’s not just the feeling that someone is always watching from the city’s abandoned buildings... Her search for her friend reveals something much worse hiding under Baltimore. A ghost town, a reaper, regret. Suddenly, the city’s rage and the stink that rising out of the dirt make much more sense."

My Opinion: Josephine (Joey) works as a mechanic in Baltimore. She jumps right into the story when she goes out on a call to pick up the car of her best friend, Wayland. Unfortunately, when she gets there, Way is nowhere to be found. Instead, she finds a dead body in the trunk. Also, she notices an inordinate amount of crows in the area, and are they actually looking at her, or is she going crazy? Thus begin Joey's adventures into the underworld of Baltimore. 

First off, as this is an audiobook, I have to say that the narrator put me off a bit. First off, it was a male narrator, and the main character was female, so that just didn't work for me. Second, while Joey is a very sarcastic person (in a totally fun way), the narrator made absolutely everything she said come out sarcastic, even when that was clearly not how the line was written. It just wasn't believable.

As for the story itself, I loved it. The world building was phenomenal and the descriptions of the settings, especially anything that happened at night or in the woods, was done exceptionally well. I loved the characters and thought they were fleshed out fully for the most part. I'm looking forward to learning even more about them in the next book, fingers crossed. The pacing was very quick so this was a rapid read.

In summary, I recommend this book to fans of horror stories with just the right amount of snark thrown in for good measure. You might want to read the book itself instead of listening to the audiobook if narration is important to you.

3/5 stars.

I received a copy of this audiobook free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: Snow & Caramel: A Post-Apocalyptic Dystopian Thriller, by Jay Kerk

 

Title: Snow & Caramel: A Post-Apocalyptic Dystopian Thriller

Author: Jay Kerk

Format: ebook

Source: NetGalley

From NetGalley: "We stood against the big humans: the oppressors, the opponents, the enemies, the hated.

These were all names I had learned for them, and yet were they the right names? Experience screamed yes, logic screamed no, and I grappled with morality as I grappled with slavery, unable to tell what made a man and what made a monster. Where did we fit, we oppressed? 

Snow – white ice made in freezing clouds atop the world. I am Snow, and the world we live in has no place for snow, no place for me or my kind, save in labor and death. The radiation of the sun burns up the land and the bigger humans that stalk this Earth have claimed it for their own. They care nothing for us smaller folk. 

Caramel – soft, silky, sweet. Little Caramel, the sweetest of sisters. I would not allow the world to burn her as it burned her namesake. I would keep her safe and golden if it cost me everything. She was the only beauty left in life. 

In our reality, with force and a few coins, you had power of life and death over a creature of equal awareness and thought. How had it world come to this? How could any of us, especially those so small as we were, create cracks in which to sow the seeds of change? I did not know the answers, but when I stared across parched land, I knew that the cracks must be found, the seeds sown, or the world could never heal."

My Opinion: This story touched me on a visceral level because it dealt with oppression and discrimination, slavery and cruelty, but also hope and love, compassion and strength. It is set in a dystopian future where the "big humans" are able to buy and sell the smaller race of "humanoids." It throws the cruelty of the owners right in your face as they have complete control over this sweet brother and sister, and it shows how this cruelty is taught to the next generation. But it also shows the strength that Snow, as the older brother taking care of his young sister, has, and how he, in turn, is passing that on to her. 

I thought the writing was superb. I was drawn in immediately and became invested in the story from the get go. The characters were well written and the plot moved along at a very good pace. My only complaint is that the story was too brief, being a novella. I would love to read more.

I highly recommend this story to all lovers of dystopian, horror stories that deal with uncomfortable subject matter in a way that is extremely well written and moving. I look forward to reading other works by this talented author.

5/5 stars.

I received a copy of this book free of charge in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: The Screaming Staircase (Lockwood and Co. #1), by Jonathan Stroud

Title: The Screaming Staircase (Lockwood and Co. #1)
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Format: ebook
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in . . .

For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.

Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.

Set in a city stalked by spectres, The Screaming Staircase is the first in a chilling new series full of suspense, humour and truly terrifying ghosts. Your nights will never be the same again . . ."

My Opinion: When I saw this book on NetGalley I thought to myself, "Hey, this sounds like a book my 8 year old son would like: not too scary, entertaining enough to keep him interested; it's a bit long (440 pages) but we could read a little bit every night, so sure, I'll request it." Little did I know that he would find it too scary for bedtime, so instead of reading it to him, I read it to myself (although admittedly, the 20 minutes I would have spent reading with him morphed into about 2 hours a night for me - until I reached the big finale that is, at which time I refused to put my Kindle down until I had finished the book)! This isn't a cute little ghost story with namby pamby Visitors (as they are called) - these ghosts don't just float around looking a little scary until they are smacked with iron and the bones salted. No, these ghosts, depending on what level of haunting it is, are evil, violent, malevolent, vengeful spectres that are capable of causing serious bodily harm, and in some cases death. The scariest part is that because adults can't see the Visitors, kids are hired to take care of them because they are the only ones with the psychic sensitivity to see and hear the apparitions!

I like how the story starts in with the action right away as Lucy Carlyle and Anthony Lockwood are on the job, trying to stop a haunting without all of their gear, which, as Lucy reminds Anthony repeatedly, Anthony forgot to pack. This turns into much more than they were expecting to encounter as they find out the ghost is much stronger and much angrier than they first thought. Mayhem ensues and the night ends with the house burning down around them. I also like how they tell the back story of how Lucy came to work for Anthony at Lockwood and Co., along with George, the resident researcher. Where at first I thought the book just seemed rather long for a middle grade book, by the end I had decided it leaned more towards the YA end of the spectrum because it was just really scary due to the amazing descriptions of some of the evil the kids encounter, thanks to the detailed writing of Mr. Jonathan Stroud. I also didn't realize it was the first book in the Lockwood and Co. series right away since it wasn't listed this way on NetGalley, but after much info dumping, which was actually background info on the supernatural problem, why only kids work the hauntings (although usually under the supervision of an adult), and again, how Lucy came to work with the boys, I checked on Goodreads and lo and behold, it all made sense. I could see how knowing all of this would come in handy when reading future books in the series without having to repeat it again and again, so I decided to just enjoy the info and file it away for future reference.

I loved the characters because they were so very different from each other which meant that they got on each other's nerves just like you would expect real kids their age to do when trying to live together. Besides each having their own distinct and unique personality, they each had a special role to play in the business as well. As I mentioned before, George was their researcher (and damned good at it), checking out the location of each haunting before they actually went there to dispatch with the problem, as well as researching any stories, legends, or hopefully facts he could find associated with the haunting. Anthony Lockwood was the enigmatic, charming leader of their motley crew. Anthony's special talent was his strong spectral vision which allowed him to see the "death glows" and any visual signs of the hauntings before the others. Lucy, who had really hoped to get a job with a bigger more established firm, completed the trio. Her last job had ended in the deaths of everyone she was working with that night, with the exception of herself and her supervisor, so she couldn't get hired anywhere else and decided to give Lockwood and Co. a try. Lucy's gift was that her hearing was very sensitive to any noises associated not only with the hauntings themselves today, but also with the usually violent event that started the haunting in the first place (I'm not sure if that makes sense but if you read the book, it will, and I can't figure out how else to describe it!); she can hear things no one else can, and even when there is complete silence, she can sense if things are going good or bad. She can also pick up a haunted object and glean feelings and info about the owner, which is a very rare gift. They are much stronger together than as individuals, and it doesn't take them long to figure that out and to learn to work together in a way that brings out the best in all of them. 

All of this leads to a job that they are forced to take on when the fire they caused that burned the house down (during the job at the beginning of the book) led to them being sued and losing most of their jobs when news of the fire got out. This job is fishy in many ways: the elderly man who hires them (who is a bit off himself) says it is one of the worst hauntings in recorded history but they can't take their strongest work aids (magnesium flares and Greek fire to be exact) along with them because he doesn't want anything to catch fire, even though that would mean risking their very lives, and he only gives them 2 days to prepare for the job, which gets George all riled up because he usually needs weeks to complete his research. They are being offered a ridiculously large amount of money for the job though, and have no choice but to take it. This is the job which finally brings us to the Screaming Staircase, which, along with other assorted and terrible hauntings and apparitions in the house, are what make the last part of the book so deliciously horrific, and believe me, Jonathan Stroud makes it worth the wait! His descriptions of the awful, violent events that have taken place at this particular country manor over the course of hundreds of years, and what the kids find when they start investigating, had me looking over my shoulders more than once to make sure nothing was trying to creep up on me! 

The book never mentions the time period in which the story takes place, but I think it is a modern day alternate reality kind of setting, in and around London, England, with a distinctly old time feel to it, which is to say it felt like I was reading something in the vein of Sherlock Holmes or the like, which I absolutely adored!

In summary, I loved the characters, including their realism and their growth - not only as investigators who must learn to work together as a team to survive and thrive, but also as individuals who start off keeping their emotions close and not letting the others in, to talking, laughing, and confiding in them as they start to really care about each other. I thought the pacing really worked great, giving us information in small bits so we don't get overloaded and keeping the action very steady throughout - until the end, when everything explodes into sights, sounds, feelings, danger, and fear, and you are on the edge of your seat in anticipation of how it will all end. And lastly is the ending itself, which is so exciting and so scary and so perfect. I recommend this book to lovers of scary (not tame) ghost stories, with likable characters who are flawed but are able to learn and grow throughout the story. I am giving this book a very enthusiastic 5 stars and I look forward to reading the next book in the series when it comes out :D

I received a copy of this book free of charge through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: Dearly, Beloved (Gone With the Respiration #2), by Lia Habel

Title: Dearly, Beloved (Gone With the Respiration #2)
Author: Lia Habel
Format: ebook
Source: NetGalley

From Goodreads: "Can the living coexist with the living dead? 

That’s the question that has New Victorian society fiercely divided ever since the mysterious plague known as “The Laz” hit the city of New London and turned thousands into walking corpses. But while some of these zombies are mindless monsters, hungry for human flesh, others can still think, speak, reason, and control their ravenous new appetites.

Just ask Nora Dearly, the young lady of means who was nearly kidnapped by a band of sinister zombies but valiantly rescued by a dashing young man . . . of the dead variety.

Nora and her savior, the young zombie soldier Bram Griswold, fell hopelessly in love. But others feel only fear and loathing for the reanimated dead. Now, as tensions grow between pro- and anti-zombie factions, battle lines are being drawn in the streets. And though Bram is no longer in the New Victorian army, he and his ex-commando zombie comrades are determined to help keep the peace. That means taking a dangerous stand between The Changed, a radical group of sentient zombies fighting for survival, and The Murder, a masked squad of urban guerrillas hellbent on destroying the living dead. But zombies aren’t the only ones in danger: Their living allies are also in The Murder’s crosshairs, and for one vengeful zealot, Nora Dearly is the number one target.

As paranoia, prejudice, and terrorist attacks threaten to plunge the city into full-scale war, Nora’s scientist father and his team continue their desperate race to unlock the secrets of “The Laz” and find a cure. But their efforts may be doomed when a mysterious zombie appears bearing an entirely new strain of the virus—and the nation of New Victoria braces for a new wave of the apocalypse.

Lia Habel’s spellbinding, suspenseful sequel to Dearly, Departed takes her imaginative mash-up of period romance, futuristic thriller, and zombie drama to a whole new level of innovative and irresistible storytelling."

My Opinion: Dearly, Departed was one of my favorite books from last year so I was really psyched to get approved by NetGalley for Dearly, Beloved, and I wasn't disappointed. D,B picks up a few months after where we left off at the end of D,D, with the zombies now out in the open and everyone trying to find a way to live together. Well, not quite everyone - there's still a lot of anti-zombie prejudice going on, even though the zombies who are trying to find a way to live in the real world are for the most part high functioning and have retained most of their intelligence from before they were turned. In other words, they're not the ones who will chase you down and eat your brains for fun! Unfortunately, these same high functioning zombies are being kidnapped off the streets by a mysterious group of bird mask wearing humans for God only knows what reason. There is also a new strain of the Laz that the vaccine doesn't protect against, so all told, there's a lot going on in New Victoria! 

This book, like the last, is told through multiple POVs, with some new ones mixed in with the old. There are six POVs altogether, belonging to Nora, Bram, Pamela, Michael, Vespertine, and Laura - perhaps my favorite new character! Laura is a zombie who tries to deal with the fact that her body is dead and decaying by planting flowers directly into her skin, so that they grow and blossom all over her body! The way that she manages to find something beautiful in the midst of all of the violence and death that surrounds her is very endearing.

Although I enjoyed this installment in the Gone with the Respiration series, I didn't feel that it was as good as Dearly, Departed was, and I think that's because there was just too much going on, which is strange because I also felt that the book started off rather slow and took a while to gain momentum. That being said, I thought the story flowed rather well once it took off. I really enjoyed the continuation of the love story between Nora and Bram, and I thought having Pam deal with PTSD following everything that happened to her in the first book was a great addition to the story. It showed a strength in her that I hope will continue to grow in the next book. 

All told, I'm giving Dearly, Beloved 4 stars and I'm really looking forward to reading book 3 when it comes out to see what fresh hell the amazing Ms. Habel has in store for one of my favorite couples :D