While this wasn't a five star read for me, there were SO MANY elements in this story that I LOVED, and I will 100% be reading more from this au3.5/5⭐️
While this wasn't a five star read for me, there were SO MANY elements in this story that I LOVED, and I will 100% be reading more from this author in the future.
Ever hear a word, trope, or element about a story and something within yourself DEMANDS you read it? This novel holds multitudes of interesting details that made me feel like it was designed for me specifically. First of all, its set in Texas, in DFW no less (where I currently live), the protagonist is a redhead, there is a podcast element, there is a psychic crime-solver, and a mystery all rolled into one!! WHAT? How could I say no???
Heaberlin touches on everything from Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, to Dark matter, aliens, conspiracy theorists, to Big Bend and Marfa, Texas, and astrophysics Vs. intuition. She mentions Whataburger and the Katy Trail, so many things that I associate with home. Texas itself is a character in this novel, and she does a great job showing that we are not all a stereotype. We are in fact and extremely diverse city with many different cultures and languages.
Let's talk about the audiobook. Karissa Vacker gives an exceptional performance! Possibly one of the best voice actors I've heard when it comes to successfully pulling off contrasting, yet believable male and female characters. I do wish the podcast elements had a hair more production value to bring it to life, but all-in-all a great audio experience.
There was also a romance sub-plot in this story, and a potential love-triangle? I do enjoy a romance sub-plot in my thrillers, but this one did lean harder toward the romance than I would have liked. The way everything wrapped up in the end felt like a romance. Everything was wrapped up in a pretty bow. And there's nothing wrong with that, but it wouldn't have been my preference for this story.
If you liked The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston, or you read romance in general, but you're looking to dip your toes into thrillers, this would be a perfect place to start! ...more
"If you can't know what's right in front of you, you can't know what's beyond you."
This story has a magical quality to it. It reminds me of The Sea of"If you can't know what's right in front of you, you can't know what's beyond you."
This story has a magical quality to it. It reminds me of The Sea of Tranquility in the way that it makes me feel special to have "witnessed" the connectedness of the universe. The way everything comes together has a certain spirituality to it.
This was slow to start, my biggest critique. I wanted it to get right into the action. I began to feel like the story was taking too long to catch up to the synopsis. But when i did, it packed a punch. Once the action begins, it DOES NOT END.
The story is told both in the present time when Jay gets into trouble with a whale while scuba diving for the remains of his dead father, and in past timelines wherein we build an idea of the complicated relationship between the two of them. Jay is eventually swallowed by a whale (who becomes a full-fledged character in his own right) and has about an hour of air left in his tank until certain death. The current chapters are measured by the amount of air left in Jay's tank, and the tension mounts as it slowly dwindles down.
This story is an exploration of grief, hands down. It's a journey.
I do want to take a moment to give props to the audio narrator, Kirby Heyborne. He went all in. Exceptional storytelling, and commitment to the character. Bravo!
The writing was expertly polished. There was some really horrific imagery and atmosphere, but mostly I felt like I was in Jay's head. The fear, the anxiety, and the disconnect from reality was strong. I do wish, however, that I had a better sense of his body within the whale. How constricted was his movement? Was he floating? Was he walking around? I couldn't quite connect kinesthetically...other than the ever-present awareness of sphincters. Sphincters EVERYWHERE!
As he becomes more and more mentally stressed, Jay's psyche begins to crumble. The way this is portrayed is what separates the writing from other, less impactful novels. The more I think about it, the more I respect it.
This is a unique story! I can honestly say, I've never read a book like this. It's a new take on the isolation trope, mixed with water horror, and layered with deeper meaning. I think a lot of people will really enjoy this one.
If you take away anything from this review, I hope it is the knowledge that this series is creating future audiobook cannon. ThereREAD THIS VIA AUDIO.
If you take away anything from this review, I hope it is the knowledge that this series is creating future audiobook cannon. There is no reason traditionally published books aren't all making audiobooks this well.
The audio is stylized. It is everything I expected after Night Swim, the first book in the series. *BTW you don't need to have read the first one to read this one* Not only do we get the POV of Rachel Krall's podcast, but we also get clips and excerpts of found footage from a missing YoutTuber. The podcasts sound like podcasts, the Youtubes sound like YouTubes, the Schnozzberries sound like Schnozzberries!
This is something I always look for, but particularly in books that feature some kind of audibly-interactive mixed-media.
Another aspect I loved about this was the examination of the authenticity of the missing YoutTuber, Maddison Logan. Is she really bubbly, and outgoing, and energetic? How much of her persona is meticulously curated?
The story was not perfect. The ending felt a little lackluster for me, and I was able to predict the twist. However, I did have fun reading this one and I owe it for getting me out of a reading slump. It made me excited to take notes as I read. I enjoyed my time with it.
Oh, and Rachel Krall is kind of a badass, right? She's giving early 2000s Ashley Judd. A quiet confidence with some snark.
I'm not one who typically enjoys haunting stories, so please keep that in mind. Specifically, if you liked The Haunting of Hill Ho2.5/5⭐️ rounded up.
I'm not one who typically enjoys haunting stories, so please keep that in mind. Specifically, if you liked The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, you will probably get more out of this than I did.
I gave The Haunting of Hill House 3 stars. I love what Shirley Jackson stands for, but I don't connect with her writing style. I also need specific explanations for WHY places are haunted in order to enjoy them. For those reasons, I was really hoping Elizabeth Hand was going to tell us why Hill House is Haunted in the first place, because I've never felt like that was fully explained.
She didn't.
I get it. I wouldn't want to disrespect the original in any way by insinuating anything that could change the interpretation of it.
I was also hoping there would be more reference to some kind of psychic connection. If I recall correctly, in The Haunting of Hill House there is some tenuous reference to psychic ability. Also in the mini-series adaptation on Netflix there is the storyline with Theo (played by Kate Siegel) who has visions, and the implication that she inherited that from her mother. Nothing like that was carried into this story. There WAS a "witchy" theme throughout which was fun, though also was left unexplained.
It felt to me like the paranormal/haunty things that DID happen could have been more over-the-top. A lot of the spook-factor came from messing with the characters minds which could be explained in a non-paranormal way (if a bit of a stretch that it would happen to all of these characters at once).
All that seems like a lot, but there were also parts of this story that I enjoyed.
First of all, the audiobook is GREAT. It's narrated by Carol Monda, whom I love. The production quality os excellent, and there are even added sound effects to set the tone. Also, one of the characters is a singer, and her songs are actually sung in the audio. It does sound like it could be AI singing, but it's better than listening to someone speak the lyrics, which I find annoying in some audiobooks.
Also, the reason for everyone coming to Hill House is to write and practice the play that our MC is writing. We get THE THEATRE! I performed theater for a huge chunk of my life, and I can verify that Elizabeth Hand really captured the culture and the spirit of theater. I related a lot to the dynamics of the specific roles versus the personality of the actor or their position of authority within the group. Also, there's queer rep in here, which I love to see.
Wow. This will be on my favorites of the year list, undoubtedly.
This novel was gruesomely brutal, with gorgeous writing, and thought-provoking commenWow. This will be on my favorites of the year list, undoubtedly.
This novel was gruesomely brutal, with gorgeous writing, and thought-provoking commentary.
I loved the insightful inner-monologues of the male victims which was somehow both poetic and straight-forward in its rawness. The mixed media made it feel relevant and very "now." The AUDIOBOOK. My LORT the audio was incredible, featuring a full cast and the author herself as the villain.
The perpetrator of these horrendous crimes surprisingly has very little to say, as the focus of the narrative is on her male victims. By turning the tables on the typical serial assailant trope, Tamblyn challenges the widely held beliefs of the public at large in regard to how we treat victims. This also allows a discussion about male fragility and the patriarchy.
As a woman, I was appalled by what this woman was doing to these men. Tamblyn wrote them in a way that really made them feel relatable to me. But at the same time, there was a little voice in the back of my head that was saying, "You see? You see what it's like to be vulnerable? You see what it's like to be blamed?" It split me in two.
Unfortunately, this is one of those books that will preach to the choir. The people who REALLY NEED to read this won't be interested in it. But I'm going to do my best to push it on everyone I can henceforth!
Definitely check trigger warnings for this one, and listen to the audio if you have access to it. I found it on Scribd. 5 stars, all day, everyday. Yes. yes. yes. yes. yes! ...more
This was a fun one! I haven't read Lord of the Flies, but this certainly made me want to!
First let me say, this is one of the best audiobooks I've evThis was a fun one! I haven't read Lord of the Flies, but this certainly made me want to!
First let me say, this is one of the best audiobooks I've ever listened to! If you're considering picking this one up, I would definitely recommend the audio. It has a full cast of characters, and there's a quality to it that I can't explain. I don't know if it was that all of the voice actors were just THAT good, or if it has something to do with the production, but you could hear every tear, sniffle, grunt, etc. It really made it feel real. Which leads me to the way the story is told.
This is written in a documentary/interview format, similar to Daisy Jones and the Six (if you've read that one). I'm finding that I absolutely love this style of storytelling, and it was done really well here. As we switch from POV to POV, I found myself forming alliances in my mind, and then I would meet a new character who would completely derail that train of thought. It's very much like a documentary where each characters version of the story is slightly different, and the truth is probably somewhere in between.
This was thought-provoking, gory, satisfying, and believable (which is the scariest part). Potentially one of my favorites of the year!
This novel was a fucking sojourn! It's about female rage, and claiming your corporeal and spectral being. IMemory is a mansion with rooms upon rooms.
This novel was a fucking sojourn! It's about female rage, and claiming your corporeal and spectral being. It's about taking up space, and the power each of us has to influence the world around us whether we see it or not.
It's hard to believe a man wrote this. Not because its about a woman going through peri-menopause, but because of its insight in to the female condition. The writing is witty, thoughtful, and atmospheric, reminiscent of T. Kingfisher. The rich desert setting with an odd community of inhabitants reminded me of Sundial by Catriona Ward. I would also compare his writing to Sara Gran based solely on a vibe that I can't for the life of me put into earthly words.
The audiobook, narrated by Susan Bennett, was fantastic! Without giving spoilers, this novel has some elements that would be challenging to pull off for many narrators, and Susan Bennett reads it beautifully. She really personifies Mary's character in an endearing, vulnerable, and powerful way. This is one audiobook that enhances the storytelling in a beautiful way. Brava!
This is a bit of a slow burn, so go into it with that expectation. And, though each chapter in Mary's journey is wild, riveting, and chaotic, this isn't one to read for the twists. Rather, it is an exploration of human nature and finding oneself. My favorite horror novels use monsters or ghosts etc. as a metaphor for the things that haunt us in life. This story does just that, and so well!
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