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Bodymore #2
Plead More, Bodymore
Everything's an insult when your soul is bankrupt.
Joey and Wayland may have returned to Baltimore after their deaths, but things are not the same through eyes tainted by death. The city seems darker, the graffiti louder, and a meltdown is only a hair-trigger away. Joey’s ready for everything to go back to normal, but that might not be possible when every time she’s around Wayland, he’s dripping with someone’s freshly spilled blood. Meanwhile, Jag’s losing his patience with Joey’s preference for her serial killer best friend.
Desperate to keep her life together in a somewhat recognizable way, Joey discovers that a local medium might have a way to calm the regret-fueled rage that plagues both her and Wayland, driving them both further out of control with each passing day. In hopes of a return to normal, she sets out to ask the authorities of the afterlife to grant her and Wayland a real second chance.
The ravens stalking her promise that if she doesn’t move quickly, she may lose everything she cares about. With a past and a future that can’t compromise, tragedy doesn’t spare the indecisive.
Joey and Wayland may have returned to Baltimore after their deaths, but things are not the same through eyes tainted by death. The city seems darker, the graffiti louder, and a meltdown is only a hair-trigger away. Joey’s ready for everything to go back to normal, but that might not be possible when every time she’s around Wayland, he’s dripping with someone’s freshly spilled blood. Meanwhile, Jag’s losing his patience with Joey’s preference for her serial killer best friend.
Desperate to keep her life together in a somewhat recognizable way, Joey discovers that a local medium might have a way to calm the regret-fueled rage that plagues both her and Wayland, driving them both further out of control with each passing day. In hopes of a return to normal, she sets out to ask the authorities of the afterlife to grant her and Wayland a real second chance.
The ravens stalking her promise that if she doesn’t move quickly, she may lose everything she cares about. With a past and a future that can’t compromise, tragedy doesn’t spare the indecisive.
- GenresHorror
Unknown Binding
First published October 31, 2022
28 people want to read
About the author
Ian Kirkpatrick
10 books129 followersIan Kirkpatrick is an award-winning author and Majima stan.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
October 11, 2022
It's October again, so it's time for some spooky reads! In this case, I'm returning to Baltimore for the second time, in Ian's Bodymore trilogy (I'm pretty sure book 3 is coming next year).
And it's a comeback, because the book is starting right where the first one left. Don't try to read this out of order! It's hard enough understanding what's going on at the beginning if you have read the first book. (Maybe it would be easier if you read those books right after another.)
Still a lot of Ravens here.
Some authors are prone to over exposition, where they tell the readers in long and winding sentences about stuff in their world everyone (but the reader) knows. Obviously, that's frowned upon, and not only by me.
Ian is taking things to the other extreme, where basically nothing is explained, and if through some miracle of God a small amount of exposition does happen, it's guaranteed to bring up even more questions than it answers. So I'm stumbling thorough the world of Bodymore, not knowing what's going on.
That's kind of sympathetic - Joey, our heroine, doesn't know more than I do. Which would still be fine if I had at least the feeling that the plot would be moving somewhere, but the plot seems to lack ambition and is content with stumbling alongside me.
So here we are, Joey, me and the plot (I'm calling him Spot for now), wandering through Baltimore, looking for places to go. At least Joey can keep herself busy smoking an endless stream of cigarettes. That stuff would be the death of her, but since she already died in the first book, those worries don't stick.
Meet Spot, the plot. He doesn't know what's going on either.
A somewhat lackluster plot would still be okay if it's balanced by interesting characters. For a good junk of the beginning, it's the old gang, and while none of them are uninteresting, we already know so much about them. When we meet the medium for the first time, that's when things start to change a little. Ralph is actually the most interesting character in the book.
Personally, I would have opted for a little more exposition. Charon could have at least given his new employees some kind of leaflet with a quick run down. "You're dead now and you work for me - here's everything you need to know to survive your first day on the job!" - you know, stuff like that.
And that's just the problem. The first book ended with Joey and Way being employed by Charon to go on the hunt for the dead that came back. That's their whole job - find the (un-)dead Baltimorons (like themselves) and make sure Charon gets their souls. And now take a wild and educated guess about the one thing that is not happening during the course of this book. If Charon's mission to her had instead been something along the lines of "Go forth and smoke as much as humanly possible until you've teared through a year's worth of cigarette production", well, good news, she would have fulfilled her obligations around a quarter into the book .
Smoking a lot? Who, me?
*****
Well then. I was hoping for some ghost busting, which didn't happen. I will be back this time next year around, for the third and final installment. Let's hope there's actually some ghost hunting action then. Otherwise, this is one of the many cases where the second book in a series is the weakest (the curse of the seconds, right?). 2.5 out of 5, rounded up to 3.
Disclaimer: I’ve received a free Advanced Reader’s Copy and am leaving this review voluntarily.
You can also read this review on my Blog.
And it's a comeback, because the book is starting right where the first one left. Don't try to read this out of order! It's hard enough understanding what's going on at the beginning if you have read the first book. (Maybe it would be easier if you read those books right after another.)
Still a lot of Ravens here.Some authors are prone to over exposition, where they tell the readers in long and winding sentences about stuff in their world everyone (but the reader) knows. Obviously, that's frowned upon, and not only by me.
Ian is taking things to the other extreme, where basically nothing is explained, and if through some miracle of God a small amount of exposition does happen, it's guaranteed to bring up even more questions than it answers. So I'm stumbling thorough the world of Bodymore, not knowing what's going on.
That's kind of sympathetic - Joey, our heroine, doesn't know more than I do. Which would still be fine if I had at least the feeling that the plot would be moving somewhere, but the plot seems to lack ambition and is content with stumbling alongside me.
So here we are, Joey, me and the plot (I'm calling him Spot for now), wandering through Baltimore, looking for places to go. At least Joey can keep herself busy smoking an endless stream of cigarettes. That stuff would be the death of her, but since she already died in the first book, those worries don't stick.
Meet Spot, the plot. He doesn't know what's going on either.A somewhat lackluster plot would still be okay if it's balanced by interesting characters. For a good junk of the beginning, it's the old gang, and while none of them are uninteresting, we already know so much about them. When we meet the medium for the first time, that's when things start to change a little. Ralph is actually the most interesting character in the book.
Personally, I would have opted for a little more exposition. Charon could have at least given his new employees some kind of leaflet with a quick run down. "You're dead now and you work for me - here's everything you need to know to survive your first day on the job!" - you know, stuff like that.
And that's just the problem. The first book ended with Joey and Way being employed by Charon to go on the hunt for the dead that came back. That's their whole job - find the (un-)dead Baltimorons (like themselves) and make sure Charon gets their souls. And now take a wild and educated guess about the one thing that is not happening during the course of this book. If Charon's mission to her had instead been something along the lines of "Go forth and smoke as much as humanly possible until you've teared through a year's worth of cigarette production", well, good news, she would have fulfilled her obligations around a quarter into the book .
Smoking a lot? Who, me?*****
Well then. I was hoping for some ghost busting, which didn't happen. I will be back this time next year around, for the third and final installment. Let's hope there's actually some ghost hunting action then. Otherwise, this is one of the many cases where the second book in a series is the weakest (the curse of the seconds, right?). 2.5 out of 5, rounded up to 3.
Disclaimer: I’ve received a free Advanced Reader’s Copy and am leaving this review voluntarily.
You can also read this review on my Blog.
September 20, 2024
I came off of Bleed More pleasantly surprised and looking forward to Plead More. Unfortunately, Plead More completely drops the ball that Bleed More handed it. I'll talk specifics below and keep the top half of my review spoiler free.
As a whole, the story is meandering, directionless, and muddled. Joey's actions through the book are overly performative, needlessly dramatic, and pointless. Other characters in the story don't seem to notice or acknowledge her completely bizarre behavior. She bounces around the city for the majority of the book, accomplishing nothing, and ends up exactly where she would have been had she just sat in one spot for eight hours.
Her relationship with Jagger shifted from weak to completely unbelievable. She tells him nothing, drags him through all kinds of sketchy situations, acts erratic, and fights with him constantly only for him to bend over backwards for her. Nothing in Bleed More or Plead More explains why on earth he would be as attached to her as he is. Their relationship is outlined as being "coworkers with benefits" and Joey does absolutely nothing to progress it beyond that stage, it just happens and Jag is blindly devoted to her. It feels like Jag is a mind reader who knows what Joey's inner monologue is saying instead of acting off of her behavior toward him or their dialogue together. While on the topic of their relationship: the sex scenes/flirting between them comes out of nowhere and feel completely inauthentic.
I like Ralph and, to a lesser extent, KC. Charon and Val are the same as they were in the first and are solid characters, if not a little over-exposition-y. The unique and interesting concepts for the afterlife are still present but terribly underutilized and you only get a few paragraphs of the story where it is actually meaningfully expanded upon.
If you enjoyed the first and liked what it set up, you'll be deeply disappointed with this sequel.
From here on out, I'm going to be spoiling some pretty big plot points, so read at your own peril.
______________________________________________________
In Bleed More, we're teased a rage fueled ghost hunting sequel. There is a single time, as far as I can remember, where any of our main characters call Charon to collect a soul. That one time is a rushed afterthought in a bizarre action scene that makes zero sense. They actually kill way more living people than the number of escaped souls they managed to return to the underworld.
Joey shows virtually no interest in stopping her friend Wayland, who is off being a serial killer through the entire story. She routinely separates from him to allow him to go kill more random people and shows zero remorse for it when he shows up with more bodies or covered in other people's blood. She also actively puts Jag in vulnerable positions around Wayland, who wants to kill him; moreover, Jag just goes along with it despite knowing that Wayland wants to kill him. One of the most egregious instances of this is when Wayland kisses Joey (In a very rapey way) and Jagger knocks him on his ass. So, Wayland pulls a gun and attempts to kill Jagger (Who is actually alive. Joey and Wayland are disembodied souls and cannot die). Joey throws herself between them as far as I can tell, the scene was a bit muddy, gets shot instead, Jag gets the gun away from Wayland and manages to pin him. After Joey recovers, she tells Jag to get off Wayland and leave the two of them there together, and he does. He just grabs the gun and throws a "we need to talk" at Joey and then leaves them together.
On that note, her relationship with Jag is an absolute joke. He tells her so many times through the story that they need to talk with the implication that he's done with her if she doesn't. They then proceed to never talk meaningfully about anything that is going on and he just seems to forget and reset. I don't know if it's intentional, but Joey complains repeatedly about all the afterlife people being cryptic and vague and then proceeds to be even worse than any of them with Jagger. Once or twice might have been funny, but it's every time and nothing is ever actually explained to him.
Then you have this weird half love triangle thing with Wayland, Joey, and Jagger where Joey pretends not to know Wayland is fawning after her while still wanting to be in a relationship with Jagger while clearly behaving as if she's in some sort of relationship with Wayland. It's a muddled mess that makes no sense, even through the eyes of Joey and knowing explicitly what she feels.
The story only really starts to kick off when Ralph, a medium, volunteers to help them try to get a second chance at life. Unfortunately, the sequence where they go on a fetch quest for the ingredients for Ralph's ritual is rushed and crammed into a few chapters, a large section of which is spent in flashbacks that attempt to build character relationships that either don't say anything meaningful (in the case of a flashback with Jag) or just reiterate the same things we've known since Bleed More (in the case of a flashback with Wayland).
We also find out how Wayland died. He got mugged in a parking lot and decided to fight the mugger and the guy killed him. That's it. Nothing interesting, nothing engaging, he was just a dumbass during a stroke of bad luck. I had hoped there might be something culty going on with him, some darker secrets maybe. But nope, he was the goodest boy all along. In the end, he just decides of his own volition to move on to the afterlife, so he and Joey go back to Mortem and he goes and chills at the bar and that's the end of his story. He's painted through Joey's eyes as a poor innocent angel all the way through the story while being an absolutely unhinged psycho serial killer preying on innocent people to feed his bloodlust and rage. He is never confronted by the consequences of his actions and Charon even says he'll be judged less harshly in the afterlife because he's just such a good person. His character felt completely inconsequential and wasted while being the motivating force behind Joey.
After seeing Wayland off, Joey goes and picks up the fetish Ralph was cooking up for them. He explains to her that it's a pendant that is a literal representation of her heart and that she has to give it to someone for safekeeping or else the ravens will hunt her for it. In giving it to someone, your life is bound to theirs, and theirs to yours in the most literal sense. If she goes and gets herself killed, whoever she gave her heart necklace to also dies. Naturally, she's going to give it to Jag, so she goes to his apartment where he acts like Wayland didn't just try to kill him a few hours previously and then his "girlfriend" chose to stay with the psycho murderer and disappeared for hours. While they're having sex, because why wouldn't they, she gives him the necklace and is vague to the point of deceit about what the pendant actually is and what it means to accept it.
At this point in the story, my head exploded.
I would have rated Plead More one star, but Ralph, Charon, and Val are redeeming characters and the afterlife concepts, while not very well explored, are still interesting. So I gave it a star for that.
As a whole, the story is meandering, directionless, and muddled. Joey's actions through the book are overly performative, needlessly dramatic, and pointless. Other characters in the story don't seem to notice or acknowledge her completely bizarre behavior. She bounces around the city for the majority of the book, accomplishing nothing, and ends up exactly where she would have been had she just sat in one spot for eight hours.
Her relationship with Jagger shifted from weak to completely unbelievable. She tells him nothing, drags him through all kinds of sketchy situations, acts erratic, and fights with him constantly only for him to bend over backwards for her. Nothing in Bleed More or Plead More explains why on earth he would be as attached to her as he is. Their relationship is outlined as being "coworkers with benefits" and Joey does absolutely nothing to progress it beyond that stage, it just happens and Jag is blindly devoted to her. It feels like Jag is a mind reader who knows what Joey's inner monologue is saying instead of acting off of her behavior toward him or their dialogue together. While on the topic of their relationship: the sex scenes/flirting between them comes out of nowhere and feel completely inauthentic.
I like Ralph and, to a lesser extent, KC. Charon and Val are the same as they were in the first and are solid characters, if not a little over-exposition-y. The unique and interesting concepts for the afterlife are still present but terribly underutilized and you only get a few paragraphs of the story where it is actually meaningfully expanded upon.
If you enjoyed the first and liked what it set up, you'll be deeply disappointed with this sequel.
From here on out, I'm going to be spoiling some pretty big plot points, so read at your own peril.
______________________________________________________
In Bleed More, we're teased a rage fueled ghost hunting sequel. There is a single time, as far as I can remember, where any of our main characters call Charon to collect a soul. That one time is a rushed afterthought in a bizarre action scene that makes zero sense. They actually kill way more living people than the number of escaped souls they managed to return to the underworld.
Joey shows virtually no interest in stopping her friend Wayland, who is off being a serial killer through the entire story. She routinely separates from him to allow him to go kill more random people and shows zero remorse for it when he shows up with more bodies or covered in other people's blood. She also actively puts Jag in vulnerable positions around Wayland, who wants to kill him; moreover, Jag just goes along with it despite knowing that Wayland wants to kill him. One of the most egregious instances of this is when Wayland kisses Joey (In a very rapey way) and Jagger knocks him on his ass. So, Wayland pulls a gun and attempts to kill Jagger (Who is actually alive. Joey and Wayland are disembodied souls and cannot die). Joey throws herself between them as far as I can tell, the scene was a bit muddy, gets shot instead, Jag gets the gun away from Wayland and manages to pin him. After Joey recovers, she tells Jag to get off Wayland and leave the two of them there together, and he does. He just grabs the gun and throws a "we need to talk" at Joey and then leaves them together.
On that note, her relationship with Jag is an absolute joke. He tells her so many times through the story that they need to talk with the implication that he's done with her if she doesn't. They then proceed to never talk meaningfully about anything that is going on and he just seems to forget and reset. I don't know if it's intentional, but Joey complains repeatedly about all the afterlife people being cryptic and vague and then proceeds to be even worse than any of them with Jagger. Once or twice might have been funny, but it's every time and nothing is ever actually explained to him.
Then you have this weird half love triangle thing with Wayland, Joey, and Jagger where Joey pretends not to know Wayland is fawning after her while still wanting to be in a relationship with Jagger while clearly behaving as if she's in some sort of relationship with Wayland. It's a muddled mess that makes no sense, even through the eyes of Joey and knowing explicitly what she feels.
The story only really starts to kick off when Ralph, a medium, volunteers to help them try to get a second chance at life. Unfortunately, the sequence where they go on a fetch quest for the ingredients for Ralph's ritual is rushed and crammed into a few chapters, a large section of which is spent in flashbacks that attempt to build character relationships that either don't say anything meaningful (in the case of a flashback with Jag) or just reiterate the same things we've known since Bleed More (in the case of a flashback with Wayland).
We also find out how Wayland died. He got mugged in a parking lot and decided to fight the mugger and the guy killed him. That's it. Nothing interesting, nothing engaging, he was just a dumbass during a stroke of bad luck. I had hoped there might be something culty going on with him, some darker secrets maybe. But nope, he was the goodest boy all along. In the end, he just decides of his own volition to move on to the afterlife, so he and Joey go back to Mortem and he goes and chills at the bar and that's the end of his story. He's painted through Joey's eyes as a poor innocent angel all the way through the story while being an absolutely unhinged psycho serial killer preying on innocent people to feed his bloodlust and rage. He is never confronted by the consequences of his actions and Charon even says he'll be judged less harshly in the afterlife because he's just such a good person. His character felt completely inconsequential and wasted while being the motivating force behind Joey.
After seeing Wayland off, Joey goes and picks up the fetish Ralph was cooking up for them. He explains to her that it's a pendant that is a literal representation of her heart and that she has to give it to someone for safekeeping or else the ravens will hunt her for it. In giving it to someone, your life is bound to theirs, and theirs to yours in the most literal sense. If she goes and gets herself killed, whoever she gave her heart necklace to also dies. Naturally, she's going to give it to Jag, so she goes to his apartment where he acts like Wayland didn't just try to kill him a few hours previously and then his "girlfriend" chose to stay with the psycho murderer and disappeared for hours. While they're having sex, because why wouldn't they, she gives him the necklace and is vague to the point of deceit about what the pendant actually is and what it means to accept it.
At this point in the story, my head exploded.
I would have rated Plead More one star, but Ralph, Charon, and Val are redeeming characters and the afterlife concepts, while not very well explored, are still interesting. So I gave it a star for that.
October 11, 2023
Wayland my brother, I feel your pain. The ultimate friendzone casualty.
November 11, 2023
The way the first Bodymore book ended, I thought the series would morph into a more adventurous story. And although there is a quest to save someone’s soul, I had been wrong about it being an adventure… This sequel takes things to a very introspective place, instead, offering a surprisingly heavy read.
Plead More, Bodymore explores Joey's character to her very core, pulling no punches and touching on a plethora of emotional and psychological struggles. The supporting characters, Jag and Wayland, are not spared from life pains either. All of it hits, and on a personal level, I found all these characters to be quite relatable in one sense or another.
That being said, this is at times a difficult book to get through. There’s so little hope in Joey’s perspective, and it’s crushing… Her mind is a dark place, while her emotions are amped up due to the consequences of the previous book. She gets so lost in her insecurities and trauma that nearly everything around her sparks a negative connotation.
The writing successfully relates all of it, making you a guest in Joey’s tortured mind, but I do think some introspective elements could’ve been dialed down for the sake of pacing. Many events and minor actions are disrupted by Joey’s constant need to reflect on life and relationships, and it sometimes disrupts the flow of the scene. Her difficult mindset is part of the plot and integral to her character, but even so, I think a better balance could’ve been struck between the action beats and Joey’s inner demons.
Anyway, in the end, this book wasn’t at all what I had expected it to be, yet even so, I appreciated it and found real value in this read. Not sure what to expect of Book 3 anymore, but I’m looking forward to it!
Plead More, Bodymore explores Joey's character to her very core, pulling no punches and touching on a plethora of emotional and psychological struggles. The supporting characters, Jag and Wayland, are not spared from life pains either. All of it hits, and on a personal level, I found all these characters to be quite relatable in one sense or another.
That being said, this is at times a difficult book to get through. There’s so little hope in Joey’s perspective, and it’s crushing… Her mind is a dark place, while her emotions are amped up due to the consequences of the previous book. She gets so lost in her insecurities and trauma that nearly everything around her sparks a negative connotation.
The writing successfully relates all of it, making you a guest in Joey’s tortured mind, but I do think some introspective elements could’ve been dialed down for the sake of pacing. Many events and minor actions are disrupted by Joey’s constant need to reflect on life and relationships, and it sometimes disrupts the flow of the scene. Her difficult mindset is part of the plot and integral to her character, but even so, I think a better balance could’ve been struck between the action beats and Joey’s inner demons.
Anyway, in the end, this book wasn’t at all what I had expected it to be, yet even so, I appreciated it and found real value in this read. Not sure what to expect of Book 3 anymore, but I’m looking forward to it!
October 19, 2022
"Horror is what happens when evil overtakes the heart"
I'm returning to Baltimore in the latest book from Ian Kirkpatrick. A sequel to Bleedmore, Bodymore. This book starts off right where the first one left off and its imperative that you read the first one, so you know what's going on.
In this book, Joey, our heroine, has returned from Mortem with her best friend Wayland. They are given a job by Charon, to collect other undead Baltimorons, like themselves, and return the souls to Charon. Wayland has gone off the deep end, killing indiscriminately and not caring. Jagger, Joeys, somewhat boyfriend, is trying his best to keep up with her and to keep her out of trouble. For most of the book, these are the three we follow. At some point, Joey meets a medium who offers her a possible second chance.
This is one of those books, like the first one, where you don't really know what's going on. And although some of it is vague and even when there are somewhat explanations, it just brings up more questions. Yet, despite this, I really have enjoyed both of these books and look forward to a possible third. I received this book free from Booksirens for an honest review.
I'm returning to Baltimore in the latest book from Ian Kirkpatrick. A sequel to Bleedmore, Bodymore. This book starts off right where the first one left off and its imperative that you read the first one, so you know what's going on.
In this book, Joey, our heroine, has returned from Mortem with her best friend Wayland. They are given a job by Charon, to collect other undead Baltimorons, like themselves, and return the souls to Charon. Wayland has gone off the deep end, killing indiscriminately and not caring. Jagger, Joeys, somewhat boyfriend, is trying his best to keep up with her and to keep her out of trouble. For most of the book, these are the three we follow. At some point, Joey meets a medium who offers her a possible second chance.
This is one of those books, like the first one, where you don't really know what's going on. And although some of it is vague and even when there are somewhat explanations, it just brings up more questions. Yet, despite this, I really have enjoyed both of these books and look forward to a possible third. I received this book free from Booksirens for an honest review.
July 25, 2025
If you enjoyed the first book in the series, then I highly recommend this follow-up. Plead More, Bodymore delves deeper into the characters and fleshes out the backstory of Wayland and Joey's relationship. The storyline leans into an interesting and sometimes frustrating love triangle.
Ian Kirkpatrick's writing really shines in its descriptive qualities of its liminal setting. Since a lot of the worldbuilding initially takes place in the first novel, the first part of this book lacks that appeal. However, this drawback allows for a more character-driven plot, providing a shift in focus that adds more dimension to the Bodymore world.
Please note, I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. If you are able to, I recommend reading this book before you read the prequel to the series (Bodymore Zero).
Ian Kirkpatrick's writing really shines in its descriptive qualities of its liminal setting. Since a lot of the worldbuilding initially takes place in the first novel, the first part of this book lacks that appeal. However, this drawback allows for a more character-driven plot, providing a shift in focus that adds more dimension to the Bodymore world.
Please note, I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. If you are able to, I recommend reading this book before you read the prequel to the series (Bodymore Zero).
January 6, 2024
2.5 stars rounded up to 3
Okay, so admittedly, this was kind of a hard read.
Generally, I liked the plot and premise, but so little seems to happen. Plead More picks up where the last book leaves off, but the action seems to just… stop. Wayland is off the rails, Joey is still waffling between her best friend and (kind of) boyfriend, and Jagger is just trying his best to support Joey when he can. Ultimately, I liked it as a whole, but I definitely had a difficult time paying attention to what was happening. I wish there was just MORE to it all - preferably more character development between the trio, and Joey figuring out just what she wants / who she wants.
I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. All above thoughts and opinions are my own.
Okay, so admittedly, this was kind of a hard read.
Generally, I liked the plot and premise, but so little seems to happen. Plead More picks up where the last book leaves off, but the action seems to just… stop. Wayland is off the rails, Joey is still waffling between her best friend and (kind of) boyfriend, and Jagger is just trying his best to support Joey when he can. Ultimately, I liked it as a whole, but I definitely had a difficult time paying attention to what was happening. I wish there was just MORE to it all - preferably more character development between the trio, and Joey figuring out just what she wants / who she wants.
I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. All above thoughts and opinions are my own.
December 12, 2022
This is the second book of the series. Joey still believes she does not deserve the chances she keeps getting. I absolutely love these two books. I feel a kinship with Joey. Even my nickname is “Jo”. It is incredible when a character in a book resonates so much with you. I, too, was given a second chance and I never let that ever be forgotten. I thank this author for writing such an emotional, yet inspiring book. I know it is a horror book but that is life. Everyday we are given a choice and what our choices are define our life. What an exceptional book. It will stick with me forever.
March 24, 2023
This book was just as great as the first one...which is an awesome feat!! A lot of sequels aren't as good as the first book. But not this book. Not with Kirkpatrick writing it. It picks up right where the first one left off, flowing freely into the next book!! This book has more twists than the first, which made it edgier and more of a surprise to follow. Again, I couldn't put this book down until I had made it to the end. I really hope Book 3 comes out soon...
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
May 25, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC. This is my honest review.
Another horror book for me. The cover made me reference the raven by Edgar A. Poe. This is book number two of this author's trilogy. You do need to read the first book to understand what is going on because the second book picks right back up in the middle of a story. Overall this book was a good start back into the trilogy for those who have been waiting for the second book. I recommend reading both books. I cannot wait until book three comes out.
Another horror book for me. The cover made me reference the raven by Edgar A. Poe. This is book number two of this author's trilogy. You do need to read the first book to understand what is going on because the second book picks right back up in the middle of a story. Overall this book was a good start back into the trilogy for those who have been waiting for the second book. I recommend reading both books. I cannot wait until book three comes out.
October 25, 2022
Joey's life is so messed up. Her boyfriend can't stand her best friend, and her death is a train wreck, but at least her dad didn't come back.
I really like these characters and Bodymore sure is a creepy place.
I really like these characters and Bodymore sure is a creepy place.
May 30, 2025
All edge and no point.
February 26, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley, Ian Kirkpatrick, and Steak House Books for an ARC of Plead More, Bodymore, the second book in the Bodymore series.
I usually give a short synopsis of the novel at this point, but honestly, I don't really know what the point of the book was. Nothing much really happened. Wayland kept disappearing again and Joey kept trying to find him and save him. When she wasn't doing that, Joey was trying to explain to Jag that she was dead, and he kept telling her that she wasn't dead and was just on drugs. I mean, she literally looks like walking death, so I don't know how he doesn't understand that she's dead. At the end of the first book, Joey and Wayland made an agreement with Charon to kill or at least incapacitate the walking dead in Baltimore so that he can come collect them, so I thought that's what this book would be, but it never happens. Not even when they go into a bar filled with dead people and get into a brawl, Charon and Val come to collect the newly dead people, but don't grab the undead while they're there. Other than that, Joey is trying to find a way to not be dead anymore...and that's pretty much it for the entire book.
I'm still not entirely sure how old Joey is, although I'm guessing that she's early 20s, but there's nothing really that gives even an approximation of her age. Joey isn't entirely likeable, she's very snarky and doesn't seem to have a lot of respect for anyone around her. She doesn't like cops, okay, I get that. But Donny has been like a father to her and she isn't nice to him either, or show him any respect. Jag is alright, he's trying to be supportive but he just doesn't truly understand what is going on, so he's just along on this crazy ride. Wayland is a crazy wildcard who sometimes shows up and sometimes disappears, and you never know what or when either of these things will happen. The only saving grace is Charon and Val, because with them you know what you're getting. Charon is stoic and will give indirect answers to questions, and Val is just there to eat the hearts of dead people, he doesn't care about anything else.
All in all, not one of my favorite books. I had a hard time finishing and really had to push through at times. There was a relatively nice conclusion to wrap everything up, so I don't think there's a third book, but I could be wrong. If you thoroughly enjoyed Bleed More, Bodymore, then by all means read this one. If you read the first one and just thought it was okay, you can probably skip this one.
I usually give a short synopsis of the novel at this point, but honestly, I don't really know what the point of the book was. Nothing much really happened. Wayland kept disappearing again and Joey kept trying to find him and save him. When she wasn't doing that, Joey was trying to explain to Jag that she was dead, and he kept telling her that she wasn't dead and was just on drugs. I mean, she literally looks like walking death, so I don't know how he doesn't understand that she's dead. At the end of the first book, Joey and Wayland made an agreement with Charon to kill or at least incapacitate the walking dead in Baltimore so that he can come collect them, so I thought that's what this book would be, but it never happens. Not even when they go into a bar filled with dead people and get into a brawl, Charon and Val come to collect the newly dead people, but don't grab the undead while they're there. Other than that, Joey is trying to find a way to not be dead anymore...and that's pretty much it for the entire book.
I'm still not entirely sure how old Joey is, although I'm guessing that she's early 20s, but there's nothing really that gives even an approximation of her age. Joey isn't entirely likeable, she's very snarky and doesn't seem to have a lot of respect for anyone around her. She doesn't like cops, okay, I get that. But Donny has been like a father to her and she isn't nice to him either, or show him any respect. Jag is alright, he's trying to be supportive but he just doesn't truly understand what is going on, so he's just along on this crazy ride. Wayland is a crazy wildcard who sometimes shows up and sometimes disappears, and you never know what or when either of these things will happen. The only saving grace is Charon and Val, because with them you know what you're getting. Charon is stoic and will give indirect answers to questions, and Val is just there to eat the hearts of dead people, he doesn't care about anything else.
All in all, not one of my favorite books. I had a hard time finishing and really had to push through at times. There was a relatively nice conclusion to wrap everything up, so I don't think there's a third book, but I could be wrong. If you thoroughly enjoyed Bleed More, Bodymore, then by all means read this one. If you read the first one and just thought it was okay, you can probably skip this one.
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