Play Book Tag discussion

Please post your reviews of your Fall Flurries Books for October here. You might read a book that is spooky, Autumn related, Hispanic Heritage, Italian Heritage or other topics which relates to October.

Halloween

Atlas of Unknowable Things / McCormick Templeman
3 stars

Robin’s devastated with her best friend, Charles, steals her research and writes a paper and gets all the credit for it. She decides the best revenge is to do more, better, research, so she finds an opportunity to head to Colorado to a small university where another researcher recently disappeared, but that researcher had an artifact that could really help Robin out with her own research. But when she arrives, things are very odd, even creepy, and the other academics act oddly toward her. What is going on?

It seemed like a good premise, but I think it might have been the writing style that just didn’t draw me in like I’d hoped. I did have some trouble following as Robin started figuring things out, but it could also be that I was skimming a little bit by that point and missed a few things? I was definitely confused by the very end.

The Silent Touch of Shadows by Christina Courtenay; 3 stars

This one has been on my TBR for almost to over a decade. When I needed a medieval book, I saw an opportunity to finally get to it. Plus its October Fall Flurries, so a ghost book really hits the spot. Listened to it in audio.

OK - so it wasn't a not to be missed. And you sort of just have to roll with it. Let me just call this a standard ghosty three.

Halloween

Moon Dance - J.R. Rain - 3.5 Stars

I needed to read a book with a vampire in it for a recent challenge so I searched my Kindle books and discovered I had a copy of a book called Moon Dance. It features Samantha Moon, wife, mom of two, and former federal agent now working as a private investigator. Unfortunately, she's also a vampire. Six years ago she was attacked while out jogging one night and it changed her life forever. As a cover story she tells her children she has a rare skin disease that forces her to stay out of the light. Only her husband and sister know the real story.

In the first book of the series, Samantha is hired by Kingsley Fulcrum to investigate the murder attempt on his life. As the case unfolds, Samantha discovers Kingsley isn't exactly what he appears to be, which shouldn't surprise the reader who wonders how he survived five shots to the head.

This isn't the greatest book I've ever read but I ended up enjoying it more than I expected. The plot was okay but I never felt like I was reading a mystery or a vampire novel. It's a really quick read and I finished it in a very short time. I think the series has a lot of potential and would be willing to read another book in the series to see if it gets better.

Halloween

The Night That Finds Us All / John Hornor Jacobs
3 stars

Sam (Samantha) Vines gets a job as an engineer on a hundred-year-old sailboat that’s said to be haunted. She meets a colourful cast of characters on the boat, but she already knew one of them ahead of time, an old friend. Sam does, indeed, start seeing things that make her wonder about the haunting stories, though she wouldn’t normally believe in that kind of thing. But no one else seems to believe her, until one of the other sailors disappears while in port, then others start dying.

There was a lot of sailing terminology that I don’t know. There is also a lot of swearing, but they are sailors. It also started very slow, in my opinion. I’m also not sure if I didn’t like the writing style or if it was all the sailing terminology that I had a hard time with, especially at first. The diary Sam found was a bit more interesting, and things did pick up, particularly at the very end, but overall I’m keeping it at 3 stars for me (ok).

Halloween, Autumn

Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner - 4* - My Review

At age twenty-eight, Lolly’s father dies, and she moves into her brother's London household. Initially, her brother and sister-in-law try to help her find a husband, but Laura (Lolly) is not interested. After fulfilling the role of “Aunt Lolly,” she breaks from the family and moves to the village of Great Mop. This book starts as a family drama, then takes an unexpected turn into the fantasy realm.

It is structured in three parts: Laura's youth in the countryside, her two decades with her brother’s family in London, and her independent life (at least initially) in Great Mop. Published in 1926, this is an early feminist work. I interpreted the fantasy element as a metaphor for personal freedom. It is Lolly’s attempt to gain independence from her family members, who continue trying to control her.

This is a beautifully written subdued book. It looks at the pressures put on single women of the time to perform their expected social roles as caretakers rather than recognizing them as individuals with their own agency. I read it for Fall Flurries since (view spoiler)[it contains a witch. (hide spoiler)] It’s a bit odd, but not scary or macabre, and I enjoyed it more than expected.

Autumn

Autumn by Karl Ove Knausgård - 4* - My Review

Autumn is a combination of memoir, letters to Knausgård's unborn daughter, and short essays containing observations on daily life. Through these observations, he is creating a guide to the world his daughter will enter. This book is the first in his Seasonal Series, and there are many references to autumn in Sweden, where he lives now with his family, and Norway, where he grew up.

He examines ordinary items and ideas, explaining things to his daughter that we often take for granted. Teaching his child about the world becomes a form of introspection. I took it as a method for living with intent, and appreciating the little things in life. This is the first book I have read by Karl Ove Knausgård, and I very much enjoyed his elegant writing style. I will surely be reading more of his works.

Halloween

Trick or Treat Murder - Leslie Meier 3 stars
It is Halloween preparation time in Tinker's Cove, Maine, and Lucy Stone has her hands full with her 4 children, one of them a nursing infant, baking 12 dozen cupcakes for the annual All-Ghouls Festival party, and secretly investigating a series of building fires that have plagued the small, historic town. One of the fires took the life of one of Lucy's friends, a wealthy woman had had hired Lucy's husband Bill to restore the old house. When several other centuries old buildings go up in flames it is obvious that an arsonist is at work. Lucy has her suspicions and her questioning reaches the wrong ears. She soon finds herself trapped in a burning building with no escape available.

This was a fun cozy mystery with a very likeable cast of characters. Lucy is every young mom with too little time for too much activity. I enjoyed it enough that I would definitely read more of the series.

Sweep of the Blade by Ilona Andrews 4 stars

This 4th book in the Innkeeper Chronicles follows the story of Dina's sister Maud and Maud's daughter Helen.

Maud and Helen travel to Arland's homeworld, where she runs across some crazy vampire family politics.

I love the author's world building and characters, and can't wait to read the next book.

Including in October Fall Flurries for the sexy vampires.

Where They Last Saw Her by Marcie R. Rendon

Indigenous for Native American Day and set in Autumn likely October

4 stars

Crime fiction set in Minnesota on an Indian reservation near Duluth - fictional but based on reality. The structure around which the specific plot and its crimes revolved is the continuing to escalate number of missing or murdered indigenous women and girls, especially in areas in which the pipelines and mining operations bring in men to work from the outside, and how various legal complexities as well as bystander culture cause nothing to be done by police etc. It's also about how indigenous women are no longer willing to let this happen.

The MC, Quill, is complex and flawed, someone who cannot just sit back.

There's also a lot of great information on the culture -- especially the contemporary use of the ribbon skirt, red kookum scarves, and the importance of the color red as it is the only color believed strong enough for the spirits to see.

My Review

Halloween

Dark Harvest / Norman Patridge
4 stars

It’s Halloween 1963 and “the Run”, the annual tradition in this small town with corn fields nearby, has started. What they call October Boy (in addition to other nicknames) has risen and will be attempting to make his way to the town church by midnight without being attacked and killed by the teenage boys in town. October Boy is actually a pumpkin who has had a face carved into him and his pumpkin head is perched on a vine. Before his trek to the church, he is provided with a butcher knife; the town boys also have weapons.

I actually found this creepier at the start of the book than at the end, but it was still a really good horror/Halloween read. As the story went on, we learned more about October Boy and how (the twisted way!) he came to be. Throughout, we also followed his POV at times. This is under 200 pages, so it is a quick read.

Fall, Gothic, Paranormal

Second Sight by Amanda Quick - while not specific as to date other than late into Victoria's reign and women wore bustles, nor of season except to have London's chill and pea soup type fogs prevalent, with all needing warm fires, I do believe that the gothic nature of this first in The Arcane Society series as well as the import of psychic phenomena to the plot make this perfect for October Flurries.

My Review

Well this was dark and atmospheric.... Creepy and sad. I don't know what else to offer around this, except if you are looking for an atmospheric read for the month of October, well then, here you go. Its a triple timeline, with the same "Bewitching" creatures throughout that link these timelines together.

Halloween (creepy vibes)

The Book of Guilt by Catherine Chidgey - 4.5* - My Review

This book is a blend of alternate history and science fiction set in 1979 Great Britain, decades after World War II had ended in a treaty. The main characters are identical thirteen-year-old triplets Vincent, Lawrence, and William. They live in the Captain Scott House in the English countryside with their three “mothers.” The boys take medicine daily and are told they will eventually join the other children (who had formerly lived with them) at the “Big House in Margate,” where life will be filled with seaside pleasures.

The perspective alternates between the triplets and Nancy, a thirteen-year-old girl who lives with her parents in their suburban home and is never allowed outside. She must hide when anyone comes to visit. Due to cost concerns, the government decides to shut down the program, which includes several separate “homes” for boys and girls. This change creates a rising awareness of what had previously been hidden, and dark secrets are discovered.

This book explores what Britain might have become if Hitler had been assassinated in 1943, leading to a treaty requiring Germany to share concentration camp research with Allied nations. As a reader, I immediately began to feel a “creepy” vibe. Readers will be aware that something is not quite right, and the pieces are gradually revealed over the course of the storyline. It reminds me a bit of Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (which is high praise indeed). It is disturbing yet strangely compelling.

4.5

PBT comment: I read this for Fall Flurries. It is perfect for the Halloween season – creepy, dark, and disturbing. It also fits the SciFi Fantasy tag.

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

4 stars

This is a cozy romcom about Mika Moon. She is a witch who has mostly been separated from others. Mika has been told living this way protects witches, but it is a lonely life. One day Mika receives an odd request to tutor three young girls. She finds out that they are also witches and in need of help with their powers.

Mika takes the job and quickly feels more at home there than ever before. Other adults who work on the estate are kind to her and she likes her students. She even starts to form a relationship with a man working there.

Eventually Mika finds out about a secret that changes how she feels. She becomes unsure of what is real and needs to decide how to live her life. The characters in this story are fun and Mika is especially cute. It is a fast and enjoyable read.

New York gangsters meet Appalachian mountain family in a blood splattered comic from a celebrated artistic team.
Oh! and there are real monsters lurking in those backwood places.

Moonshine, Vol. 1

I was disappointed in this series, all five albums of it, but I did slog through all of them for the artwork of Eduardo Risso. I already had my reservations about the excessive use of graphic violence in their more famous 100 Bullets, Vol. 1: First Shot, Last Call, but this time I found little redeeming qualities in the script from Brian Azzarello - 2 stars

I read this collection from Joe Hill: 20th Century Ghosts

I only gave it three stars. I had been hoping for more ghost stories (as indicated by the title). But, there was a bit more horror than I'm really in the mood for now. And some of the horror stories were a little too close to "ripped from the headlines" for me to enjoy.

Well if it weren't halloween season, it wouldn't have gotten even the three stars. But it was a nice seasonal witchy perfect audio listen for the month of October. There are a lot of holes and lack of explanations in the plot, so you just kind of have to go with it without asking any kinds of questions... But, here goes...

Dora, aged 33 doesn't know it, but she comes from a long line of witches burned at the stake in 1692 in Salem MA. She doesn't remember. But her reincarnated mother and two aunts do, and for the past 500 years they have re-lived and reincarnated over and over again, fighting the same Witch Hunter, while her mother and aunts, and lover, all are reborn with their memories. In every lifetime, her mother dies of Cancer young, and Dora is also re-killed by the Demon Hunter every single time. For some reason, this is the one time they think they can beat him at his game. So they take Dora to London with one of the aunts. But for some reason, this plan fails and she ends up in Salem trying to recapture her memories, love, and magic, to be able to save herself and save them all.

Somehow her mother's (father's) magical book was put that fateful night in her lover's secret bookshop in the woods and it vanished. Don't ask me why it vanished, or why the other plethora of lifetimes they never looked for it or why they weren't successful. We are just supposed to be paying attention to the first and the last time without critical thinking. Anyway, Dora is a tattooed pierced Londoner who finds out about her magical lineage just in time to get with the program. It pretty much writes itself. It was fine and it passed the time. It will also soon "vanish" - that is from my memory banks.

I think A Murder of Crows works with all the Bats, black cats and crows in the book.

Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

by Laura Purcell

A perfectly spooky read for the season, 3.5 bumped up to 4 stars. Told in multiple timelines telling the story of The Bridge, the ancestral home of the Bainbridges from its first family up to the current descendants in 1865. Elsie's husband Rupert traveled to the uninhabited home to prepare it for his bride and the coming baby but that is when the trouble started. When Rupert is found unexpectedly dead, Elsie and Rupert's cousin travel to the home. The house is shunned by the villagers and there are noises at night and perhaps the wooden artistic "silent companions" follow you with their eyes and maybe that isn't the worst of it.

The story takes a bit to come together and is maybe overly complicated by Elsie's family history but is a good example of how quickly women were/ are sent to an asylum instead of properly heard. This was a great gothic historical horror story and was perfect for the darkening days.

Spooky goth for Halloween!

My spooky book for October



https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

This was unexpected - Braking Points by Tammy Kaehler is set primarily at the Petit Le Mans race held in Atlanta in early October! I think I've just added another October event to use for Fall Flurries.

It's 2 years after Kate gets a seat with a sports car racing team, and is able to compete regularly on the pro circuit as part of a team. She's racing in the American Le Mans series, and this fall weekend is competing in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin - a premier race. Competing with her on another team is Miles Hanson, the golden boy from NASCAR, trying his hand at sports car racing rather than stock car racing, and they both push too hard and wreck against each other, knocking them out of the race. The backlash against Kate, both as a female race car driver and for (according to Miles' fans) causing his injury that will prevent him from another championship NASCAR win, rages, including death threats and social media harassment, even though Kate has no personal presence there. In the middle of this, someone from Kate's racing past is poisoned after drinking orange juice presumably meant for Kate. It all escalates from there until the grand finale at Petit Le Mans in Atlanta.

Even though I began to suspect whodunit about half way through, there were sufficient red herrings to keep me a bit unsure. Plus Kate finally buying her first mobile smart phone, learning to tweet (this was published in 2013), handling sponsors, fans, family issues, potential stalkers, and professional sneers for being female in a man's world provides plenty of distraction. One of the great strengths of this series is that the author puts you at the track, in the pit, in the car as Kate races, educating you as you are having fun. The murder mystery is secondary to this world.

I discovered this series during a challenge in 2020, which introduced us to Kate at a track in Connecticut where she was hoping to get in with a team at one of the Amercan Le Mans early year competitions. I'm sad it took me 4 years to read the next. There are a handful more that take us up the level of the races along with Kate as she climbs to the top. I believe the next will be a year later at the Le Mans 24 hour endurance race -- one of the most prestigious. Makes me want to go to the track - car not horse.

One aside - I just adore that one area of the race track is called the 'paddock', a nod to horse racing which came first of course.

Hispanic Heritage Month
Spooky Book

The Haunting of Alejandra
Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Halloween
Features a society of "grim reapers:"

Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman - 3* - My Review

The Pumpkin Spice Café
Set in October shortly before Halloween, so of course it fits.
Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

by Lucinda Race- 3 stars

Witches for Halloween

Lily is already having a momentous day. When she came to after knocking her head, she found that her cat Milo can speak and she can hear him because she is a witch. Then after that revelation, she rushes to her movie club event at the local library and before the movie starts, the mean librarian is murdered and her favorite aunt is the prime suspect. There are many layers and secrets in this small town in Maine as Lily works to both start her witch studies and clear her aunt's name. All of this is complicated more as the local cop is her best friend and supposedly unrequited crush.

I had no problem with the talking cat or her having no idea that she was a witch or that many loved ones in her life were witches and she had no clue. I'm stuck on how she and the cop could be besties and mature adults and not communicate their feelings for each other. This was a fun enough cozy made better by an excellent cat with a feisty personality and lots of lobster references.

This is my final October Flurries and it's witches, demons, even a necromancer or two.



Human Rites by Juno Dawson

4 stars

Juno Dawson has one of the wildest, quirkiest, sublime imaginations ever. Well, one of the two I have ever encountered. Each book of the Trilogy has been imaginative, with book 2 exceeding book one and leaving you at the end with an idea of where this was all going. Book 3 tops them all in every single way. Just when I thought I was numb to the unexpected - as in the unexpected was expected - my jaw hit the floor and I nearly fell off the couch.

What a wild ride! I am not going to say much --- you just have to experience it but it does take you ultimately to a war to save the earth from The Leviathan which is the demons Satan, Belial and Leviathan combined, whose sole goal is to destroy in one feel swoop humankind and the earth - not just gain control of the witches. While this is fantasy at its wildest, it is also at its core good vs. evil. It also addresses all those gender and ethnic hatred issues so evident today. Men's fear of women having power is of course front and center as it was in the V. 2. But also, there is the very personal human individual challenges and emotional growth of each of our witches -- forgiveness, love, taking on responsibility, owning your power and weaknesses.

Enjoyable as this was, it has a few weaknesses in my eyes. First, for all the action and twists and thrills and chills, it drags at times. While the last chapters are essentially an epilogue that ties it all up and gives a sold complete ending, she didn't really need to drop yet another shocker -- wonderful as it was - in the last couple of pages. Of course, that is also who Juno Dawson is. Also, it's a book for Millenials written by a Millenial - there are so many pop references suitable to those who came of age in the 90s (the main characters are in their 30s in this trilogy which is set in contemporary times, as recent as last year), it's going to date the book very fast IMHO. I'm a Baby Boomer and I had to google a LOT.

My last quibble - I read this in ebook - from Amazon - and it is filled with typos that a halfway decent proofreading would have picked up. I did use the 'report' feature frequently but it was extremely irritating. Think I'll send a note to the publisher.

You want a wild ride contemporary fantasy about witches, demons and saving the world? Read the Her Majesty's Secret Coven series.

by Beth Labonte - 3 stars

As sweet a romance as promised, Amy moved away from Autumnboro, NH for college and never came back feeling guilty for not only not helping "enough" but breaking up with her boyfriend and best friend when he was struggling. When her grandfather gets into an accident 10 years later and her mother threatens to sell off and end the family connection to the town she grew up in, Amy struggling herself this time, agrees to go back and face all that she ran from earlier.

The town is adorable with scarecrows, pumpkins and going all out for autumn. I love how everyone starts to read Amy's books when she returns and finds out that they were included and not so favorably. Kit and Amy are cute if not that exciting. The best part was the nostalgia for me of northern New Hampshire highlights. The author hit so many best of from the Flume, Santa's Village, the Old Man and shopping the outlets in Tilton. I could feel see the foliage and taste the pumpkin spice.

Ghosts - Halloween


Haunt Couture and Ghosts Galore - Rose Pressey - 3 Stars

Haunt Couture and Ghosts Galore by Rose Pressey is the third book in A Haunted Vintage Mystery series. The main character, amateur sleuth, Cookie Chanel, can see ghosts. She also owns a vintage clothing store. While at a fashion show, showing items from her own boutique, she finds model, Hannah, over a dead body. Blood is all over Hannah's hands and it looks like she was murdered by a shoe that Hannah wore during the show.

In addition to her regular ghost, Charlotte Meadows, a new ghost has appeared on the scence. Sam Sanders is a former 1940s detective who is unable to move on without his hat, which Cookie bought for her shop but is now in the evidence room. The ghosts help her with the mystery as much as they can. She is also helped by her psychic cat, Wind Song, who gives her clues through a ouija board and tarot cards.

This is a cute, cozy mystery that revolves almost entirely around fashion. I wouldn't recommend it to a reader that's not interested in vintage fashion because outfits are described in every chapter. I love vintage fashion so that's one of the things I enjoy about the series. I thought this was a cute, cozy mystery with some paranormal elements thrown in. I plan to continue the series in the future.

Halloween - Tyll is a trickster from German folklore

Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann - 4.5* - My Review

Tyll is reimagining of the legend of the German folk character Tyll Ulenspiegel. Tyll is a performer with many talents, such as rope-walking, juggling, and singing. He is also a trickster known for exposing hypocrisy and foolishness This story places Tyll within the context of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), a time of catastrophic upheaval in central and eastern Europe. The storyline mixes myth with history. The characters wander through a real historic landscape. Villages are disappearing, populations are being decimated, and the views of religion and social order are changing dramatically. Disease is rampant. There are also talking donkeys and cures using dragon’s blood (or at least that’s what is commonly believed). Tyll performs the role of court jester and his art becomes a form of resistance and survival.

The structure is fragmented and nonlinear. It is episodic, almost like a series of short stories, with Tyll as the common link. There are many embedded literary references, especially to Shakespeare, which I enjoyed immensely. It begins by focusing on Tyll as a nomadic performer, just before the start of the Thirty Years War, then immediately provides his backstory as a child who is left alone in the forest due to his mother’s impending childbirth. It then moves among different (real) historical people and time periods of the war. Tyll is sometimes as central figure, and other times only on the periphery. We see events through the eyes of peasants, nobility, scholars, and soldiers, and each group experiences and remembers history differently.

The novel constantly probes the nature of truth, which is crucial (but almost impossible to maintain) in times of turmoil. The author employs humor throughout as a much-needed respite to the more serious scenes of war, religious persecution, torture, and bloodshed. Tyll is a slippery character. He is part-human, part-legend. He has survived beyond a normal lifespan, and he walks the line between realistic character and mythological archetype. Kehlmann's prose is playful and changes in style to fit the scene (I read the English translation by Ross Benjamin).

Tyll is a sophisticated historical fiction that spurs questions relevant to today’s world. How do individuals maintain their humanity amid systematic dehumanization? How do we distinguish truth from propaganda in times of turmoil? Can art provide meaning when religious and political systems fail? How do societies remember (or misremember) collective trauma?

While it is set during the Thirty Years' War, the reader does not need a detailed understanding of this conflict to appreciate it (though I’m sure to be reading up on its history soon). It is only necessary to know that the war devastated the region and left lasting religious and political divisions. Don’t let the history angle put you off. The book is accessible and entertaining. I found it surprisingly hopeful. It is ultimately about survival, not only for individuals like Tyll, but also the survival of meaning, art, and human connection. This is only my second time reading Daniel Kehlmann’s work. I am very impressed.

4.5

Halloween

Seven Shades of Evil by Robert McCammon - 4 stars
my review

Werewolves, vampires, ghosts, zombies, serial killers and murder mysteries make this collection of stories a very good choice for a Halloween-themed party. This is Robert McCammon’s gift to the fans of the Matthew Corbett adventures who are impatient for the arrival of the last instalment of the series, a stopgap with short stories covering past incidents from the Herrald Agency files. It is also a good introduction to new readers who are on the fence about starting this historical account of the first private detective agency in New York, for which young Matthew works as a problem-solver

If this is your first taste for the Corbett historical horror series of novels, I hope you will be tempted to pick up Speaks the Nightbird, the first and still my favorite Matthew Corbett adventure. I concur with the remarks of an aspiring lady writer who sails with Berry on the ‘Lady Barbara’:

“I think in the future much praise should go to the mystery writer, for lighting the candles of imagination and intrigue in a world that can sometimes seem so dreadfully dark.”

There’s Pumpkin About You

Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Halloween - ghost story and a haunted house, &
Author is of Hispanic Heritage

The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafón - 4* - My Review

The Prince of Mist is an old-fashioned ghost story. It is a gothic tale with supernatural elements. The Carver family relocates to a coastal town during World War II, only to discover that their new home may be haunted by a sinister figure known as the Prince of Mist. The main characters are thirteen-year-old Max Carver, his fifteen-year-old sister Alicia, and the lighthouse keeper’s seventeen-year-old grandson, Roland. These three young people will encounter evil for the first time.

The young characters are engaging and sympathetic. It is nicely paced, with enough twists to keep readers guessing without becoming overly convoluted. Zafón's prose is lyrical (hats off to the translator). It is Zafón's debut novel, aimed at young adults, so it lacks some of the complexity of his later work. It is creepy, haunting, and perfect for Halloween. It will appeal to those who enjoy atmospheric mysteries with a supernatural edge.

Halloween

The Walls of Air by Barbara Hambly - 4 stars
my review

Very atmospheric portal fantasy about a world under attack from the forces of the Dark. This is the second book of the series, so for those interested, better start with The Time of the Dark
The setting holds a certain nostalgic value for classic fantasy from the 1980s, but Barbara Hambly is worth a visit for her dark setting and for her careful characterization.

Hispanic heritage month


Cliff Diver – Carmen Amato – 3***
This first entry in the Emilia Cruz Mysteries introduces the reader to our heroine, the first female detective on the Acapulco, Mexico police squad. This is a multi-layered mystery, involving multiple murders, drug cartels, counterfeiting, gambling, sex abuse / trafficking, corrupt officials and a possible romantic relationship for Detective Cruz. There were plenty of red herrings and subplots to keep me guessing as to who murdered whom and why. And I was completely surprised by the reveal as to who actually killed the primary victim. I only wish Emilia had more self-confidence. She was constantly voicing her doubts about own ability to handle such a big case.
LINK to my full review

It's not November yet, but this features several veterans, so it fits Fall Flurries....


Burn For Me – Ilona Andrews – 3***
Book one in the Hidden Legacies series takes place in Houston, Texas, but it’s not the Houston we know. In this world, magic rules, and the families who have the most magic are the most powerful. Nevada Baylor runs Baylor Investigative Agency, mostly focusing on cheating spouses and small-time insurance fraud. But now she has a particularly dangerous assignment. So, she joins forces with Connor “Mad” Rogan, a billionaire Prime with equally devastating and dangerous powers. The mayhem and magic is enough plot for anyone, but the romantic tension between Rogan and Nevada add some nice spice to the mix.
LINK to my full review

Halloween

In Nigeria, there is an Igbo tradition to frighten people at festivals or parties with a man in an elaborate. frightening costume - called Ijele masquerade, or masquerade. (In some of the author’s books, the Masquerades hurt or killed people.))

Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor
Review: Death of the Author is about Zelu, a Chicago author whose high achieving family comes from Nigeria. They have high expectations and aren't impressed by her writing career. When she fails to publish a book and loses her part-time teaching job, she find solace in imagining a future world set in Nigeria, populated by all types of robots and automation. She eventually turns it into a very popular Sci-fi book called Rusted Robots, and its chapters are interspersed between the larger story about Zelu. The book has many interesting themes , some that involve both stories in subtle ways. Due to a fall when she was young, Zelu spent much of her life in a wheelchair, and developed a strong independent streak that often annoys her family. Success doesn’t change that, but it does afford her a new way to walk, which was pretty cool. At the same time, the protagonist of Rusting Robots becomes a scholar and studies the stories that humans left behind. I really enjoyed the meta aspects of the book, and I often wondered how much of the story is autobiographical. Zelu is not a very likable character, and fame doesn’t soften her edges very much. She’s a strong and interesting character, which is more important. The book is quite thought provoking.

The book’s title comes from an essay that explains that once a book is written, the author has no control over the way it is interpreted by readers. The book shows us this in several interesting ways, especially when the film is made. The author’s popular Binti series is going to become a television series, so I was curious if that plot point was based on the author’s real life experience. I was happy to learn that it’s not.

I enjoyed the book despite the fact that I was often distracted by meandering thoughts related to the meta-fiction elements, and curiosity about the author. It’s not a pure fantasy read like the author’s other books. The ending was a let down, and felt rushed and incomplete. (This reduced my rating.) The sci-fi story was very light compared to the larger story. In Zelu’s story, we never get an answer to a question that teased the reader throughout the whole book. (view spoiler)[ I realized it before the end when I learned about the well known Death of the Author essay. It still felt like a fake mystery. (hide spoiler)] I think I would still recommend the book to anyone who is interested in the premise.

Halloween

Monday Starts on Saturday by Arcady and Boris Strugatsky
A Russian sci-fi-fantasy satire with witches, vampires and wild scientists in a research institute.
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

INTERNATIONAL OCTOPUS DAY -October 8th. This day is dedicated to celebrating their intelligence, adaptability, and ecological importance, and to raising awareness about the threats they face. Additionally, they are part of Cephalopod Awareness Days, a longer period of celebration that also includes Nautilus Night (Oct. 9), Squid Day/Cuttlefish Day (Oct. 10), and Kraken Day (Oct. 11).

The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

While reading this book, I had a strong urge to start researching scuba diving and snorkeling vacations. One of the characters described the utterly peaceful feeling you get under the water, and I remember experiencing that before. I was forgetting the dangers experienced by other characters in the book.

This is a fascinating science fiction story centered on an archipelago in Vietnam, where there are rumored to be highly intelligent (and vengeful) octopuses. A large corporation bought the whole area (and paid a lot to relocate the residents) ostensibly as a charitable effort to protect the environment and animals in it. Or perhaps they are there to exploit the resources, and gain an edge on their competitors in their pursuit of the secrets to intelligence and consciousness. The primary story involved a female scientist who wants to study the octopuses, a sentient android, a security officer, and the head of the organization. These characters evolved over time and were well developed. I enjoyed seeing how they changed one another. Two of the characters had written books, which were quoted throughout. I really enjoyed the writing in these sections, and the discussions of language, communication between species, consciousness, and intelligence.

There are other story lines in the book involving characters in other locations, including slaves working on large fishing vessels in isolated locations, android monks, and people with unusual skills. The slave boats are unfortunately not science fiction, which made the plight of the men much more disturbing. All of these stories eventually come together in really interesting ways.

The story is complex with a lot of characters and I found it challenging to keep track of the names on audio. I downloaded a kindle version to review the character names, and that helped a lot (seeing the spelling always helps). After that I was fine. I was so engrossed in the story, I didn’t want to pause again.

Hispanic Heritage month.

Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova, 4+ stars

“A literary horror debut about a boy who transforms into a monster, a monster who tries to be a man, and the people who love him in every form he takes.”

When her eleven year old son Santiago dies, a distraught mother horrifies her husband by cutting into the body and taking out his heart. Based on an old legend she heard from a cousin, she thought she might bring him back or at least treasure the lung. She then returns home to Mexico, leaving her husband and the butchered body behind in upstate New York. (Leaving me to wonder what he did with the body, and what he would say if the state trooper rolled in to ask some questions.)

Home in her mother’s house in Mexico she hides the lung from everyone in the house. She feeds it Chicken broth and it begins to grow more every day. Eventually he takes shape with a sort of an arm/tail, and he wants more food. There were scenes that could have been inspired by Little Shop of Horrors. (Feed me Seymour,) After he goes too far, the family members get together to make a plan for little Monstrilio.

🎶 little shop, little shop of horrors 🎶 - - -
I’m not a horror fan but I found ways to distract myself from the worst parts. It backfired a little because the song (and the book) was still in my head 3 days later. It helps that the book is so beautifully written, I couldn’t stop if I wanted to.

Fast forward 6-7 years.
The parents are divorced. Mom is a performance artist, and invites her family to see her show in Berlin. Dad is happily engaged to a man who knows nothing about the boy, and they attend the show. When they are surprised by a meeting, the dad introduces his son as Santiago. Monstrilio has changed in appearance and behavior, into a nice looking but slightly awkward 18 year old, with a job and a boyfriend. Life looks very hopeful. (If only he wasn’t always so hungry.)

The show is followed by some heartbreaking and dramatic scenes. A few scenes in particular will be very hard to forgot. The author was able to add sensitivity and creativity to scenes that could have been simply horrific. I loved the special touches , such as scenes with his elderly uncle. Each character had something special to contribute to the story. There is a lot of love in the story but it was never sappy or crass. I know it’s not for everyone, but if I could handle it, you might tio.

(view spoiler)[
I’m still not sure how I feel about the ending. I was less happy when I realized that they were in upstate New York! Which is where I live. It gave me chills. What if this was based on a true story??😱 (hide spoiler)]

Halloween - Witches. I gave in and bought a witchy book for Halloween, it just felt right.


The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna, 3.5
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

This is a sweet story about a lonely witch who was raised by a series of nannies. Her guardian taught her that witches are safest alone, especially young witches who cannot yet control their power. So when she gets a job offer to teach 3 orphaned witches, she keeps it secret. She loves her new home, with (mostly) friendly adults, and multicultural kids. There are some rough days on the job (one child wants to kill her) and trust takes time to earn. The legal guardian of the children is missing ,and they fear that they will be separated. Her job is to get the kids ready for a lawyer’s visit at Christmas, but it’s just not enough time. It’s easy to predict that the meeting will be a disaster, but I couldn’t have imagined how.

This is a pleasant read with a likable theme. The witch mythology is a little different from other books. It was sometimes funny, and served the story well. The book also includes an Austen inspired romance which included all the ingredients in the formula. (There is a standard sex scene that is easy to skip over. If you like romance you’ll be happy, but I didn’t expect the romance to take up a large portion of the book. The timing between the two parts of the book was also inconsistent and didn’t quite make sense given the character’s motivations. I really enjoyed how it all worked out, and I’m wondering if there will be a sequel to let the kids save the day.

As with many books in recent years, I would have loved this book more when I was much younger. But I can still enjoy a sweet read.

shelving done, Nov 19/25