Bookish Quote of the Day!!

 

Fright Fall Readathon October 2021

 

I'm in the mood to read some scary themed books during the month of October. I have five to six books that fall into the horror genre that I would like to read this month. So, I decided to sign up and participate in the Fright Fall Readathon October 2021 hosted by Seasons of Reading!

Below is a blurb about the Fright Fall Readathon October 2021:

We start at 12:00 am eastern time on October 1st and end at 11:59 pm eastern time on October 31st. (There is a handy link to a time zone converter in the sidebar menu.) I hope you're ready to get your scary on! Guidelines for the readathon can be found HERE or you can access in the sidebar menu. Any information you need about the readathon can be found there. Please do be sure to check the guidelines to make sure you're following along correctly. There are specific rules regarding sign up and wrap up, especially in regards to the giveaway.

The one main "rule" of FrightFall is that you must read at least ONE scary book (which can be a thriller, mystery, Gothic novel, or similar for those who are faint of heart). I hope you will indulge the scary beyond the one book, but that is entirely up to you. It is all about the reading after all.

I hope you join me in reading a few scary books this month!! And click on the above link if you'd like to join the Fright Fall Readathon October 2021.

Happy reading!! 

Matrix by Lauren Groff

 

I have never read anything by Lauren Groff before, until now... But her previous books have been on my radar for quite a while. When I discovered Lauren Groff had come out with a new novel near the beginning of September and that sounded like a wonderful read, I couldn't resist reading her newest novel, Matrix.

I am so glad that I listened to the unabridged audio version of Matrix by Lauren Groff and narrated by Adjoa Andoh. Matrix falls into the category of medieval fiction and women's religious fiction set in England primarily at an impoverished abbey.

The writing for Matrix by Lauren Groff is very well done and very atmospheric in parts. At times, I felt like I was right in the thick of the action, Groff's writing is that good. 

Matrix is definitely a feminist novel. I also think that the plot summary's description that this novel is a "timely exploration of the raw power of female creativity" is most definitely true as Marie de France is a force of nature to be reckoned with... And her feat at turning the abbey around is something to behold.

As a side note, let me add that I am grateful I was never a nun during this time period. What a difficult life they lived!!

Listening time for Matrix by Lauren Groff is 8 hours, 51 minutes.

Below is the plot summary for Matrix by Lauren Groff from Audible:

Cast out of the royal court by Eleanor of Aquitaine, deemed too coarse and rough-hewn for marriage or courtly life, 17-year-old Marie de France is sent to England to be the new prioress of an impoverished abbey, its nuns on the brink of starvation and beset by disease.

At first taken aback by the severity of her new life, Marie finds focus and love in collective life with her singular and mercurial sisters. In this crucible, Marie steadily supplants her desire for family, for her homeland, for the passions of her youth with something new to her: devotion to her sisters, and a conviction in her own divine visions. Marie, born the last in a long line of women warriors and crusaders, is determined to chart a bold new course for the women she now leads and protects. But in a world that is shifting and corroding in frightening ways, one that can never reconcile itself with her existence, will the sheer force of Marie’s vision be bulwark enough?

Equally alive to the sacred and the profane, Matrix gathers currents of violence, sensuality, and religious ecstasy in a mesmerizing portrait of consuming passion, aberrant faith, and a woman that history moves both through and around. Lauren Groff’s new novel, her first since Fates and Furies, is a defiant and timely exploration of the raw power of female creativity in a corrupted world.

I am giving Matrix by Lauren Groff a rating of 4 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!!

Bookish Quote of the Day!!

 

Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare (Cirque du Freak #1) by Darren Shan

 

Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare (Cirque du Freak #1) by Darren Shan is a surprise read for me this year. It's not a book that had been on my radar, but the storyline and reviews of this novel and series reeled me in. I listened to the unabridged audio version of this young adult/fantasy novel, which is the 1st novel in the Cirque du Freak series.

I absolutely enjoyed Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare (Cirque du Freak #1) by Darren Shan!! The writing and storytelling is fabulous. Ralph Lister is a magical narrator and made listening to Cirque du Freak come alive.

The story revolves around Darren Shan and his best friend, Steve, attending a performance of Cirque du Freak. They must attend in secret as freak shows are illegal and their parents wouldn't allow them to attend the event most likely even if the shows weren't illegal.

Darren and Steve love the freak show and the various performances within the show... There is even a poisonous spider that performs in the freak show, which Darren loves as he loves spiders. 

However, things go south fast when Steve recognizes a performer, Mr. Crepsley, and that Mr. Crepsley is a vampire. Steve decides to confront Mr. Crepsley after the show and asks him to turn him into a vampire, which Mr. Crepsley flatly declines to do. Steve isn't happy with Mr. Crepsley's answer, period and says things to Mr. Crepsley that don't sit right with Darren. Darren begins social distancing himself from Steve.

Things become more interesting when Darren decides to steal Mr. Crepsley's poisonous spider. Darren must hide/keep the spider secret from his family as they would never let him keep the spider. Darren works with spider in gaining its trust and training it to do tricks. But, of course, Steve stops by for a visit with Darren who now has to explain why he's been avoiding Steve... Darren shows Steve the poisonous spider... And wouldn't you know it, Steve is bitten by the spider and is rushed to the hospital unconscious.

Things turn even more interesting at this point for Darren in order to save Steve and I'll leave it at that to avoid spoiling the ending.

Below is the summary for Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare (Cirque du Freak #1) by Darren Shan from Audible:

In the tradition of Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes and Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot, New York Times best-seller Cirque du Freak is the first title in the popular Saga of Darren Shan series.

Darren Shan and his best friend, Steve, get tickets to the Cirque du Freak, a wonderfully gothic freak show featuring weird, frightening half human/half animals who interact terrifyingly with the audience. In the midst of the excitement, true terror raises its head when Steve recognizes that one of the performers - Mr. Crepsley - is a vampire!

Steve confronts the vampire after the show finishes - but his motives are surprising! In the shadows of a crumbling theater, a horrified Darren eavesdrops on his friend and the vampire, and is witness to a monstrous, disturbing plea. As if by destiny, Darren is pulled to Mr. Crepsley and what follows is his horrifying descent into the dark and bloody world of vampires.

This is Darren’s story.

I am giving Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare (Cirque du Freak #1) by Darren Shan a rating of 5 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!

The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian

The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian was published earlier this year on April 6, 2021. I first learned about this historical fiction novel set in Mississippi from another book blogger (I have forgotten which book blogger off the top of my head) who loved this novel! 

So, I decided to listen to the unabridged audio version of The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian and narrated by Johanna Parker. Listening time for this novel is 9 hours, 56 minutes.

I'm glad I read The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian. It's a good read, but I didn't care for the narration of this novel. The southern accent felt off to me, so I wish I'd read the book instead of listened to it.

The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian is a debut novel by the author and it is impressive for a first novel. Overall the writing was good. So is the storyline/plot... However, at times I felt like the pace of The Girls in the Stilt House was slow. 

My favorite character from The Girls in the Stilt House is Gertie/“Miss Tuttle", who is an elderly, colored midwife/nurse who is filled with so much wisdom. Gertie/“Miss Tuttle" is a true treasure within the community.

Below is the plot summary for The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian from Amazon:

Set in 1920s Mississippi, this debut Southern novel weaves a beautiful and harrowing story of two teenage girls cast in an unlikely partnership through murder—perfect for readers of Where the Crawdads Sing and If the Creek Don't Rise.

Ada promised herself she would never go back to the Trace, to her hard life on the swamp and her harsh father. But now, after running away to Baton Rouge and briefly knowing a different kind of life, she finds herself with nowhere to go but back home. And she knows there will be a price to pay with her father.

Matilda, daughter of a sharecropper, is from the other side of the Trace. Doing what she can to protect her family from the whims and demands of some particularly callous locals is an ongoing struggle. She forms a plan to go north, to pack up the secrets she's holding about her life in the South and hang them on the line for all to see in Ohio.

As the two girls are drawn deeper into a dangerous world of bootleggers and moral corruption, they must come to terms with the complexities of their tenuous bond and a hidden past that links them in ways that could cost them their lives.

I am giving The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian a rating of 4 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!

Top Ten Tuesday - Freebie - My Favorite New To Me Authors of 2021

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Top Ten Tuesday was originally created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

I have come across several new to me authors this year and have read some wonderful books in the process... And by new to me, I mean either I'd never heard or read anything by the author before OR as in the case of Ursula K. Le Guin, I'd heard of the author before, but had never read any of their books until this year.

1. Darcie Wilde

2. Susan Gregg Gilmore

3. Jennifer J. Chow

4. Gary D. Schmidt

5. Lily King

6. Ursula K. Le Guin

7. Xhenet Aliu

8. A. G. Howard

9. Anna Banks

10. Sherri L. Smith

Have you read any books written by any of the above mentioned authors?

Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye

 

I enjoyed reading the Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye, which is the follow-up to Laura Kaye's Hearts in Darkness (Hearts in Darkness Duet Book 1). 

I am a sucker for well written contemporary romance and erotica reads and the 'Hearts in Darkness' duology is a winner. I read the first ebook in the series last month and was eager to read the follow up ebook, Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye, this month.

Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye delves into the newly blossomed romance between Makenna and Caden that began in the previous ebook. Their romance skyrockets quickly and soon Makenna brings Caden home to meet her family over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. 

A couple of small bumps over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend become a huge problem for Caden that leave him feeling unworthy of Makenna's love and has his PTSD flaring up big time to the point that his mental and physical health begin to spin out of control. Caden steps back from the relationship without discussing what's going on in any major detail, which leaves Makenna heartbroken and desperate to fix the situation. 

Will Caden and Makenna's young romance survive? Reading their trials and tribulations makes one wonder if it will.

 Overall, I enjoyed reading Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye. It isn't a perfect read by any means, but a fun and engaging read... An easy, breezy escape for the perfect getaway from reality.

Below is a summary for Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye from Amazon:

Two hearts in the darkness…

Makenna James and Caden Grayson have been inseparable since the scorching night they were trapped in a pitch-black elevator. But they're not strangers anymore, and Makenna hopes that night put them on the path to forever. All that stands in the way is introducing her tattooed, pierced, and scarred boyfriend to her father and over-protective brothers.

Must fight for love in the light…

Haunted by a childhood tragedy and the loss of his family, Caden never thought he’d find the kind of red-hot love he shares with Makenna. But the deeper he falls, the more he fears the devastation sure to come when he loses her, too. When secrets are revealed and the past threatens the present, Caden questions whether Makenna deserves more than he can give. Maybe they’re just too different—and he’s far too damaged—after all…

I am giving Love in the Light (Hearts in Darkness #2) by Laura Kaye a rating of 4 stars out of 5 stars. 

Until my next post, happy reading!

Banned Books Week 2021

Banned Books Week is an annual event I love!!

I don't like the idea of books being banned or censored

in any way. So for me, it is important to promote the end of censorship or banning reading material.

Usually, I read at least one (but usually more) books that have been banned or censored in some way, shape, or form each year.

Furthermore, I try to read at least one banned book during 

Banned Books Week itself.

This year, however, I have no plans to read a banned/censored book

during Banned Books Week. 

I have yet to read a banned/censored book this year.

I do plan to read The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie

later this year with an online group that is hosting a read-a-long 

and discussion of this novel with others, which should be a fun adventure. I've never read The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie before, but have heard plenty of hubbub about it since its publication in 1988.

Are you doing anything special to celebrate Banned Books Week?

Below is a video from YouTube featuring Jason Reynolds, the honorary chair for Banned Books Week 2021, discussing this year's

Banned Books Week theme.

Bookish Quote of the Day!!