Category Archives: Book Review

2015, ARC review, Book Review

[Review] The Dead House — Dawn Kurtagich

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Book Title                  The Dead House
Author:                        Dawn Kurtagich
Number of pages:   432

Synopsis:

Dawn Kurtagich - The Dead House - Book CoverPart-psychological thriller, part-urban legend, this is an unsettling narrative made up of diary entries, interview transcripts, film footage transcripts and medical notes. Twenty-five years ago, Elmbridge High burned down. Three people were killed and one pupil, Carly Johnson, disappeared. Now a diary has been found in the ruins of the school. The diary belongs to Kaitlyn Johnson, Carly’s identical twin sister. But Carly didn’t have a twin . . .

(re: Goodreads @ The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich)

Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr review:

– Story is presented through a series of evidence (e.g. diary entries, video and voice-call transcripts, news articles, etc.,)
– Unreliable narrator encourages skeptical hats be worn; revelations can be guessed at but does not dilute the end-game reveal
– There are unsettling moments but nothing crazy in terms of gore. Also, the entire story takes place at night basically, or in very dark, claustrophobic spaces
– Can be difficult to feel compassion for various characters/MC
– There is a supernatural touch to the evil within this story

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Initial Thoughts

Let me share some “lessons” The Dead House has taught me:

  • Unreliable narrators are the reason why 10-foot poles exist.
  • Having friends interested in witchy woo-woo dark magic means you’re setting yourself up to die.
  • Vlogging the supernatural is just not a good idea. “Let me just pull out some EVIL from my back-pocket…”—like, why is this even a thing?
  • Attending parties with underage substance use underscores bad shit happening. Moderation is a myth.
  • When you find out your school is connected with a hospital, you should make immediate plans to book it to Mars.
  • Cancel any plans you have of being a criminal profiler. Because you won’t succeed.
  • Schrödinger’s Cat lived and died for you, so why would you open up some sketchy artifact-diary? Just don’t. Or do? (R.I.P you.)

Full disclosure: I received an advanced reader copy of The Dead House from the Book Blog Ontario Meet-Up. I extend thanks to Little Brown Books for providing me with the opportunity to review this book.

Continue reading [Review] The Dead House — Dawn Kurtagich →

2015, ARC review, Book Review

[Review] Zeroes — Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, Deborah Biancotti

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Book Title:        Zeroes (Zeroes, #01)
Author:               Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, Deborah Biancotti
Number of pages:  560

Synopsis:

zeroes - scott westerfeld - book coverEthan, aka “Scam,” has a way with words. When he opens his mouth, whatever he wants you to hear comes out. But Ethan isn’t just a smooth talker. He has a unique ability to say things he doesn’t consciously even know. Sometimes the voice helps, but sometimes it hurts – like now, when the voice has lied and has landed Ethan in a massive mess. So now Ethan needs help. And he needs to go to the last people who would ever want to help him – his former group of friends, the self-named “zeros” who also all possess similarly double-edged abilities, and who are all angry at Ethan for their own respective reasons. Brought back together by Scam’s latest mischief, they find themselves entangled in an epic, whirlwind adventure packed with as much interpersonal drama as mind-bending action.

(re: Goodreads @ Zeroes – Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, Deborah Biancotti)

Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr review:

— The superpowers in this story aren’t all otherworldly. There’s a human quality to many of their abilities that exudes a magical realism vibe
— Cultural diversity seen through a multi-POV narrative that seamlessly jumps from one voice to another in building perspective
— Limited world-building is not problematic as readers are on the same knowledge playing field as the characters themselves
— Writing is wonderfully paced; 560-pages feels easy breezy
— The romance subplot isn’t too heavy although there’s a cautionary love-v/triangle happening; there are ships you can jump aboard on

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Initial Thoughts

This book is incredibly fun. I will now proceed to hype this book up.

Full disclosure: I received an advanced reader copy of Zeroes from the Book Blog Ontario Meet-Up. I extend thanks to Simon Pulse for providing me with the opportunity to review this book.

Continue reading [Review] Zeroes — Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, Deborah Biancotti →

2015, ARC review, Book Review

[Review] Dream Things True – Marie Marquardt

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Book Title              Dream Things True
Author:                    Marie Marquardt 
Number of pages:   352

Synopsis:

dream things true - marie marquardt - book cover Evan, a soccer star and the nephew of a conservative Southern Senator, has never wanted for much — except a functional family. Alma has lived in Georgia since she was two-years-old, excels in school, and has a large, warm Mexican family. Never mind their differences, the two fall in love, and they fall hard. But when ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) begins raids on their town, Alma knows that she needs to tell Evan her secret. There’s too much at stake. But how to tell her country-club boyfriend that she’s an undocumented immigrant? That her whole family and most of her friends live in the country without permission. What follows is a beautiful, nuanced, well-paced exploration of the complications of immigration, young love, defying one’s family, and facing a tangled bureaucracy that threatens to completely upend two young lives.

(re: Goodreads @ Dream Things True – Marie Marquardt)

Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr review:

— Set in Georgia (USA) and encompasses POC (Mexican) families, undocumented immigrants, race and discrimination, power and privilege, drugs, rape, and exoticism, among others
— Narrative is told in sporadic alternating perspectives between both MCs; writing integrates Spanish dialogue
— The romance jumps the gun; a bit instalust-y after a few chapters
— If you’ve seen “The Proposal” (with Bullock/Reynolds), it feels like a toned down YA version of that
— An important diverse read with revelations that seem a bit easy but speaks to the concern of white privilege; it’s a bit of a toss-up in terms of enjoyment

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Initial Thoughts

Dream Things True is a very difficult book to review.

Full disclosure: I received an advanced reader copy of Dream Things True through Netgalley for an honest review. I extend thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin for providing me with the opportunity to review this book.

Continue reading [Review] Dream Things True – Marie Marquardt →