Tag Archives: Dark

The Daughters of Ys – M.T. Anderson & Jo Rioux

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46223363The Daughters of Ys by M.T. Anderson & Jo Rioux

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
Published: August 11th, 2020
Publisher: First Second
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Graphic Novel, Fantasy, Dark, Magic, Retelling, Siblings

REVIEW:

This was a much darker tale than I anticipated, both in atmosphere and content. It is not a story I recommend if you are looking for something to uplift your spirits but it is one I dare push you towards if you want to read something different, something that will shock you and maybe even repulse you while simultaneously intriguing you. Continue reading →

Lanny – Max Porter

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Lanny by Max Porter

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: PRH Canada
Published: May 2019
Publisher: Strange Light
Recommended Age: 14+
Genres & Themes: Adult, Fantasy, Mystery, Magical Realism, Dark, Creepy, Short, Family

REVIEW:

This is an odd little book that I did not want to stop reading one second. It’s perplexing, confusing and creepy at times, but it has a fairytale-esque atmosphere that gives it a mystical quality, as though you’re lost in a forest, trying to find your way out of it, and the only way you can do that is by getting to the end of this story. Continue reading →

The Silver Cage – Anonymous

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38193155The Silver Cage by Anonymous

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
First Published: January 2018
Publisher: Self-Published
Recommended Age: 16+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Adult, M/M Romance, Dark, Faith, Self-Harm, Sexual Identity

BLURB:

A bitter, mysterious author. A young and naive journalist. A tragic past, a dark secret, and an unforgettable tale of passion and love.

WARNING: The Silver Cage is intended for mature readers; it contains graphic sensuality and strong themes including suicide, sexual identity, and self-harm.

Anonymous is a pseudonymous international bestseller. The Silver Cord, a companion novel to The Silver Cage, will be released in the first half of 2018. Continue reading →

Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook

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32828538Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook by Christina Henry

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Publisher
First Published: July 4th, 2017
Publisher: Berkley Books
Recommended Age: 13+
Pacing: Slow
Genres & Themes: Adult, Dark Retelling, Survival, Friendship, Betrayal, Violence

BLURB:

There is one version of my story that everyone knows. And then there is the truth. This is how it happened. How I went from being Peter Pan’s first—and favorite—lost boy to his greatest enemy. Peter brought me to his island because there were no rules and no grownups to make us mind. He brought boys from the Other Place to join in the fun, but Peter’s idea of fun is sharper than a pirate’s sword. Because it’s never been all fun and games on the island. Our neighbors are pirates and monsters. Our toys are knife and stick and rock—the kinds of playthings that bite. Peter promised we would all be young and happy forever. Continue reading →

The Hazel Wood – Melissa Albert

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Hazel WoodThe Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Received: Raincoast Books
First Published: January 30th, 2018
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Recommended Age: 12+
Pacing: Normal
Genres & Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dark, Mystery, Fairytales, Family

BLURB:

Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice’s grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: Her mother is stolen away―by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother’s stories are set. Alice’s only lead is the message her mother left behind: “Stay away from the Hazel Wood.”

Alice has long steered clear of her grandmother’s cultish fans. But now she has no choice but to ally with classmate Ellery Finch, a Hinterland superfan who may have his own reasons for wanting to help her. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother’s tales began―and where she might find out how her own story went so wrong. Continue reading →

Ultra Negative Review: Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle #1) by Jay Kristoff

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26114463Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

My rating: 1 of 5 stars
Received: NetGalley
Publication Date: August 9th, 2016
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Point of View: 3rd Person & Feminine
Recommended Age: 14+
Pacing: Slow ”Kill Me Now” Paced
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dark

Buy The Book Now at The Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

BLURB:

In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family.

Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined.

Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic—the Red Church. If she bests her fellow students in contests of steel, poison and the subtle arts, she’ll be inducted among the Blades of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the vengeance she desires. But a killer is loose within the Church’s halls, the bloody secrets of Mia’s past return to haunt her, and a plot to bring down the entire congregation is unfolding in the shadows she so loves.

Will she even survive to initiation, let alone have her revenge? Continue reading →

Review: A Darker Shade of Magic (Shades of Magic, #1) by V.E. Schwab

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A Darker Shade final for Irene

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: Bought
Publication Date: February 24th 2015
Publisher: Tor Books
Point of View: 3rd Person & Alternative
Recommended Age: 14+
Pacing: Slow
Genres &  Themes: Mature YA, Fantasy, Alternate Universes, Magic, Dark

Buy The Book Now at The Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

BLURB:

Kell is one of the last Antari, a rare magician who can travel between parallel worlds: hopping from Grey London — dirty, boring, lacking magic, and ruled by mad King George — to Red London — where life and magic are revered, and the Maresh Dynasty presides over a flourishing empire — to White London — ruled by whoever has murdered their way to the throne, where people fight to control magic, and the magic fights back — and back, but never Black London, because traveling to Black London is forbidden and no one speaks of it now.

Officially, Kell is the personal ambassador and adopted Prince of Red London, carrying the monthly correspondences between the royals of each London. Unofficially, Kell smuggles for those willing to pay for even a glimpse of a world they’ll never see, and it is this dangerous hobby that sets him up for accidental treason. Fleeing into Grey London, Kell runs afoul of Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She robs him, saves him from a dangerous enemy, then forces him to take her with him for her proper adventure. Continue reading →

Review: Red Queen (The Chronicles of Alice, #2) by Christina Henry

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27246122Red Queen by Christina Henry

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Received: NetGalley
Publicatio Date: July 12th 2016
Publisher: Ace
Point of View: 3rd Person
Recommended Age: 13+
Genres &  Themes: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retellings, Dark, Magic, Romance

Buy This Book from Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

BLURB:

The author of Alice takes readers back down the rabbit hole to a dark, twisted, and fascinating world based on the works of Lewis Carroll…
 
The land outside of the Old City was supposed to be green, lush, hopeful. A place where Alice could finally rest, no longer the plaything of the Rabbit, the pawn of Cheshire, or the prey of the Jabberwocky. But the verdant fields are nothing but ash—and hope is nowhere to be found.

Still, Alice and Hatcher are on a mission to find his daughter, a quest they will not forsake even as it takes them deep into the clutches of the mad White Queen and her goblin or into the realm of the twisted and cruel Black King.

The pieces are set and the game has already begun. Each move brings Alice closer to her destiny. But, to win, she will need to harness her newfound abilities and ally herself with someone even more powerful—the mysterious and vengeful Red Queen… Continue reading →

Author Interview: Christina Henry (Alice)

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See my review for this book here.

Interview with Christina Henry:

Tell us a little about yourself… Are you a fan of horror movies? What makes your day? Is being an author the only profession you’ve ever practiced?

I am a fan of certain kinds of horror movies. I’m not a huge fan of modern slasher films but I do love monster movies and anything suspenseful and atmospheric.

As an example, three of my favourite movies of all time are JAWS, ALIEN,

and THE THING. All three movies have very strong atmospheres that shape the tension of the films. I also love Alfred Hitchcock, especially REAR WINDOW.

A good writing day definitely makes my day. By that I mean the writing is flowing smoothly and it doesn’t take me all afternoon to write one paragraph (it feels like it does sometimes).

I’ve done lots of things besides write, including teaching writing, working for an insurance company and selling books. I always wanted to be a writer, though, ever since I was 12 years old. Continue reading →

Review: Alice by Christina Henry

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23398606Alice by Christina Henry

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Borrowed
Publication Date: August 4th 2015
Publisher: Ace
Point of View: 1st Person Feminine
Recommended Age: 14+
Genres & Themes: New Adult, Fantasy, Horror, Retellings, Alice in Wonderland

BLURB:

A mind-bending new novel inspired by the twisted and wondrous works of Lewis Carroll…

In a warren of crumbling buildings and desperate people called the Old City, there stands a hospital with cinderblock walls which echo the screams of the poor souls inside.

In the hospital, there is a woman. Her hair, once blond, hangs in tangles down her back. She doesn’t remember why she’s in such a terrible place. Just a tea party long ago, and long ears, and blood…

Then, one night, a fire at the hospital gives the woman a chance to escape, tumbling out of the hole that imprisoned her, leaving her free to uncover the truth about what happened to her all those years ago.

Only something else has escaped with her. Something dark. Something powerful.

And to find the truth, she will have to track this beast to the very heart of the Old City, where the rabbit waits for his Alice. Continue reading →