Book Review: Rolling in the Deep/Into the Drowning Deep (Mira Grant)

I am a creature of habit, what can I say? I am continuously drawn to the same types of books with the same types of antagonists. I read serial killer thrillers and psychological thrillers by the bagful and relish in their twisty plots and realistic horror. So, imagine my surprise when one of the knockout books of the year for me came from Mira Grant and featured killer mermaids.

That’s right people. Killer. Mermaids.

Who knew?!

Chelsea (from The Suspense Is Thrilling Me) actually recommended this book and, I have to admit, I was a little hesitant to pick it up. I don’t generally read a lot of fantasy or science fiction and the premise of the book sort of seemed like a happy marriage of the two. As per Chelsea’s suggestions, I started with the novella prequel, Rolling in the Deep (am I the only one who reads this book title and instantly starts singing the song by Adele?) and, after a crazy time, I was finally able to obtain a copy (Thanks, Chandra!).

The prequel, Rolling in the Deep, opens with the introduction of Imagine Film Company, known for their “mockumentary” style films, as they head out into the great blue sea to create a film about mermaids.   As the ship sets out to create their “found footage” and “eyewitness accounts” for their film, the cast and crew find themselves in grave danger when they actually do discover something in the water. This only took me about an hour to read and I was completely hooked, I continuously messaged Chelsea as I was reading to comment on how REAL it felt. Although I knew I was reading a work of fiction, Grant does an amazing job with her narrative style of making you question your own logic. By the time I was finished, I was more than ready to jump into the first, full novel in the series.

Enter, Into the Drowning Deep. This novel can absolutely be read without having read the prequel (but I do think the prequel does an amazing job at setting the tone). The story opens seven years after the Atargatis was lost at sea and a new crew has been assembled to head back to the Marianas Trench to get to the bottom of the maritime tragedy (or hoax, to others).  This book was just as brilliant as its prequel. Fast-paced, intricately written and filled with chilling prose, I was on the edge of my seat and recommending this book to everyone who would listen!

I will not go into any true details because I do feel like you’d have to read it to appreciate it, but, I am pleased with the open-ended finale that leads me to believe that Grant will be providing me with another book in the series (please!!).

If you are looking for something different to add to your TBR pile, do not be turned off by the randomness of the plot, just trust Mira Grant and dive on it. You will not be disappointed.

5/5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher, the author and Netgalley for a digital copy of this novel.  It was my pleasure to provide an honest review.

Book Review: Hex (Thomas Olde Heuvelt)

I was looking for something incredibly creepy for October; a true Halloween read. Enter, Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt. I read about this book in several different Buzzfeed articles about books that are ACTUALLY scary. Usually I take the word of Buzzfeed, so I went out to Chapters and picked myself up a copy.

Now, while I wouldn’t call this book truly horrifying, there was something about it that was completely unsettling.

The novel opens with the introduction of a small town called Black Spring. Seemingly picturesque, the town has a dark secret. In the 17^th century, a woman, nicknamed the Black Rock Witch, had her eyes and mouth-sewn shut and was killed for her crimes.   Now a fixture of the town, she walks the streets and enters homes at will and, using high tech surveillance, the elders of Black Spring have kept her contained and have continuously ensured that her mouth and eyes are never opened. However, when a group of the town’s teenagers, frustrated with the regulations, decide to film the haunting, the town reverts back to medieval practices of the past and Black Rock will never be the same.

Book Review: The Dark Net (Benjamin Percy) @Benjamin_Percy @HMHbooks

When I first stumbled across The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy on a list of summer releases, it jumped right up to the top of my TBR pile and became one of my most anticipated reads for August. After reading a few other novels that discussed the dark net and the secret underbelly of the web, I couldn’t wait to dive into this one and creep myself out reading about this anonymous and criminal arena.

This book ended up being 100% completely different from what I was expecting.

The novel follows several characters: a young girl, Hannah, who is blind. She is being fitted for a high-tech visual prosthetic that is supposed to help her see. There is a journalist, Lela, who stumbles across a dark story that should have been kept hidden. There is Mike Juniper, a man who runs a homeless shelter to try and make up for the sins of his past and Derek, a hacker.   This random array of people comes together to try and fight literal demons that are hiding within the web. 

Book Review: Dis Mem Ber (Joyce Carol Oates) @JoyceCarolOates @MysteriousPress

I have been increasing the number of short story collections I have been reading lately. I love that they are flexible and I can read them along with anything else I have on my nightstand. I can read a story at a time for a little break and be back to business. However, Dis Mem Ber, a series of short stories by Joyce Carol Oates, did not provide the versatility I desired; I was unable to simply pick up this book and put it down again. Once I started, I was completely sucked into these dark and twisted narratives and had to greedily finish them all!!

Each story provided a look into completely different sets of characters and scenarios. Dis Mem Ber, the first story followed a girl who became attached to the family black sheep, The Crawl Space about a grieving widow, and The Drowned Girl about a woman who becomes obsessed with a homicide victim. Ominous and gritty, each story provided a snapshot that I desperately wanted more of!

I felt like these stories gave a Southern Gothic Fiction vibe (think Flannery O’Conner or Shirley Jackson), which I loved. I also loved that each of the stories was narrated by or featured a female protagonist.

For my first experience with this author, I would say it was a win. Obviously, some stories, like the ones I mentioned above, stood out more than others, but overall, I love this collection! 4/5 stars from me.

Thanks to the author and the publisher for a copy of this novel; it was my pleasure to provide an honest review.

This book was also a June #cjsreads pick!  Keep reading to see what Jessica and Chandra thought of this one.