Kait Layton reporting in with a review of How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix which released this past Tuesday!
This is my fourth Hendrix novel and I am a huge fan. I thoroughly enjoyed the author’s note at the beginning that states the inspiration behind the story was to get far away from the pandemic and dive into something else. I actually read this book in three days while being in quarantine, so it was exactly the distraction I needed!
I thought it was going to be a ghost story just after reading the title. Then, the main character’s family is very religious and talks about demons and I had just finished “My Best Friend’s Exorcism” and thought, “Oh no, not this story again!” However, that is not how the story ends and I was extremely surprised. It’s one of those stories where you are like, “WTF!” but you keep reading to find out what happens to the family and the house.
My only complaint is that I wish it had more gore. There are tons of creepy moments, but there is only one big scene where the main character and her brother are getting attacked and it was grisly. I just wanted more.
Puppets are creepy, especially when they move around the house independently, leave notes for you, turn the tv on, and start talking. I haven’t read a horror novel that includes puppets before, so thank you, Hendrix, for writing such a creative story that kept me entertained and distracted!
Kait Layton reporting in with a review of 
This book is made for every person who has ever wished for their long-suffering hero to have a peaceful, happy ending. The heroine, an orc woman Viv, has been adventuring for years and is ready to retire. After slaying one last deadly foe, she takes her prize and travels to the city Thune to open a coffeeshop, the first the city has ever seen. The book follows her as she braves the trials of entrepreneurship and the problems of establishing a market for a product no one has seen before, as well as problems with the local mob and a previous colleague that comes to visit with ill-intent in his heart.
Have you ever tried to describe your dream to someone else and had them respond, “Sounds like a nightmare.”? And you respond, “Oh, no, it was beautiful and strange, yes, but….well, actually….no, that does sound horrific, huh?”
Tiffany Jackson’s newest novel, ‘The Weight of Blood’, is a retelling of the King novel, ‘Carrie’. I have not read ‘Carrie’, but I have seen the movies, so I had that as a base to go off of when I was reading ‘The Weight of Blood’.
A con-artist who pretends to speak to ghosts is brought to a “haunted” mansion to soothe the lord, whose fiancee died the night before their wedding. However, he insists that his fiancee was murdered and wants our heroine to fake a seance so well the murderer confesses. As she prepares and gathers information about the dead fiancee, it starts to feel as those a real ghost is haunting her.
This is the perfect companion to The Ex Hex as we get to know Gwyn and Rhys’ older brother Wells better. (And it’s nice to see Vivi & Rhys again!)
Harrow has been on my list of Want-to-Read authors for a bit so when I got my hands on this novella, I was super excited. It did not disappoint. I adore fairytale retellings and this was absolutely smart and wonderful and sad and thought-provoking and hopeful. It tied in all the different facets of the Sleeping Beauty stories and fairytale tropes, then turned them on their heads. Charm is just the best Best Friend, I love how Zin finds herself, and I’m so glad Sleeping Beauty finally gets her story. And that the “Evil Fairy” gets a chance to share her tragic origin story and be understood too.
If you love paranormals but also rom-coms, this one’s for you! A fun romp where the hero is none other than the son of the devil. Also a great cast of side characters.
I loved everything about this lush & atmospheric Gothic novel! I thought all the different reveals were placed so cleverly that the pacing made it hard to put down, even when I wanted to slow down my reading so I could luxuriate in the gorgeous prose. I adored the nods to a secret walled garden, and I loved the romance and Violetta’s decision-making process. She never takes any option at face value and always seems to find another. Another way to twist and uncover more of the magic system and the Corruption. I thought the monster was very well written and could easily see what drew Violeta to Rowan. Cannot wait for book two!