Bark At The Ghouls

The one that nearly fell through the cracks . . . My 2 Cents for Free! No Child of Mine by Nichelle Giraldes Released September 2023 Source: Netgalley See more @  Goodreads This is a very late review (sorry author, publisher & Netgalley) because I needed a long break from arc reviews. I’m not sure what drew me to this title two years ago but it was probably the haunting cover. It looks pretty spooky but that baby carriage and the blurb should’ve clued me in. The story is pretty much as the blurb promises. A pregnancy drama with spooky overtones but unfortunately for me it was heavier on the pregnancy drama than the spooky and probably because of that it really dragged in spots. There are two timelines featuring two different couples and for nearly the entire book I had no idea how they tied together. It was a little jarring as they switched back and forth with little tying them together but eventually everything came together. I can’t say it all worked for me but I didn’t hate ...

         New Books Because You Deserve Them! This is where I spotlight the sparkling new weekly releases that are tempting me so you can succumb to temptation too. The focus will be on dark fiction and romance with the occasional thriller tossed in that catches my eye. For a short while I was posting all the horror books I could find but there are too many of them and it was taking up too much of my reading time. Unless there is a really slow week, going forward I'll only showcase the ones I plan on eventually reading. HORROR.  HORROR-adjacent & THRILLERS Dollface by Lindy Ryan Barbie meets Scream with a 90s nostalgia twist in this horror romp from Bless Your Heart author Lindy Ryan. Horror author Jill has just moved to suburban New Jersey, hoping to fit in with the new PTA moms and maybe not weird everyone out with her Final Girl coffee mug. You know. Make some real friends. But then a plastic face-masked serial killer begins slashing their way through...

I had no idea Kelley Armstrong was writing in the horror genre (and has been for a little bit). Guess I don't know everything, lol. My 2 Cents for Free! The Haunting of Paynes Hollow by Kelley Armstrong Released October 14, 2025 Source: Netgalley See more @  Goodreads This is the Horror Spotlight Discord pick for February 2026. You can join us anytime here . We vote on 3 books each month and discuss it all month long. It's casual, stress-free fun. We often host buddy reads too. I don’t think I’ve read a Kelley Armstrong book since Dime Store Magic and Bitten in 2004. Yikes, that was over 20 years ago! I gave both books a 4 but she somehow fell off my radar when I started reading more horror and less pnr. This brings me to The Haunting of Paynes Hollow which leans more on the horror-side so here I am again. The cover is lovely and should’ve given me a clue or two about the supernatural aspect here, but I never pay close enough attention and just jump in. “Hollow” in the title w...

 The fact that so many of these creatures walk freely among us will never become less disturbing. My 2 Cents for Free! The Man Who Killed Boys (The John Wayne Gacy, Jr Story)  by Clifford L. Linedecker Released January 1980 Source: Purchased See more @  Goodreads I've had this paperback in my tbr for years (gah, imagine if paperbacks were still $3.99 new?!) and its time finally came up. I read it on and off for over a month, having to take breaks because it's just so tragic and a difficult read. The failures of our law enforcement system and the failure to protect innocents from a predator are very hard to read. The ability of some people to discard their gay children is also heartrending and sadly hasn't changed in a big meaningful way in a lot of households. None of this needed to happen but as it goes people fall through the cracks and warning signs are ignored if one has a little charisma. It's all so gross. It is well researched and I learned a lot about Gacy and t...

        New Books Because You Deserve Them! This is where I spotlight the sparkling new weekly releases that are tempting me so you can succumb to temptation too. The focus will be on dark fiction and romance with the occasional thriller tossed in that catches my eye. First the  HORROR  because it'll always be my first love  along with the  HORROR-adjacent & THRILLERS A Sociopath's Guide to A Successful Marriage by MK Oliver A whip-smart and darkly funny crime novel—perfect for fans of My Sister, the Serial Killer and The Maid—that follows a wife and mother with a deadly secret that she must suppress if she wants to maintain her picture-perfect façade. Meet Lalla Rook. Lalla has a lot on her plate: She needs to guarantee her husband makes partner, secure her dream house in Hampstead, and get her daughter into a prestigious prep school. And on the afternoon she stabs a stranger seven times after he breaks into her living room, she has a fo...

 Sometimes free isn't worth the price. My 2 Cents for Free! The Tangled Woods by Emily Raboteau Released September 2018 Source: Audible Freebie See more @  Goodreads I am deleting this dreadful thing from my Audible library. It was terrible from beginning to end. The main character is a whiny, miserable man so unhappy with the life he has made for himself that he takes it out on everyone around him - especially his family. Not recommended. Just turn on the news if you feel like killing more of your soul. Oh, and for those who will say on the socials that "you should always say something nice because times are tough" here you go: The wife and son deserved better than that sad sack, mess of a man and I hope he gets eaten by a bear leaving them both to live out their days in peace and happiness because he's no longer in their lives! Final Rating: ⭐ Publisher Plot Synopsis  He went on the road expecting the worst of America, but what if the worst of America was also in hi...

I once thought it might be fun to start looking back in time and seeing what I was reading this time last year and all of the previous years since I started cataloging my reads! But then I got lazy and stopped doing it. Now that social media has become a stressful mess, it may be time to resurrect this post because  older reads need love too. With the steady stream of new book releases, it's easy to miss some older gems. If you're a nerd like me and want to do this, please leave me a link to your post. I'd love to see it! Here are the books I was reading this same time last year and all the years before. February 2025  Where I End by Sophie White Some of my thoughts then: "  The descriptions are often beautifully written, nearly poetic but the content is incredibly cruel and difficult to read, and it left me feeling sick to my stomach in the worst way. " 3 ★'s February 2024 The September House by Carissa Orlando Some of my thoughts then: "This is a great ...