Rules For Vanishing by Kate Alice Marshall @PenguinTeen @PenguinTeenCa @VikingBooks @kmarshallarts

** Thank you Penguin Teen for my ARC **

Genre: YA, Horror

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I don’t believe in ghosts, not exactly. But I don’t believe Becca is dead either. Which means she’s out there, and no one is looking for her but me.

I can’t breathe. There’s something in my throat as solid as stone.

Whose hand am I holding?

Did you ever tell ghost stories at camp when you were young? Well, this was the perfect campfire story!

It’s told in a series of interviews, text messages, recollections and video footage that really bring this story to life.
The whole time I was reading it, I swear my eyes could not move across the page quick enough! I didn’t want to put it down and kept wanting to know what was going to happen next.

The ending..it left me hanging and mind boggled! (Which will either work for you, or it won’t.)

Am I the only one still trying to figure out what happened? Was that it? I NEED ANSWERS!!

I got such a thrill reading this story! It had a diverse cast and I loved all the characters.

For me, this was like Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark meets Ghost Hunters & Coraline, making it the perfect Halloween read!

Have you read it? Is it on your TBR? What’s on your Halloween reading list??

Once a year, the path appears in the forest and Lucy Gallows beckons. Who is brave enough to find her–and who won’t make it out of the woods?

It’s been exactly one year since Sara’s sister, Becca, disappeared, and high school life has far from settled back to normal. With her sister gone, Sara doesn’t know whether her former friends no longer like her…or are scared of her, and the days of eating alone at lunch have started to blend together. When a mysterious text message invites Sara and her estranged friends to “play the game” and find local ghost legend Lucy Gallows, Sara is sure this is the only way to find Becca–before she’s lost forever. And even though she’s hardly spoken with them for a year, Sara finds herself deep in the darkness of the forest, her friends–and their cameras–following her down the path. Together, they will have to draw on all of their strengths to survive. The road is rarely forgiving, and no one will be the same on the other side.

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The Girl The Sea Gave Back by Adrienne Young @RaincoastBooks @adriennebooks @wednesdaybooks

** Thank you Raincoast Books for providing me with an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review **

Genre: YA

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Have you ever chosen to read a book based solely on the cover & title alone? (Without reading the description?)

That was me with this book!

Dum dum me, didn’t know this was the second book to Sky In The Deep, until I already had the ARC in my hands and stumbled upon moonprincess37‘s awesome review. 🤦‍♀️

It didn’t matter though, cause this could be read as a standalone. Phew!

To be honest, I didn’t think Vikings were my thing or my kinda story, but after reading this..it may have changed my outlook on it!

It totally reminded me of season 5 of Game Of Thrones. So if you’re a fan of the show like I was and haven’t read Sky In The Deep yet, I think you’ll enjoy this read.

There’s character building, an epic battle and alternating POV’s. Everything that makes for good storytelling!

Definitely going on my list of favourites for 2019!

Have you read it yet? If so, what did you think? Did you read Sky In The Deep?

For as long as she can remember, Tova has lived among the Svell, the people who found her washed ashore as a child and use her for her gift as a Truthtongue. Her own home and clan are long-faded memories, but the sacred symbols and staves inked over every inch of her skin mark her as one who can cast the rune stones and see into the future. She has found a fragile place among those who fear her, but when two clans to the east bury their age-old blood feud and join together as one, her world is dangerously close to collapse.

For the first time in generations, the leaders of the Svell are divided. Should they maintain peace or go to war with the allied clans to protect their newfound power? And when their chieftain looks to Tova to cast the stones, she sets into motion a series of events that will not only change the landscape of the mainland forever but will give her something she believed she could never have again—a home.

Spooktober Reads #MonthlyTBR #BOTM

Hello booksharks!

What’s your favourite season or holiday?

Me? I LOVE autumn & Halloween! I prefer the cooler weather, pumpkin spice beverages (cause who doesn’t?) and dressing up for Halloween! It’s become a bit of tradition in our family. 🙂

Alright..so let’s get down to business! What’s on your TBR this month??

Here are mine:

1) Rules For Vanishing by Kate AliceMarshall

2) The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring

3) The Institute by Stephen King

4) Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

5) House Of Salt And Sorrows by Erin. A Craig

Have you read any of these yet?

NOS4A2 by Joe Hill

Genre: Horror

Rating: DNF @ page 90

An old car, at the end of the block, was easing away. A black Rolls-Royce with sideboards and chrome fixtures. Its taillights flashed red in the night and illuminated the license plate: NOS4A2. Then it turned the corner and disappeared, taking the joyful noise of Christmas with it.

When I first started reading this, I was wowed by the prologue. It reminded me of the Christmas scene in season 2 of American Horror Story.

So why did I DNF it?

It wasn’t that the story was bad. It was actually really good..until I met Maggie. She had a striking similarity to Bill from IT. Even though it was a different character and totally different story, I just couldn’t get past the resemblance.

According to some of the reviews I’ve come across on Goodreads, there are other references to King’s work throughout the book. That’ll either work for you, or it won’t (like in my case).

As much as I enjoyed the idea of the Shorter Way bridge, which was like a morbid rabbit hole, I also found it a tad confusing at first.

Aside from that, if I hadn’t read IT, I probably would’ve loved this one like so many others.

Have you read this one? Have you read any of Joe Hill’s other books?

Victoria McQueen has a secret gift for finding things: a misplaced bracelet, a missing photograph, answers to unanswerable questions. On her Raleigh Tuff Burner bike, she makes her way to a rickety covered bridge that, within moments, takes her wherever she needs to go, whether it’s across Massachusetts or across the country.

Charles Talent Manx has a way with children. He likes to take them for rides in his 1938 Rolls-Royce Wraith with the NOS4A2 vanity plate. With his old car, he can slip right out of the everyday world, and onto the hidden roads that transport them to an astonishing – and terrifying – playground of amusements he calls “Christmasland.”

Then, one day, Vic goes looking for trouble—and finds Manx. That was a lifetime ago. Now Vic, the only kid to ever escape Manx’s unmitigated evil, is all grown up and desperate to forget. But Charlie Manx never stopped thinking about Victoria McQueen. He’s on the road again and he’s picked up a new passenger: Vic’s own son.

Contagion by Erin Bowman @erin_bowman @HarperCollinsCa @HCCFrenzy

Genre: YA, Sci-Fi

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1/2

This was like Guardians Of The Galaxy meets The Walking Dead. Except everyone on the ship is human.

I’m a newbie to reading Sci-Fi and after the last 2 tragic DNF’s (The Luminous Dead & Aurora Rising), I was starting to lose faith in the genre. But this..It kept me up all hours of the night reading!

I really enjoyed the alternating timelines and POV’s. The last 30% of the book was an intense ride. I had the same adrenaline rush as when I watched Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

The Characters

Toby..
That’s all I’m going to say about him.

Dylan

You know that annoying character in every slasher/horror flick, that you just wanna punch in the face? Well for me, that was her.

I’d have to say Thea and Coen were my favourite characters. I’m excited to see where they take us in the next book (Immunity).

Overall, I loved this story. It felt like I was watching a Blockbuster hit with everything I was looking for: great storyline and cast, actim then I think you’ll enjoy this one!

Have you read? What did you think? Did you read Immunity?

It got in us

After receiving an urgent SOS from a work detail on a distant planet, a skeleton crew is dispatched to perform a standard search-and-rescue mission.

Most are dead.

But when the crew arrives, they find an abandoned site, littered with rotten food, discarded weapons…and dead bodies.

Don’t set foot here again.

As they try to piece together who—or what—could have decimated an entire operation, they discover that some things are best left buried—and some monsters are only too ready to awaken.

3.3K Giveaway Alert! Into The Crooked Place by Alexandra Christo

Hello booksharks! I’m hosting my first (and quite ambitious) giveaway on Instagram!

** Canada & USA only **

To Enter: follow me @princesspaperback

To show my appreciation for all the Bookstagram love, I’ve partnered with Raincoast Books and will be giving away 1 free ARC of Into The Crooked Place by Alexandra Christo set to release on Oct 8, 2019.

The Challenge

RULES:

This contest will be running for 5 days starting: Mon, Sept 9, 2019.

ENDS: Sun, Sept 15, 2019 12am EST. Winner will be notified via DM

✔ Must have a bookstagram (Instagram) account & must be following me. Please don’t follow to unfollow. I keep tabs.

✔ Check out my stories for daily prompts.

✔ use #gigisnightmarechallenge as well as the daily hashtags I have created so I can see all your awesome posts.

✔ Most importantly.. HAVE FUN & BE CREATIVE!

Must be 18 yrs or older. I’ll be posting each day for fun as well!! 🥂 Good luck 🖤💜

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff #OverhypedBooks

Genre: YA, Sci-Fi

Rating: DNF ⭐⭐

I was given fair warning by The Book Prescription about this book. But I’ve been on a sci-fi kick and LOVED Illuminae. So I wanted to give this one a try. To be fair, the premise sounded like it would be up my alley and I DID walk into it without any expectations.

Kudos to you @thebookprescription for seeing it through till the end, cause quite frankly, I got tired of hearing about Tyler’s dimples, killer smile, how hot he was and his scar on his right eyebrow. I lasted 6 chapters and could have sworn the story was titled Captain Hotness & his dimples. Seriously. There was not one chapter that didn’t mention them. Or his good looks. Or his tousled hair.

This could have been a great story, cause it was moving quite nicely with Auri and I liked the multiple POV’s. But it was those stupid dimples that got to me.

They were annoying..like Steve Urkle level of annoying!

Still wanna read this one? Then I highly suggest the library.

Have you read it? What did you think?

The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…

A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering

And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.

Thriller Thursday: The Luminous Dead by Caitlyn Starling

Genre: Horror, Psychological Thrillet, Sci-Fi

Rating: DNF @chapter 7

I have no clue how this raved about book made it on the top horror books to read for 2019! Did I miss something? Cause there was nothing scary or creepy about it. At least not for me, and I scare easily! I’m afraid of the dark for crying out loud!!

Gyre is in a cave with dead bodies and a tunneler lurking.

Ya, I know, sounds like some Aliens or Predators kinda shit. Interesting! But it wasn’t. It was mostly banter between Gyre and Em, with a crap load of repetitive thoughts and conversations. Oh! And let’s not forget the cave that felt so Earth like, I forgot it was supposed to be on another planet!

Ugh..What a disappointment.

The best parts? The premise and the fact that the story starts off in the dark cave. That’s it.

Sorry, but this SO didn’t work for me.

When Gyre Price lied her way into this expedition, she thought she’d be mapping mineral deposits, and that her biggest problems would be cave collapses and gear malfunctions. She also thought that the fat paycheck—enough to get her off-planet and on the trail of her mother—meant she’d get a skilled surface team, monitoring her suit and environment, keeping her safe. Keeping her sane.

Instead, she got Em.

Em sees nothing wrong with controlling Gyre’s body with drugs or withholding critical information to “ensure the smooth operation” of her expedition. Em knows all about Gyre’s falsified credentials, and has no qualms using them as a leash—and a lash. And Em has secrets, too . . .

As Gyre descends, little inconsistencies—missing supplies, unexpected changes in the route, and, worst of all, shifts in Em’s motivations—drive her out of her depths. Lost and disoriented, Gyre finds her sense of control giving way to paranoia and anger. On her own in this mysterious, deadly place, surrounded by darkness and the unknown, Gyre must overcome more than just the dangerous terrain and the Tunneler which calls underground its home if she wants to make it out alive—she must confront the ghosts in her own head.

But how come she can’t shake the feeling she’s being followed?

September TBR #BOTM

Holy crapola! Can you believe it’s already September?!!

Honestly, I’m so ready for fall weather. I’m not really a hot weather kinda gal, even though I was born in July! Ironic isn’t it? Is it weird that I enjoy the beach when it’s cool out?

Anyway..

What book are you excited to read this month? Are you a summer or fall type?

I’m in a sci-fi, post-apocalyptic kinda mood, which isn’t my usual thing where books are concerned. But I’ve been warming up to it so we shall see how it goes!

Here’s what I’ve got on my list this month:

Library Borrows

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Contagion by Erin Bowman

Ebooks

The Last by Hanna Jameson

ARC’S

The Girl The Sea Gave Back by AdriAnne Young – cont’d from Aug

Into The Crooked Place by Alexandra Christo

Netgalley

10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston

Have you read any of these?