An English Ghost Story by Kim Newman

Started: 21.10.26

DNF: 24.10.26

Paperback

I really thought a book called "An English Ghost Story" would be perfect for me, but I haven't been able to finish this one. It's about a family called the Naremores who are seeking to start a new life for themselves in the countryside, in a house called The Hollows, the former home of a popular author of children's books. It seems that they are escaping some trouble in their old life, but it wasn't clear to me what that was. Whilst on a house-hunting mission, as soon as they arrive at The Hollows they all know instantly that it's 'the one'. Very quickly, they realise that the house is haunted, or rather charmed or enchanted. Strange things happen, but they accept it all without much question. At first the house seems to welcome them, but then it seems to turn on them and their previous problems start to rear up again, although I didn't get that far. 

I thought the family were awful, nothing likeable about them really, and I didn't like the way they spoke to each other. The young boy was in a kind of 'army phase' so he was always spying and doing recces, and using acronyms/initialisms like PP for paternal parent, or HH for ha-ha. His big sister (BS) was mooning about the boyfriend that she'd left behind, and MP (maternal parent) was yearning to be more than just a housewife. There was also the mysterious Vron, her friend from before who the rest of the family referred to as the Wild Witch (though she hadn't appeared by the time I stopped reading). And the dad believed he was the head of the household and the saviour of the family. Basically I think the house lured them in and then turned them against each other.

I made it about halfway through, but I just wasn't enjoying it.

After The People Lights Have Gone Off by Stephen Graham Jones

Started: 4.10.26

DNF: 21.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

These short stories were all just a little bit too weird for me. Sometimes I just don't understand what a particular sentence even means, and sometimes I think the dialogue is odd. I struggled a bit with The Only Good Indians too, for similar reasons. I really want to read The Buffalo Hunter Hunter though, but if I can't get on with that either, I might have to accept that Stephen Graham Jones is just not for me.

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

Started: 19.10.26

Finished: 21.10.26

Hardcover

Another 'mixed media' type of novel from Janice Hallett, this time consisting of transcripts of Whatsapp messages, emails, audio recordings, novel excerpts and screenplays. Two true crime journalists have to work together to find new angles on the story of the Alperton Angels (lots of angles and angels throughout the book!). The Angels were a cult who planned to murder a baby who they believed was the AntiChrist. The baby survived and is now 18, and it's a race to see who can find them first, to get the all important interview.

In all the Janice Hallett books I've read so far, I find that she always seems to have the same type of characters - an overly ambitious one, a 'snooty' one, a bubbly one, a creepy one, a two-faced one etc - and this book was no exception. Although the plots are different, everything else is very samey. I know that the mixed media stuff is kind of her USP though, so I can't say that I wasn't expecting it. I did find myself skipping parts of it though, like the novel excerpts and the screenplay. And in the transcripts where Ellie added little comments of her own such as 'did you shrug here?', 'there was a long pause, like he doesn't want to answer', I found these a bit clunky. I know they need to be more 'tell than show' because they're audio recordings that have been transcribed, but I think that's possibly why a whole book full of them doesn't work too well.

Full: The Emptiness Of Overeating by Paul Dermody

Started: 17.10.26

Finished: 19.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

As with a lot of self-help books, I read this but I feel like I haven't taken anything in. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mindset for it, maybe I was rushing it a bit (I'm trying to read as many KU books as I can before cancelling my subscription at the end of the month). Almost every sentence felt like a platitude. I say that I haven't taken anything in, but actually, I think I did grasp that the overall message was more about discovering and following your values, rather than chasing goals. And I did like the quote "say yes happily, or say no, but don't say yes begrudgingly". That's very similar to "if it's not a 'hell yeah' it's a no".

A Murder Of Crows by Sarah Yarwood-Lovett

Started: 4.10.26

Finished: 19.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

This is the first in a series of murder mysteries by this author, and it's been on my wishlist for a long time because I was hoping it would be a fun series to get into. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be reading any more. It was just ok. The main character was a wealthy heiress / ecologist with a chip on her shoulder about her background. She becomes prime suspect in a murder, because she was in the vicinity doing a bat survey at the time. There's a bit of a 'Will they, won't they? Do they, don't they?' love triangle between her, the lead detective, and her ecologist colleague (she fancies the two men, the two men fancy her). This became very tedious. (There was an excerpt from the next book at the end of this one, and it looks like Mr Detective won that particular contest). The murder mystery didn't have much mystery to it; a few red herrings thrown in, but in the end, yes, the killer is who you think it is. I never really warmed to any of the characters, so as I said, I think I can remove the rest of this series from my TBR list. 

Floating Staircase by Ronald Malfi

Started: 4.10.26

Finished: 18.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

This is the first Ronald Malfi book I've read, and it won't be the last. I really enjoyed the overall story, although my biggest problem was that I never really understood what the floating staircase looked like. It was described as a double dock at one point, so I did look at some google images which helped a bit, but I could never quite get a good picture in my mind of what remained in the lake. Other than that, pretty good!

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling

Started: 4.10.26

DNF: 14.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

I had high hopes for this but I just wasn't getting into it. I didn't take to the main character (and her name drove me mad because it was just weird!), and I found the caving aspect quite boring, up to the point where I DNF'd. Probably didn't help that I also DNF'd The Starving Saints just a couple of weeks back, so I was a bit worried about reading another book by the same author.

Theo Of Golden by Allen Levi

Started: 4.10.26

Finished: 12.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

Started off ok, thought it was all quite sweet and charming. Got a bit bored half way through, have to admit I skimmed through the remaining chapters but did read to the end to see how it finished. Overall it seemed to be about being kind and trying to see the good in everyone, which is certainly an important message. I think, towards the end particularly, there were some heavy religious themes, but these were some of the parts that I skipped. 

Boy's Life by Robert R McCammon

Started: 26.9.26

Finished: 4.10.26

Kindle Unlimited

Well. What a book! I was inspired to add this to my TBR after watching the review from Paperback Journeys on Youtube, and I finally got around to reading it.

It's set in 1960s Alabama, and told from the perspective of 12 year old Cory Mackenson. Cory and his dad witness a car careening into a lake; when his dad dives in to rescue the driver, he realises that the man has been murdered, and handcuffed to the wheel. The murder mystery rumbles along in the background, but in the meantime we just follow Cory going through the usual trials and tribulations of friendships, school, small town life. The book has moments of magic and whimsy, but it also doesn't shy away from the politics, religious fervour and the civil rights issues of the time. We see wonder, joy, grief, and injustice through a child's eyes. The murder mystery comes to a conclusion, possibly a bit too quickly and conveniently, but the story was always about so much more than just that. It's a nostalgic look back at a magical childhood, it made me laugh and it made me cry, and I 100% recommend it. 

Good Girls Don't Die by Christina Henry

Started: 27.9.26

Finished: 1.10.26

Paperback

Another Christina Henry book that I've really enjoyed! First we meet Celia, who appears to be trapped in some kind of Truman Show fake life while being framed for murder. Then Allie, who is unwittingly dragged along to a cabin in the woods with her friends and has to try to survive the knife-wielding maniac outside. And finally, Maggie, who is thrust into a Hunger Games / Maze Runner style game, which she must complete if she ever wants to see her daughter again. These 'final girls' are not going down without a fight though!

There is a lot of misogyny in the book, but also a focus on strong women and female friendships. The ending was almost really good, until it wasn't. But overall though, it was still a good read.