Let the Right Book In

Well, happy Christmas to me... this box was awesome! This is the only instance in which I will allow anything bearing a ouija board on it into my house. I can be a bit...uneasy when it comes to potentially inviting demons into my house. I have enough issues. ANYWHO, enough of my deep-rooted issues with demonic possession, let's look at this month's box! I'm really excited about this month's books! I already had my eye on Tales from a Talking Board after seeing it a couple of times on bookstagram, because, come on, that book was made to photograph! It's this month's new release and synopsis is as follows: "Can we speak with the spirits of the dead? Is it possible to know the future? Are our dreams harbingers of things to come? Do auspicious omens and cautionary portents affect our lives? Edited by Ross E. Lockhart, Tales from a Talking Board examines these questions - and more - with tales of auguries, divination, and fortune telling, through ...

You know the drill - Sam and Frodo are on their way to Mordor to try and destroy the ring, but not without a companion lurking in the shadows... The armies of the Dark Lord are massing in an epic battle for Middle Earth... it's all come down to this! "I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil." And so my journey through Middle Earth has ended *cue hysterical crying*. Revisiting both The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings this year was a great decision - I'll be revisiting Hogwarts in a similar way in 2018. There is always time to reread your favourite books because you will honestly pick up or learn something different each time. This time around my overriding experience has just been an appreciation of the friendship found within these pages. It has also solidified Samwise Gamgee's position as one of my fave characters of all time. Aragorn may get all the heart eyes, but Samwise is truly special. I thought at the end of my reread I would h...

Having been suspected of being involved in the death of her rich employer, Dolores Claiborne tells the story of her life to the police, from the disintegration of her marriage and suspicious death of her husband to the relationship she had with her employer, Vera Donovan. "Sometimes you have to be a high riding bitch to survive, sometimes, being a bitch is all a woman has to hang on to." Wow, this book is pretty unique - it's in the form of a monologue given by Dolores herself detailing the events leading up to her husband's death a number of years previously, as well as the more recent death of her employer, Vera Donovan. There's no chapters, no breaks, nothing. Just a continuous narration from our protagonist. It blows me away how, not for one second, did I feel like I was reading King's writing - I felt like I was reading Dolores' confession. King's ability to perfectly encapsulate and get into the head of a middle-aged woman astounds me...

In 1950s suburban America, two teen girls are left in the care of their aunt following the death of their parents. The story is told through the eyes of David, the boy who lives next door and who is witness to the escalating abuse and torture that these girls endure at the hands of the aunt and the rest of the children in the neighbourhood.  "My mom says Meg's the lucky one," he said. "My mom says she got off easy." First of all, I need to explicitly warn potential readers that this book is very graphic and detailed, and it is NOT for the faint of heart. That being said, I can categorically state that this is the most brutal, disturbing, upsetting, traumatising book that I have ever read. I did not enjoy reading this book, it made me angry, upset, and downright incredulous that people are capable of such inhumane actions, because this is not just some sick and twisted idea that Ketchum came up with, it it based on a true story. For those who are n...

Under the influence of a captivating aristocrat, Dorian Gray sells his soul in exchange for prolonged youth and vitality. Part of the deal is that a full-length portrait of Dorian will age and record his sins, whereas he remains unblemished.  "Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic." Picking one quote from this book was like being asked to read just one book for the rest of your life - nigh-on impossible. I hadn't even thought about how difficult it would be until Tes (instagram @paperbackbones) pointed this out and then I got sucked into a vortex of reading different Wilde quotes online... that man was a goddamn genius. This book has achieved a significant title in my reading life; the title of "Favourite Classic". It totally blew me away. To be honest, I only vaguely knew the storyline before picking this one up having encountered Dorian Gray in the TV show Penny Dreadful, but not the specific story that Wilde ...

As Joseph Bateman awaits his execution, he looks back over the events in his life that has led him to death row. However, during the execution, as the electricity runs through his body, he finds himself thrown into a foreign body and into an era over a hundred years before his own. His final challenge is to find redemption for his damned soul. "Scars, no matter how long you give them, never heal." When Jason Pellegrini contacted me about sending me signed copies of his books in exchange for an honest review, I was pretty excited about it! My bookstagram buddy, Sadie, had read this book Booth earlier in the year and had said it was a really great story, and pretty brutal at times. So suffice to say, I was looking forward to it. The premise is really interesting - a guy who is on death row looks back over the events in his life that has led him to his current position. However, there is a chance for redemption - through going back in time and preventing one of hi...

In Oceania, the Party scrutinises human actions with the ever-watchful Big Brother. Winston Smith, however, struggles with this oppression and the ban on individuality, leading to him disobeying the government by writing a diary in secret and pursuing a relationship with Julia. "Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past." What else is there that can be said about a literary classic such as 1984? A lot of people rank it as one of their all-time favourite books, and although I really enjoyed it, it won't be held in such high esteem for me. I flew through this book in a number of days, which often represents how much I'm enjoying a book - so yes, it was certainly an addictive and captivating read, but I had a couple of issues.  In my opinion, this book could have been a bit shorter - there were particular parts, especially in the middle of the book, that could have been edited down a lot. There was a lot of re...

This second master edition is comprised of arcs 3 and 4, Crown of Shadows and Keys to the Kingdom. Following directly after the events covered in the first master edition, more keys are discovered within Keyhouse as the search for the elusive Omega Key is turned up a notch... "You were a cup with nothing in it until I came along to fill you up." These volumes just keep getting better and better!! Admittedly, I felt like the beginning of Crown of Shadows lagged a little bit, but then it picked up towards the end and carried that pace right through Keys to the Kingdom. I'm itching to start the final master edition right away and finish the series, but I also want to savour it.... so I'll wait a bit.... As per usual, the characters are incredible - the Locke children in particular. I love Tyler and Bode, and although Kinsey can be kinda irritating at times, she's pretty believable as a teen and also well-developed. I have such a hatred for Zack, whic...

A school teacher, Jake Epping, travels back in time through a portal with the aim of preventing the assassination of JFK, often considered to be a huge watershed moment in American history. But first, he must create a life for himself in the years leading up to the assassination as he has some research to do. In doing so, he stumbles upon the town of Jodie and a beautiful librarian named Sadie Dunhill... "We did not ask for this room or this music. We were invited in. Therefore, because the dark surrounds us, let us turn our faces to the light. Let us endure hardship to be grateful for plenty. We have been given pain to be astounded by joy. We have been given life to deny death. We did not ask for this room or this music. But because we are here, let us dance." Let me preface this review by saying... prepare for a LOT of fangirling. When I first read this book it blew me away, and on my reread, it had the exact same effect. I would go so far as to say that this is...

Naked and covered in blood, Claire Lambert emerges from a massacre that has claimed the lives of her friends. As the sole survivor, Claire wants revenge for the cannibalistic family responsible for the hell that she has endured. But she's not the only one, others have been affected by this nightmare and they too want this family of lunatics to pay... "It seemed he always had blood on his hands no matter how hard or how often he washed them." What did I just read?! As a forewarning (I feel like I'm forewarning a lot these days... I've been reading some sick shit it seems), this is not for the faint of heart. It's brutal and visceral and raw... yet oh so AMAZING. I blew through this book in a matter of days - it's pretty much the definition of unputdownable. I love reading books that just hook you from the very first page, or in this instance, the very first sentence. From the get-go, I felt like I was watching a great horror slasher movie...

The prospect of getting a box without a theme is actually pretty exciting as you literally can't even predict what books or related items you might get. And this box was full of great items! I actually got a few messages beforehand from people telling me that I'd love this box and that it was basically made for me. Vince and Jessi verified that it was in fact designed for me... honestly! ;)  okay, maybe that's a lie, but I loved this box. So let's look at what was included... Firstly, the books. Two new releases this month and one of mine was signed - which is always a pleasant surprise! The first book was The Wilderness Within by John Claude Smith, synopsis is as follows: "While visiting fellow writer, Frank Harlan Marshall, Derek Gray senses a palpable dread within Frank's house and the forest that surrounds it; a subtle malignant sentience. What should be a joyous event, as they await the surprise arrival of a long-lost friend, comedian "...

Following the tragic death of his infant daughter, Steve Brannigan is lost in grief, finding solace in alcohol and bad TV. His estranged wife can no longer be in the house where they lost their child, so Steve is left to himself in their family home. That is, until he hears a noise upstairs... "All these moments, even the less pleasant ones, are snapshots we can never replace once they're lost." I must admit, I get pretty nervous when it comes to reading the books of an author who is so present on instagram - particularly when it's someone I've conversed with a number of times and he's just SO NICE. But, in this instance, I really had nothing to worry about. Blanky is pretty awesome!! It's heartbreaking and terrifying in equal measures, reminding me of how I felt reading Pet Sematary by the King - and I think everyone knows how I feel about that book. Burke's writing is incredible, it's intricate and detailed, yet so readable. ...

Comprised of insane and downright horrifying tales from Clive Barker, Books of Blood is a strong debut release which led to King referring to him as "the future of horror". This edition contains Volumes 1-3, a grand total of fifteen stories (sixteen if you include the intro) - a large number of which have been subsequently adapted into movies.  "Everybody is a book of blood; wherever we're opened, we're red." Having already been blown away by The Hellhound Heart, I was excited to get into more Clive Barker - and oh boy, this did not disappoint. The sheer range of stories within these first three volumes of Books of Blood is staggering. And the quality remains consistently high throughout. Barker's imagination is unparalleled - I mean, King has a pretty awesome imagination too, but his skills are slightly different to Barker's. One minute you're reading about a serial killer who quite literally skins his victims and hangs them up like ...

Following a tragic home invasion and the death of their father, Rendell, the Locke children along with their mother, relocate to Keystone house in Lovecraft, Massachusetts. They begin to adjust to their new life with the aid of Rendell's brother, Duncan. The youngest child, Bode, soon discovers a number of magical keys that each have a different function and ultimately attract the attention of a strange "echo" that is hiding in a well. "Kids always think they're coming into a story at the beginning, when usually they're coming in at the end." Colour me IMPRESSED. I had been hearing for a while how absolutely incredible the Locke & Key series is and now I fully understand. This master edition is comprised of the first two story arcs; namely Welcome to Lovecraft and Head Games. These two arcs were an interesting introduction into the world and mythology of Keystone house. The first arc explores the different ways in which the children ar...

Louis Creed and his family have recently moved to the town of Ludlow, Maine. Behind their house there is a path that leads to a 'Pet Sematary', where the children of surrounding areas have buried their beloved pets in years gone by. Deeper in the woods there lies an ancient Indian burial ground, that Louis discovers has some sinister properties when their family cat dies... "Cause what you buy, is what you own. And what you own... always comes home to you." It's no secret that Pet Sematary is my favourite King book, but this is the case for a number of different reasons. When I first started reading horror I couldn't imagine words on a page actually scaring me, I always felt like I needed something visual to keep me up at night. Then I found Pet Sematary... I'd never had an experience before where I actually felt scared to turn the page - this was  of course in the climax at the end of the novel. My heart was racing, my palms felt sweaty, ...

In a quest to satiate his darkest pleasures, Frank Cotton obtains and opens Lemarchand's box, summoning the cenobites who instead of granting him pleasure and entry into this promised new world, torture him and trap him within the box. However, his brother's wife, Julia, who had a previous dalliance with Frank, has found a way to bring him back - and it involves blood. "No tears, please. It's a waste of good suffering." Well, I had to use that quote, didn't I? Even though there was literally a plethora of amazing quotes I could have used. Having seen Hellraiser before having read this book, I would not have predicted that Clive Barker was a beautiful writer. When you experience all the guts and gore and disgusting sights and fucked-up ideas in Hellraiser,  you just don't expect the creator to have such a wonderful way with words - although I guess the same can be said for Stephen King.  I straight up LOVED this book. It's a relatively sm...

First of all, Happy 1 Year to Vince and Jessi at Nocturnal Reader's Box! I think I've gotten all the boxes apart from the first 2. And they've all been amazing - in fact, they just keep getting better. They said they were gonna go all out for their 1 year anniversary box and they most certainly have delivered. So let's take a look at this month's box... So we got three books this month - THREE - that's two new releases and one previous release. One of the new releases is What the Hell Did I Just Read by David Wong, the third book in the John Dies at the End trilogy. We were lucky enough to get the second book in a previous box, but apparently they can all be read as standalone novels. The synopsis for this one is as follows: "It's the story "they" don't want you to read. Though, to be fair, "They" are probably right about this one. To quote the bible, "Learning the truth can be like loosening a necktie, only to r...

Compendium 2 is made up of issues 49-96, i.e. volumes 9-16. Following the loss of the prison and the devastation that followed, Rick and the group must move on. They very quickly come upon a community protected by walls, but the solace does not last long... "After everything we've been through, all the people we've lost... I suddenly find myself overcome with something I thought we'd lost... hope." It's difficult to review these comics as they're so fast moving and so much happens!! That's one of the major positives of The Walking Dead - it doesn't really get stagnant. Even when the survivors settle down in one location for a while, there's always new dangers and new characters constantly being introduced. The general outline and journey of the survivors is similar to that of the show, but there's still huge differences with regards to individual character storylines, so even as a fan of the show, I'm kept on my toes. ...

The second volume in The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers focuses on the disintegration of the Fellowship, as Frodo and Sam go off on their separate journey towards Mordor whilst Merry and Pippin are taken captive by some Orcs. Meanwhile, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli decide that they will attempt to pursue and rescue Merry and Pippin. "It's like in the great stories, Mr Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end... because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing... this shadow. Even darkness must pass." As a child, The Two Towers was always my favourite movie, and I think I used to say it was my favourite book too, but as I've gotten older my favourite movie is now The Return of the King. I'm still unsure as to whether my favourite book will change as well, we...