Let the Right Book In

Stevie Clark's best friend, Jude Brighton, has gone missing. With each passing hour, Stevie knows that the likelihood of Jude being found alive and well is falling. But the problem is, no one seems to care as much as Stevie does, and he is adamant to find out what has happened to his best friend. Stevie soon learns about the similar disappearance a number of years ago of another young boy, Max Larsen, who's dead body was eventually found. Other strange things are occurring in the little town of Deer Valley... pets who no longer want to stay at home and go disappearing from yards. No matter how horrifying it may be, Stevie wants to know the truth, at any cost. "Because it's never the way you want it, she thought. The universe doesn't care." Okay, first of all, this was my first encounter with Ania Ahlborn, and I was BLOWN AWAY. I am a pretty fast reader I'd say, it's more finding the actual time to read that is difficult for me, but I starte...

Robert Neville is the last man on earth...or is he? Following the outbreak of an incurable plague that has mutated every other human on earth into bloodthirsty, nocturnal creatures, Robert Neville must scavenge for food and supplies during the day, whilst hiding in his boarded-up, vampire-proof home at night. Living a solitary life for so long is not easy, and so he is constantly on the look-out for fellow survivors... "The strength of the vampire is that no one will believe in him." This was a buddy-read with my bestest friend, Abbie. We chose this because she is literally a speed-demon and if we had chose a long book, I would be lagging behind for too long! Turns out, I did lag behind anyway because even though we both finished I Am Legend pretty close to each other, my edition also had a selection of short stories written by Richard Matheson. So I'm only now "finishing" the entire book. I had watched the movie I Am Legend a number of years ago....

A beautiful YA fantasy novel focusing on the tale of King Roland of Delain and his two sons, Peter and Thomas, with the story being told by an unknown narrator. King Roland is killed by an unusual poison, with his son Peter being accused of murder and imprisoned at the top of a high tower, following the meddling of a certain Randall Flagg, the King's magician. What follows is an exciting story looking at themes including, but not limited to, friendship, loyalty, heroism and adventure. "I think that real friendship always makes us feel such sweet gratitude, because the world almost always seems like a very hard desert, and the flowers that grow there seem to grow there against such high odds." Stephen King? Young adult fantasy, you cry?! What's the Master of Horror doing in this genre? Part of the reason I found this book so sweet was that he had written it for his daughter Naomi. When she was young, he asked her what she liked...

It's that time of the month again! No...not THAT time of the month, but the arrival of my Nocturnal Reader's Box. My family are severely harassed in the run up to the arrival of my box, with frequent messages home each day from work "Has it arrived yet?" "Let me know when it comes"... Then when I finally get that confirmation that it arrived, I basically race home from work. Anyway, enough about my excitement, let's look at this month's box! The theme was "Lost in the Woods"... Let's start with the most important inclusion - the books! Two exciting books this month: the recent release The Devil Crept In by Ania Ahlborn and the more older release In A Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware. I see Ania Ahlborn all over bookstagram these days, and I know my friend Sadie is a fan after having read some of her work recently, so getting her new release was pretty exciting. But you know what makes it even more exciting? IT'S SIGNED. Personal...

In the summer of 1973,  a student named Devin Jones takes a job at Joyland, a North Carolina amusement park. Shortly after his arrival, his girlfriend finishes their relationship and breaks his heart. In an attempt to forgot about the girl, he quickly becomes engrossed in an unsolved murder that happened in Joyland a number of years ago. He also meets a young woman and her dying child, and begins to learn a lot more than he first anticipated he would at Joyland. "I'm not sure anybody ever gets completely over their first love, and that still rankles. Part of me still wants to know what was wrong with me. What I was lacking. I'm in my sixties now, my hair is gray and I'm a prostate cancer survivor, but I still want to know why I wasn't good enough for Wendy Keegan." I've been on such a great run recently with King books, and this one was no exception. From the very first page, I was drawn in and constantly writing down quotes in my little noteboo...

Duma Key focuses on the story of Edgar Fremantle, a self-made millionaire who becomes injured at work after a crane crushes his pickup truck. Following the loss of his arm, amidst other injuries, Edgar becomes a little too much for his wife to handle and she asks for a divorce. He leaves behind his wife and two daughters and heads off to Duma Key, a stunning but eerily quiet stretch of the coast where he has rented a house. Very quickly upon his arrival, he encounters the charismatic Wireman and the old lady he looks after - Elizabeth Eastlake. Although suffering from dementia, Elizabeth's tragic and heartbreaking history begins to unfold, while at the same time, Edgar finds himself able to paint striking, haunting pictures. However, the ability to paint such pictures seems to come from some other outside force... "We can't imagine time running out, and God punishes us for what we can't imagine." It's been a while since I posted a book review - three...