Taking A Hiatus

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Blogging Hiatus

Hi Everyone,
By Hook Or By Book is going on hiatus. Nothing is wrong so don’t worry. I just need a respite from blogging right now. I shall return, but in the meantime I’m sending you all my love.

Happy National Dog Day!

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”White Knuckles”, Humorous Memes, National Dog Day, OK Go

 

 

 

 

The Violent Season, By Sara Waters ~ 4.0 Stars

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Contemporary Fiction, Death of a parent, Mental Illness, Mystery, Romance, Sexual Assault, Suicide, Suspense, Toxic Relationships, Trauma, YA Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing an ARC In exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 5th, 2021

320 Pages

Synopsis: An unputdownable debut about a town marred by violence, a girl ruined by grief, and the harsh reality about what makes people decide to hurt each other. The Violent Season is a searing, unforgettable, and thrilling novel that belongs on shelf with Sadie and Girl in Pieces.

Every November, the people in Wolf Ridge are overwhelmed with a hunger for violence–at least that’s the town rumor. Last fall Wyatt Green’s mother was brutally murdered, convincing Wyatt that this yearning isn’t morbid urban legend. but rather a palpable force infecting her neighbors.

This year, Wyatt fears the call of violence has spread to her best friend Cash–who also happens to be the guy she can’t stop wanting no matter how much he hurts her. At the same time, she’s drawn to Cash’s nemesis Porter, now that they’re partners on an ambitious project for lit class. When Wyatt pulls away from Cash, and spends more time with Porter, she learns secrets about both of them she can’t forget.

And as the truth about her mother’s death begins to emerge from the shadows, Wyatt is faced with a series of hard realities about the people she trusts the most, rethinking everything she believes about what makes people decide to hurt each other. (Goodreads)

Sarah Walter’s debut, The Violent Season, isn’t perfect, but it is a compulsive and memorable read that will appeal to many YA fans.

Wyatt and her self-destructive behavior had me wanting to both hug her and slap her throughout the book. Her toxic relationship with Cash is cringeworthy at times, but despite being 56-years-old I do remember being a teenager and having a friend in somewhat similar circumstances. That said, some of her actions are over-the-top melodramatic and difficult to understand. Cash, as the “bad boy” of the story, I wish had been developed a little more. After finding out a little of his family history, I needed to know more about what made him tick, particularly as more of the mystery began to be revealed. Porter, the third in the love triangle, I actually liked the best. I was half expecting him to be the blandly popular jock persona you find so often in YA fiction, but he was surprisingly complex. 

The mystery itself is a little predictable in someways and I figured out the identity of the main villain fairly early on. However, the twisty path getting to the answers kept me turning the pages and I easily finished this in two sittings. The ending tied everything up neatly, but because I grew to care about Wyatt I found myself wishing for it to be fleshed out a little more.

Overall, The Violent Season, has much to recommend about it including the realistic way it tackles some of its darker themes such as: death of a parent, drug use, toxic relationships, sexual assault, self harm, mental illness, trauma, and suicide. If I were still a children’s/YA librarian, this would be a book I’d definitely be adding to our collection for those 14+.

Whimsical Wednesday

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Animated Shorts, Olga Belkaun, Whimsical Wednesday

Summer Sons, By Lee Mandelo ~ 3.5 Stars

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Adult Fiction, Coping With Loss and Grief, Horror, LGBTQ Relationships, Mystery, Southern Gothic, Talk of Suicide, Trauma

Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: September 28th, 2021

384 Pages

Synopsis: Lee Mandelo’s debut Summer Sons is a sweltering, queer Southern Gothic that crosses Appalachian street racing with academic intrigue, all haunted by a hungry ghost.

Andrew and Eddie did everything together, best friends bonded more deeply than brothers, until Eddie left Andrew behind to start his graduate program at Vanderbilt. Six months later, only days before Andrew was to join him in Nashville, Eddie dies of an apparent suicide. He leaves Andrew a horrible inheritance: a roommate he doesn’t know, friends he never asked for, and a gruesome phantom that hungers for him.

As Andrew searches for the truth of Eddie’s death, he uncovers the lies and secrets left behind by the person he trusted most, discovering a family history soaked in blood and death. Whirling between the backstabbing academic world where Eddie spent his days and the circle of hot boys, fast cars, and hard drugs that ruled Eddie’s nights, the walls Andrew has built against the world begin to crumble.

And there is something awful lurking, waiting for those walls to fall. (Goodreads)

I want to say at the onset that Summer Sons is receiving mostly rave reviews, so my slight disappointment may be due to me just being in the wrong mood(?) My biggest complaints concern the characters and molasses-like slowness of the first half. I struggled with connecting to any of the characters, especially Andrew, who I really didn’t like until the last third of the book, when I began to understand him more. The story also tackles a lot: loss, drugs, relationships, car racing, competitive academia, curses, etc. and at times there just seemed to be an excruciating amount of minutiae to plow through. I freely admit I resorted to skimming some of the longer chapters, especially the sections that were like The Fast and the Furious. But there were also some things that I loved about this including: the uniqueness of the story, the diversity of the characters and their relationships, the Southern Gothic tone, the ultimate direction of the central mystery, and the final resolution, which much to my surprise had me tearing up a little. Ironically, given that I’m usually such a nut for horror, is that for me, the strengths of this book lie more in its thoughtful exploration of trauma, grief and loss, not the supernatural aspects, which until the last few chapters left me frequently confused as to what was happening.

I really hate writing reviews like this because I’m all over the place with it. I’d like to say that Summer Sons still has me thinking about it three days after I finished, so that’s another plus. In the end, if you’re a horror fan who’s looking for something different and the premise intrigues you, I’d say give this a try. And as always, don’t just go by my opinion. Please check out the other reviews on Goodreads.

In the Company of Witches (Evenfall Witches B&B #1), By Auralee Wallace ~ 4.5 Stars

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Adult Fiction, Coping With Loss and Grief, Cozy Mystery, Paranormal Fiction

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 5th, 2021

336 Pages

Synopsis: When a guest dies in the B&B she helps her aunts run, a young witch must rely on some good old-fashioned investigating to clear her aunt’s name in this magical and charming new cozy mystery.

For four hundred years, the Warren witches have used their magic to quietly help the citizens of the sleepy New England town of Evenfall thrive. There’s never been a problem they couldn’t handle. But then Constance Graves–a local known for being argumentative and demanding–dies while staying at the bed and breakfast Brynn Warren maintains with her aunts. At first, it seems like an accident…but it soon becomes clear that there’s something more sinister at work, and Aunt Nora is shaping up to be the prime suspect.

There’s nothing Brynn wants more than to prove Nora’s innocence, and it hurts her to know that even two years ago that might have been easier. Brynn, after all, is a witch of the dead–a witch who can commune with ghosts. Ghosts never remember much about their deaths, but Constance might remember something about her life that would help crack the case. But Brynn hasn’t used her powers since her husband died, and isn’t even sure she still can. Brynn will just have to hope that her aunts’ magic and her own investigative skills will lead her to answers–and maybe back to the gift she once thought herself ready to give up forever. (Goodreads)

Once upon a time I used to be addicted to cozy mysteries, and juggled too many series to count on my tbr and then for some reason I drifted away from them. When the publisher contacted me and offered me an advance copy of In the Company of Witches however, the cover and premise proved to be too tempting to resist.

Although I found the mystery a tad predictable there were a couple of things regarding the whodunnit that did catch me by surprise. The characters are marvelously written and have all the quirkiness and idiosyncrasies that I love to see in this genre. The relationship between Brynn and her aunts and uncle was particularly enjoyable, and the way the family tried to help Brynn deal with the tragic loss of her husband was heartwarming even if their efforts didn’t always go smoothly. The New England small town setting is charming and I was so enchanted with Faustus the cat and Dog, the crow, that I wanted more of them. The ending satisfyingly brought closure to not only the mystery of the murder of Constance, but also to Brynn’s grieving for late husband.

All in all, this was a lovely beginning to The Evenfall Witches B&B series, and I’ll definitely be sticking with it. Coming out the first week of October makes this perfect timing for Halloween, and I highly recommend this to cozy mystery fans who are looking for a quick, entertaining tale filled with likable characters.

More Sunday Smiles

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”Cover Me in Sunshine”, Leo Moracchioli, More Sunday Smiles

A couple of days ago I shared P!nk’s wonderful Cover Me In Sunshine. One of the comments was from Sheri – For the Love of Books at https://readbetwixtwords.com/blog and she shared a link to this fantastic metal cover from Leo Moracchioli and his talented daughter that’s too good not to share!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday Smiles

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“Alugalug Cat (International Symphonic Mashup”, David Scott, Sunday Smiles, The Kiffness

Lyrical Lines ~ “Cover Me in Sunshine”

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”Cover Me in Sunshine”, Lyrical Lines, P!nk

I’ve been dreaming of friendly faces
I’ve got so much time to kill
Just imagine people laughing
I know some day we will
And even if it’s far away
Get me through another day
Cover me in sunshine
Shower me with good times
Tell me that the world’s been spinning since the beginning
And everything will be alright
Cover me in sunshine
From a distance all these mountains
Are just some tiny hills
Wildflowers, they keep living
While they’re just standing still
I’ve been missing yesterday
But what if there’s a better place?
Cover me in sunshine
Shower me with good times
Tell me that the world’s been spinning since the beginning
And everything will be alright
Cover me in sunshine
Shower me with good times
Tell me that the world’s been spinning since the beginning
And everything will be alright
Cover me in sunshine
Cover me in sunshine
Shower me with good times
Tell me that the world’s been spinning since the beginning
And everything will be alright
Cover me in sunshine

Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Maureen Mcdonald / Amy Allen
Cover Me In Sunshine lyrics © Emi April Music Inc., Artist Publishing Group West, Kenny + Betty Tunes, Superreal Songs, Mozie On Down

Literary Lines

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Literary Lines, Sylvia Plath

August rain: the best of the summer gone, and the new fall not yet born. The odd uneven time.

~ Sylvia Plath, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath ~