• About

By Hook Or By Book

~ Book Reviews, News, and Other Stuff

By Hook Or By Book

Daily Archives: October 8, 2020

Wedding Anniversary

08 Thursday Oct 2020

Posted by By Hook Or By Book: Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff in Uncategorized

≈ 73 Comments

Tags

”Can’t Help Falling In Love With You”, Elvis Presley, Wedding Anniversary

3B278B83-53B1-4B97-9DAB-F1878BD28350

Fair warning, I’m getting a bit shmaltzy here. Thirty-two years ago I married my soulmate. In the decades since, our lives, like everyone else’s, have not always been smooth sailing, but through it all I took comfort in knowing that my best friend and love of my life was with me. For our first dance at our wedding reception we had the DJ play Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love With You,” and the reasons why I picked it then still hold true today.

 

Secret Santa, By Andrew Schaffer ~ 3.5 Stars

08 Thursday Oct 2020

Posted by By Hook Or By Book: Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff in Uncategorized

≈ 13 Comments

Tags

Adult Fiction, Horror, Mystery

AD070283-E662-4B58-ACCA-BF71D011C380

Thanks to NetGalley and Quirk Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: November 10th, 2020

220 Pages

Synopsis: The Office meets Stephen King, dressed up in holiday tinsel, in this fun, festive, and frightening horror-comedy set during the horror publishing boom of the ‘80s, by New York Times best-selling satirist Andrew Schaffer.

Out of work for months, Lussi Meyer is desperate to work anywhere in publishing. Prestige Blackwood-Patterson isn’t the perfect fit, but a bizarre set of circumstances leads to her hire and a firm mandate: Lussi must find the next horror superstar to compete with Stephen King, Anne Rice, and Peter Straub. It’s the ‘80s after all and horror is the hottest genre.

But as soon as she arrives, Lussi finds herself the target of her coworkers’ mean-spirited pranks. The hazing reaches its peak during the company’s annual Secret Santa gift exchange when Lussi receives a demonic-looking object she recognizes but doesn’t understand. Suddenly, her coworkers begin falling victim to a series of horrific accidents akin to a George Romero movie, and Lussi suspects her gift is involved. With the help of her former editor, the flamboyant Fabian Nightingale, Lussi must track down her mysterious Secret Santa and figure out the true meaning of the cursed object in her possession before it destroys the company—and her soul.

Being the horror fan I am, I was quite excited when I read the premise Secret Santa, even though I’m unfamiliar with Andrew Schaffer’s writing. And there were parts of it I really liked: the dark humor, the fiendishly witty homage to 1980s horror, and the skewering of the publishing world in general. The horror aspects were a bit meh, which was a bit of a let down, and as I find so often with novellas, the character development was practically non-existent. The funny thing is, the previous book I reviewed, Teen Killers Club, was under 300 pages, yet had a wonderfully written and memorable cast, so I know it’s possible. But alas, it wasn’t the case here. Still, it was an entertaining way to spend the hour or so it took to read Secret Santa and I’m not sorry I requested it. It’s also made me curious to check out some of Schaffer’s other works, so that’s a plus.

  • By Hook Or By Book: Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff

Archives

October 2020
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Sep   Nov »

Blog Stats

  • 287,855 hits
Follow By Hook Or By Book on WordPress.com

Blogs I Follow

  • View from the Back
  • Fictionspawn
  • Books & Bonsai
  • BOOKSNMUSES
  • Blaisdell Literary Enterprises
  • Word by Word
  • slicethelife
  • Books With Raven
  • johnrieber
  • Book Coffee Happy
  • Susanlovesbooks
  • River Writes
  • heavenlybookish
  • Ana Bookshelves blog
  • For The Literature
  • On The Subject of Horror
  • Pfeiffer Pfilms and Meg Movies
  • Writergurlny
  • Sarah Collins Bookworm
  • The Inglorius Padre Steve's World
  • Chocoviv’s Lifestyle Blog
  • Mary Smith's Place
  • the novel gnome
  • Broken Tune's Blog
  • Mark Bierman
  • In Saner Thought
  • PA Reads
  • Little Mermaid's Writes
  • The Book's Whiskers
  • Between|the|Blurb
  • biblio_mom
  • Short Prose
  • Mental Health @ Home
  • The 4 Freedoms for ALL via Language & Adult Education, Writing, and PublicDomainInfrastructure
  • Carries Book Reviews
  • Beware Of The Reader
  • beetleypete
  • Blogger Tha Travis
  • Myths of the Mirror
  • Blue Reader Gal Corner
  • SoundEagle 🦅ೋღஜஇ
  • Cyranny's Cove
  • Saved By Words
  • Hundreds & Thousands of Books
  • Following Good Books
  • vinnieh
  • Mock Paper Scissors
  • The Bookshelf Corner
  • CoffeeMamma
  • Doshelles

Member of The Internet Defense League

Follow By Hook Or By Book on WordPress.com

Blogs I Follow

  • View from the Back
  • Fictionspawn
  • Books & Bonsai
  • BOOKSNMUSES
  • Blaisdell Literary Enterprises
  • Word by Word
  • slicethelife
  • Books With Raven
  • johnrieber
  • Book Coffee Happy
  • Susanlovesbooks
  • River Writes
  • heavenlybookish
  • Ana Bookshelves blog
  • For The Literature
  • On The Subject of Horror
  • Pfeiffer Pfilms and Meg Movies
  • Writergurlny
  • Sarah Collins Bookworm
  • The Inglorius Padre Steve's World
October 2020
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Sep   Nov »

Blog at WordPress.com.

View from the Back

Ramblings of a retiree in France

Fictionspawn

Illustrations and Short Stories

Books & Bonsai

Anita Dawes & Jaye Marie

BOOKSNMUSES

Wrapped around genres and muses🥰

Blaisdell Literary Enterprises

Word by Word

Women in Writing sharing Encouragement One Word at a Time

slicethelife

hold a mirror up to life.....are there layers you can see?

Books With Raven

Book reviews from a bookworm

johnrieber

Burgers, Books, Music, Movies, Offbeat Adventures & Pop Culture!

Book Coffee Happy

Let's discuss books!

Susanlovesbooks

River Writes

Here you get writing tips, facts, and updates by the Author in process, River Angel Bee

heavenlybookish

bibliophile

Ana Bookshelves blog

Hi! My name is Ana. I’m a pharmacist & part time blogger! Book addict!

For The Literature

Reviewing the art of literature.

On The Subject of Horror

All things horror movie related!

Pfeiffer Pfilms and Meg Movies

Writergurlny

A Ginger's Point Of View

Sarah Collins Bookworm

Journalist, traveller, collector of hats, bookworm

The Inglorius Padre Steve's World

Musings of a Progressive Realist in Wonderland

Chocoviv’s Lifestyle Blog

Mommy blogger, who loves to share what she loves!

Mary Smith's Place

the novel gnome

Reading and Reviewing for You!

Broken Tune's Blog

Mark Bierman

Adventures in Writing

In Saner Thought

"It is the duty of every man, as far as his ability extends, to detect and expose delusion and error"..Thomas Paine

PA Reads

Reading and reviewing books all day long.

Little Mermaid's Writes

Movie Reviews, Travel stories, Lifestyle

The Book's Whiskers

Books ✦ Cats ✦ Gin ✦ Life is good!

Between|the|Blurb

opening a window of excitement, enthralment and over all wonder.

biblio_mom

Read & Escape

Short Prose

Poetry and Short Prose by Gabriela Marie Milton 2019 Author of the Year at Spillwords Press and Author of Passions: Love Poems and Other Writings

Mental Health @ Home

Building mental wellness on a foundation of strength

The 4 Freedoms for ALL via Language & Adult Education, Writing, and PublicDomainInfrastructure

Languages & Books (Stayed on Freedom's Call & WiP: #WhoByFireIWill) for Community Cooperation and #PublicDomainInfrastructure: Public Transit, Public Libraries, Financial & Legal Education, and Public Health Care

Carries Book Reviews

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Beware Of The Reader

Never underestimate the quiet girl reading in her nook! She's lived a thousand lives.

beetleypete

The musings of a Londoner, now living in Norfolk

Blogger Tha Travis

Myths of the Mirror

Life is make believe, fantasy given form

Blue Reader Gal Corner

Book Blogger and more

SoundEagle 🦅ೋღஜஇ

Where The Eagles Fly . . . . Art Science Poetry Music & Ideas

Cyranny's Cove

Refuge of an assumed danophile...

Saved By Words

When a woman tells the truth she is creating the possibility for more truth around her. Adrienne Rich

Hundreds & Thousands of Books

Book reviews by teens, for teens!

Following Good Books

YA Book Blog from a Christian Perspective. 1 Thessalonians 5:15.

vinnieh

Movie reviews and anything else that comes to mind

Mock Paper Scissors

The Internet's Band of Incorrigible Spitballers® Since 2006

The Bookshelf Corner

Writer. Blogger. Book Reviewer.

CoffeeMamma

Just a Mom that loves her family, coffee & blog.

Doshelles

Bringing Words to Life

View from the Back

Ramblings of a retiree in France

Fictionspawn

Illustrations and Short Stories

Books & Bonsai

Anita Dawes & Jaye Marie

BOOKSNMUSES

Wrapped around genres and muses🥰

Blaisdell Literary Enterprises

Word by Word

Women in Writing sharing Encouragement One Word at a Time

slicethelife

hold a mirror up to life.....are there layers you can see?

Books With Raven

Book reviews from a bookworm

johnrieber

Burgers, Books, Music, Movies, Offbeat Adventures & Pop Culture!

Book Coffee Happy

Let's discuss books!

Susanlovesbooks

River Writes

Here you get writing tips, facts, and updates by the Author in process, River Angel Bee

heavenlybookish

bibliophile

Ana Bookshelves blog

Hi! My name is Ana. I’m a pharmacist & part time blogger! Book addict!

For The Literature

Reviewing the art of literature.

On The Subject of Horror

All things horror movie related!

Pfeiffer Pfilms and Meg Movies

Writergurlny

A Ginger's Point Of View

Sarah Collins Bookworm

Journalist, traveller, collector of hats, bookworm

The Inglorius Padre Steve's World

Musings of a Progressive Realist in Wonderland

Cancel
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy