Tag: Paranormal

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Hacienda by Isabel Canas

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Hacienda by Isabel Canas

THIS BOOK! This book was at the top of my TBR list for months. The second I read the description, I KNEW this book would be right up my alley! It’s been described as a cross between Rebecca and Mexican Gothic, both of which I loved for different reasons and I think this is absolutely an accurate description of the story. I would also recommend it to anyone who loves Simone St James—-if you love her ghost stories, you will love this book!

I wanted to bust into this book the second it came in the mail, but I held off until it was a little closer to the release day. And let me just tell you that was so hard! I loved the book so much, that I also downloaded the Audible version so I could compare how reading the story was different from listening to it. Personally I liked the Audible version better but reading it was just as exciting.

This book has been on many many top recommended lists and also was featured on Book of the Month. I can say with absolute conviction that this book was absolutely worth all the hype. I loved how rich it was with folklore, religion, and socioeconomics of the time period. This is much more than just a ghost story or a horror story—it had a lot of topics that I think would also work for book clubs. This is the rare book that really works for a lot of people even if you are not a fan of horror or ghost stories.

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Special Feature: The Shop on Royal Street (Royal Street #1) by Karen White

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature: The Shop on Royal Street (Royal Street #1) by Karen White

I absolutely loved Karen White’s Tradd Street series, while I haven’t read every single one of them, the one’s that I have read were so cute. I do think that the series would be more enjoyable in order but overall it was fine to read out of order. Through the books though we meet a host of fun secondary characters which become the inspiration for this new series.

The Tradd Street series came to an end earlier this year so when I saw that White was coming out with a new series based on some of the Tradd Street characters I was so excited. Since I have jumped around in the principal series, I was so excited to begin a new series at its inception. I have this one on my TBR for a little later this spring and I cannot wait!

If you love cozy, well written mysteries with a little paranormal written in then this will be a good choice for you! White is such a talented writer. Not only does she has a wonderful mystery series in the Tradd Stree novels but she also writes collaborative historical fiction (some of my favs!) and a few stand alone novels. She is a prolific writer with what I call ‘range’. She always crafts well written stories and mysteries so you can’t go wrong picking up one of her books. I have enjoyed each and every book I have read by White! Be sure to get this new cozy mystery series on your radar for the spring!

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St James

I can’t even begin to tell you how much of a fan I am of Simone St James! I have read every single one of her books and she is absolutely an auto buy author for me. I had her latest novel pre ordered for MONTHS in advance. I am just a massive fan girl. Her books (especially the more recent ones) are the perfect mix of murder, ghosts, horror, and gothic. I can’t say enough good things about her books just read them if you haven’t already! Especially the newest books like The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel.

I didn’t think a book could top The Broken Girls and then along came The Sun Down Motel. I loved them both for different reasons and then this book came along! Besides being a massive St James fan girl, the thing that drew me to this book was the setting! This book is set in Oregon and there is something about the Pac NW that really works for murder books!

Since I live in Oregon (which has been home to its fair share of serial killers) I was eager to see my state come alive under St James’s pen. Clear Lake Oregon (which is where the book is set) is both a fictional place and a real place if that makes sense. There isn’t a coastal town, or any town for that matter that is called Clear Lake as it is in the book, but there is an actual mountain lake called Clear Lake (which is stunning by the way and a must see if you travel to Oregon!). But even if it’s a fictional town, the accuracy and the haunting feel of the Pac NW was captured perfectly in this one and added so much to the atmosphere!

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Review: The Ex Hex (Ex Hex #1) by Erin Sterling

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This book I snagged on a whim as my Book of the Month pick for October. It sounded like funny fluff reading and even if I haven’t been a fan of Erin Sterling AKA Rachel Hawkins, I was still excited to read something a little funny and distracting for the bewitching season. And yes I know that it is now November and I am just now getting around to posting my review of this one. Things have been a little crazy so while I did read this one back in October my review calendar has been pretty full so here we are.

So what exactly attracted to me to this book? Well the cover is cute and it sounded so funny—-drunk witch mistakenly hexes ex-boyfriend using a harvest apple candle. I was dying of laughter just picturing it. Erin Sterling is a pen name for Rachel Hawkins who wrote The Wife Upstairs—which I wasn’t a fan of. But just because I wasn’t a fan of the thriller she wrote, doesn’t mean that I won’t enjoy a witchy romance for Halloween. So when I was struggling with my spooky Halloween book for the month, I decided to flip the script and read this one instead.

If you are wanting a funny quick read that has some romance and witch-craft then I think you will love this book. It wasn’t earth shattering literature but it was a fun way to spend a few days enjoying some funny moments and electrifying chemistry and of course a talking cat!

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Review: The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

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I have had this book on my TBR for years. Like years. Every Halloween season, I tell myself that I am going to pick this one up. It’s on all the ‘most scary’ book lists and I have heard such great things about Sarah Waters. Not to mention this book features all the creepy things that I love best in the gothic—a family fallen from grace, a crumbling old mansion, a haunted house. I mean all the things that make the gothic what it is can be found in this book or at least promise to be!

Well this year was finally they year for me to read this one. My sister and I picked this book to read for the month of October, every October we pick a couple of creepy books that we have had on our TBR and do a buddy read for the month and this was our pick. At over 450 pages, I decided to also download the Audible version too, I mean Simon Vance narrates and he always does a great job.

My sister has read other books by Waters and absolutely loves them so I had high hoped for this one and I was fully ready to be scared to death and up all night reading this one. So imagine my shock when I was literally bored to tears. This is my first and only DNF of the year and I couldn’t be more shocked. I went into this one fully ready to devour it!

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