Book Review: The Parliament by Aimee Pokwatka

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: The Parliament
Author: Aimee Pokwatka
Publisher: Tordotcom
Publication date: January 16, 2024
Length: 361 pages
Genre: Horror/fantasy
Source: Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Rating:

The Birds meets The Princess Bride in this tale of friendship, responsibility, and the primal force of nature.

“Murder owls are extreme,” Jude said. “What’s more extreme than murder owls?”

Madeleine Purdy is stuck in her home town library.

When tens of thousands of owls descend on the building, rending and tearing at anyone foolish enough to step outside, Mad is tasked with keeping her students safe, and distracted, while they seek a solution to their dilemma.

Perhaps they’ll find the inspiration they seek in her favorite childhood book, The Silent Queen….

With food and fresh water in low supply, the denizens of the library will have to find a way out, and soon, but the owls don’t seem to be in a hurry to leave…

The Parliament is a story of grief and missed opportunities, but also of courage and hope.

And of extremely sharp beaks.

Awww, look at the cute owl on the cover!

Kidding. That’s a murder owl. Not cute!

And ignore what the synopsis says about The Princess Bride — that might seem to indicate that this book is full of whimsy and silliness, and it’s nothing of the sort.

Let’s get back to the murder owls.

When Mad Purdy agrees to teach a kids’ chemistry workshop — making bath bombs — as a favor to her former best friend who works at the local library in their hometown, she has no idea what she’s in for. She’s already moved away to put distance between herself and the site of her worst memories, but in the name of friendship, agrees to do this one thing.

But that one thing, meant to just be one brief event, turns into days of waking nightmares, as the library is surrounded by millions of tiny owls. Maybe one on its own is cute. This swarm is far from it, as the trapped inhabitants learn after watching the owls descend on the first person to venture outside. It isn’t pretty.

Mad expected to be in and out in one hour, boundaries firmly in place. Instead, she’s thrust into the role of protector, keeping the kids physically and emotionally safe, or as safe as they can be, given that food, water, and medicine are running out, and the outside world seems to have no clue how to rescue them.

To keep the kids distracted, Mad begins to read to them from her favorite book, The Silent Queen — which seems to show up in the library just when needed. No one has ever heard of it before, but for Mad, it was a lifesaver through the worst days of trauma during her childhood. The story of a young queen who isolates herself in a tower, but finally has to step out of her safe zone to save her people, may seem a little on the nose, but it doesn’t feel heavy-handed. The story gives the kids something to focus on, and meanwhile starts forcing Mad out of her own inner fortress.

The Parliament can be terribly frightening, and while there are several scenes of gruesome attacks when a few people are foolish enough to venture outside, much of the horror is psychological. The people inside the library are trapped, cut off (there’s no wifi or cell service, thanks to the owl swarm), and utterly reliant on one another and whatever scraps of supplies they can scavenge. Meanwhile, the few attempts at solutions that come from outside the library seem doom to failure, and worse, put the people inside the library in even greater danger.

This book is fascinating, and the story-within-a-story approach (chapters of The Silent Queen alternate with chapters focusing on the library) keeps us on the edge of our seats with both pieces of the narrative. The Silent Queen reads like a fairy tale/fantasy quest, and it’s both lovely and dramatic. The main story, within the library itself, conveys all the terror and claustrophobia of being trapped with a bunch of strangers, with a clock ticking and no rescue on the way.

Mad herself survived a terrible incident at age eleven, and that’s impacted every aspect of her life ever since. She’s taught herself a thousand useless, random tricks and survival skills, but at the expense of allowing herself to connect with others or let anyone really know her. This may make her the perfect person for helping the children in the library, but she has to get past her own trauma before she can truly start connecting with them.

My only quibble with The Parliament, and it’s a minor one, is that there are too many adult characters in the library to keep track of. We have Mad and her best friend Farrah and her former friend and love interest Nash, but there are also librarians and a book group and some seniors and, well, they start blurring together. Ultimately, I was more interested in the kids as individuals than in the glimpses we get of the adults, and so I didn’t bother trying to keep most of them straight in my mind. Like I said, this is a pretty minor issue, and ultimately didn’t keep me from being totally engrossed in the book.

Overall, The Parliament is a fascinating read, and once I started, I just couldn’t stop. The main story and the fantasy story within it work together in complicated and surprising ways, and as the tension ratchets up, I was on the edge of my seat. The author does a terrific job of keeping the action intense and frightening, while also letting us inside the characters’ experiences and providing a look at the long-lasting effects of trauma and survivor’s guilt.

Highly recommended.

31Oct2023

Top Ten Tuesday: Halloween freebie — Ten horror books on my TBR list (2023 edition)

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Happy Halloween!

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is a Halloween freebie! For my Halloween post, I’m going to focus on horror novels on my to-read list. (I’ve done this topic a few times in the past several years, and given the state of my TBR list, it’s time to do it again.) Some of these books have been around a while, and some are upcoming new releases:

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow
Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison
How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
Dread Nation by Justine Ireland
What Feasts At Night by T. Kingfisher
Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong
The Changeling by Victor Lavalle
The House that Horror Built by Christina Henry
How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive by Craig DiLouie
A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay

Have you read any of these (or for the upcoming new releases, do you plan to read them)? Which ones look best to you?

What’s on your Halloween TTT this week? Share your link, please, and I’ll come check out your top 10!

Save

15Sep2023

Book vs movie: Two very different face-offs… which will win?

Posted in Books & Authors, Pop Culture, Uncategorized by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

I’m back with two more book-to-screen comparisons… and I have to say, it’s very weird to combine these two extremely different books/movies into one post! But I’m lazy… so here goes.

Which was better — the book or the movie? Read on to find out!

Face-off #1:

The Cabin at the End of the World
Book by Paul Tremblay, published 2018
Knock at the Cabin movie, released February 2023

Thoughts: After reading the book several weeks ago (check out my review, here), I’d been curious about the movie adaptation. The book tells a terrifying story of a family terrorized by strangers who show up at their remote vacation cabin and inform them that they’ve been chosen for a terrible mission: They must willingly chose to sacrifice one of their family members, or the world will end. Are these people crazy? Are they doomsday cultists? Can anything they say be true? The book is scary and claustrophic, and in many ways, the movie captures the feeling of dread and the way a happy interlude can change to absolute terror within mere moments. The movie’s casting is terrific, especially David Bautista as Leonard, the leader of the intruders — a huge, powerful man with a quiet voice and a sad, kind demeanor, whose gentleness makes his instructions all the more awful. The movie is well done and — based on my family’s reactions — very powerful for those who haven’t read the book.

However… the movie changes the ending in significant ways, and that was a bit of a dealbreaker for me. The book’s impact is enhance by its ambiguity — we’re left to wonder whether any of what the intruders said was real, and whether there really was any connection between the events inside the cabin and the fate of the world. I actually loved that about the book — we’re left to consider for ourselves whether mass delusions and coincidences were at play. The movie removes the ambiguity, as well as changing the family members’ fates, and I thought both changes cheapened the overall impact. I’m glad I watched the movie, but it just doesn’t live up to the book.

Verdict: The book for the win!

Face-off #2:

Wonder
Book by R. J. Palacio, published 2012
Movie released 2017

Thoughts: After reading White Bird by R. J. Palacio a couple of weeks ago, I was inspired to finally read Wonder, a book which has become a phenomenon in the 10+ years since it was first published. This middle-grade book is sweet and thoughtful, with an emphasis on kindness, inclusion of multiple points-of-view and experiences, a remarkable main character, and even plenty of humor. I was a little hesitant about watching the movie, worried that it would lean too heavily on the sweet to the point of becoming saccharine, but actually, I found it very, very good. Given that the parents are played by Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson, their roles are a little more prominent than in the book, but not distractingly so. The focus remains on Auggie and his experiences going to school for the first time, and the young cast is quite impressive. The movie captures most of the book’s plot beats, although by necessity, some elements end up left out or diluted. Still, it’s a very well-made adaptation, and well worth checking out.

Verdict: The book for the deeper looks into characters’ experiences… but the movie is great too!

Have you read any of these books or seen the movies? Do you have an opinion on my face-offs? Please share your thoughts!

28Jul2023

Book Review: The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: The Cabin at the End of the World
Author: Paul Tremblay
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Publication date: June 26, 2018
Length: 336 pages
Genre: Horror
Source: Purchased
Rating:

Seven-year-old Wen and her parents, Eric and Andrew, are vacationing at a remote cabin in northern New Hampshire. Far removed from the bustle of city life, they are cut off from the urgent hum of cell phones and the internet. Their closest neighbors are more than two miles away in either direction.

On a summer day, as Wen catches grasshoppers in the front yard, a stranger unexpectedly appears. Leonard is the largest man Wen has ever seen, but he is friendly, with a warm smile that wins her over almost instantly. Leonard and Wen continue to talk and play, until three more strangers, two women and a man, all dressed like Leonard in jeans and button-down shirts, come down the road carrying strange, menacing objects.

In a panic, Wen tells Leonard that she must go back inside the cabin. But before she goes, her new friend tells her, “None of what’s going to happen is your fault. You haven’t done anything wrong, but the three of you will have to make some tough decisions. I wish with all my broken heart you didn’t have to.” As Wen sprints away to warn her parents, Leonard calls out, “Your dads won’t want to let us in, Wen. But they have to. We need your help to save the world.”

The Cabin at the End of the World is a terrifying tale of the impending apocalypse… or of a group delusion… or of evil masquerading as people with a mission. What’s actually happening here is open to interpretation, but no matter the truth, it’s scary, violent, and claustrophobic.

We open with a lovely little family — 8-year-old Wen and her dads Eric and Andrew — enjoying a peaceful country vacation. The pretty cabin they’ve rented is remote but comfortable, a landline and a large flatscreen television the only devices to connect with the outside world. All is well, until a huge stranger appears from out of the woods and talks to Wen while she’s outside.

Leonard seems kind and Wen — even though she knows she’s not supposed to talk to strangers — is oddly drawn to his open manner — until three more people begin walking up the driveway, all dressed similarly to Leonard and carrying scary-looking implements. She doesn’t know it, but by the time she runs to the house and urges her dads to lock the doors, it’s already too late. The strangers start by knocking, but it’s clear that they’re coming in, no matter what.

Even once the cabin’s haven has been invaded, Leonard’s kindness, overlaid with deep sadness, persists. He won’t hurt the family. None of them will. But Eric, Andrew, and Wen must make a choice. The apocalypse is coming, and only they can stop it… by choosing one of their own to sacrifice. Eric, Andrew, and Wen must willingly choose which of them will die, and then carry out their decision by killing their sacrifice. Otherwise, billions of people will die and the world will be left a wasteland.

Does this make sense? Of course not. Eric and Andrew fight as much as they can. But the crazy people stay, and have the family at their mercy, and they are fanatically determined to see their mission through.

Why these four people are involved, who they are, and how they ended up at this cabin in New Hampshire is revealed over time. The events they foretell seem to be backed up by the momentary glimpses of news events when they occasionally turn on the TV. But are these real, or pre-recorded programming? Is any of this really happening? Even if it were, how could this one family in any way have anything to do with the outcome?

Horror stories set in isolated cabins have a certain vibe all their own — the helplessness, the idea of a beautiful escape from the world turning into a hellish trap, the lack of resources and impossibility of rescue. Here, the elements add up to a riveting story that features bursts of terrible violence, with a psychological tension that never lets up.

The story does not provide succinct answers, and even at its end, there’s a huge amount of ambiguity about what actually happened. And while that frustrated me in some ways (because apparently I need clear answers), it also makes the book especially haunting. I haven’t been able to shake if off since reading the final pages, and keep turning it over and over in my mind.

This is my first book by this author, but I’ll certainly be seeking out more… once I recover from this one!

The Cabin at the End of the World was adapted into a movie, A Knock at the Cabin, which was released earlier in 2023. I’ve seen very mixed reviews, but plan to watch it in the next week or so. Based on the trailer, it looks terrifying.

30Mar2023

Book Review: A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: A House with Good Bones
Author: T. Kingfisher
Publisher: Tor Nightfire
Publication date: March 28, 2023
Length: 256 pages
Genre: Gothic horror
Source: Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Rating:

A haunting Southern Gothic from an award-winning master of suspense, A House With Good Bones explores the dark, twisted roots lurking just beneath the veneer of a perfect home and family.

“Mom seems off.”

Her brother’s words echo in Sam Montgomery’s ear as she turns onto the quiet North Carolina street where their mother lives alone.

She brushes the thought away as she climbs the front steps. Sam’s excited for this rare extended visit, and looking forward to nights with just the two of them, drinking boxed wine, watching murder mystery shows, and guessing who the killer is long before the characters figure it out.

But stepping inside, she quickly realizes home isn’t what it used to be. Gone is the warm, cluttered charm her mom is known for; now the walls are painted a sterile white. Her mom jumps at the smallest noises and looks over her shoulder even when she’s the only person in the room. And when Sam steps out back to clear her head, she finds a jar of teeth hidden beneath the magazine-worthy rose bushes, and vultures are circling the garden from above.

To find out what’s got her mom so frightened in her own home, Sam will go digging for the truth. But some secrets are better left buried.

I’ve never not loved any book I’ve read by T. Kingfisher… and having just finished A House with Good Bones, I can safely say that my record is intact!

Putting aside my overly convoluted wording, the bottom line is — A House with Good Bones is another fantastically creepy, highly readable book by an author who knows how to tell a great story!

There’s so much to love here. Southern Gothic vibe. Highly intelligent and rational main character (she has a Ph.D. in entomology!) thrust into a decidedly odd situation. Family secrets and a dark past. Childhood nightmares and memories that might not be what they seem. All of these ingredients, and more, woven into a tightly constructed, tense, yet weirdly enjoyable narrative with no wasted space or filler. No wonder I read this in a day!

Sam is a fabulous main character — smart, caring, and happy to talk about bugs at the drop of a hat. I mean, I wouldn’t necessarily want to eat dinner with her, but she’d be great fun to hang out with. When her fieldwork for her next research project gets postponed, she heads to North Carolina to spend a few months with her mother, and notices that her mom is just not herself. Gone are the brightly painted walls, cheerful artwork, and frank conversations. Suddenly, the house is 50 shades of ecru, a Confederacy-era painting is hanging over the mantelpiece, and they even say grace before meals.

We are not a family that says grace over food. Gran Mae always insisted on it, but Mom’s Christianity has generally been limited to a fondness for Jesus Christ Superstar.

Does mom have early onset dementia? Is she having some sort of breakdown? Nothing makes sense, and Sam is worried.

On top of these worries, Sam is also a bit freaked out by weird occurrences. Like, why is there a vulture perched on the mailbox every time she drives up to the house? And why are there no bugs in the garden? And what’s up with that weird photo she finds in the attic?

I’m clearly not going to give anything away, so let’s just say that answers are revealed, secrets unraveled, and creepy-scary weirdness becomes more and more dominant as the story progresses. It gets terrifying and also icky, yet it’s totally fascinating and impossible to look away from.

One of the things I love about T. Kingfisher’s books is that no matter how creepy things get, the writing is so much fun! There are tons of one-liners and quips I could share, but even in non-flashy asides, the tone of voice is delightful:

She is a genuinely kindhearted person and a champion worrier. If there was an Olympic sport for worrying, Mom would win the gold and then give it to the silver medalist because she was afraid that they might feel bad for losing.

A House with Great Bones is so gripping and so enjoyable. The ending is great, with a big dramatic climax, a satisfying resolution, and just a little hint of lingering menace keeping it from feeling too sunshine-y and neatly wrapped up. I would happily spend more time hanging out with Sam! Even though I was very creeped out at times, I had so much fun reading this book, and recommend it wholeheartedly.

16Mar2023

Book Review: Lone Women by Victor LaValle

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Lone Women
Author: Victor Lavalle
Publisher: One World
Publication date: March 28, 2023
Length: 304 pages
Genre: Historical fiction/horror/fantasy
Source: Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Rating:

Blue skies, empty land—and enough room to hide away a horrifying secret. Or is there? Discover a haunting new vision of the American West from the award-winning author of The Changeling.

Adelaide Henry carries an enormous steamer trunk with her wherever she goes. It’s locked at all times. Because when the trunk is opened, people around her start to disappear…

The year is 1914, and Adelaide is in trouble. Her secret sin killed her parents, and forced her to flee her hometown of Redondo, California, in a hellfire rush, ready to make her way to Montana as a homesteader. Dragging the trunk with her at every stop, she will be one of the “lone women” taking advantage of the government’s offer of free land for those who can cultivate it—except that Adelaide isn’t alone. And the secret she’s tried so desperately to lock away might be the only thing keeping her alive.

Told in Victor LaValle’s signature style, blending historical fiction, shimmering prose, and inventive horror, Lone Women is the gripping story of a woman desperate to bury her past—and a portrait of early twentieth-century America like you’ve never seen.

I’d never read anything by Victor LaValle until now, but how could I pass up a book that’s historical fiction, horror, and the story of a strong woman making her own way, all wrapped up into one story?

When we meet Adelaide, we know right away that something is very wrong… mainly because she’s in the process of burning down her house with her parents’ dead bodies inside. She leaves with a huge, heavy steamer trunk and sets off for a ship to Seattle, and from there, a train to Montana, where homesteader land is available to anyone who’s willing to live there.

Adelaide craves solitude, a fresh start, and freedom from the dire secret that’s haunted her family her entire life. Her old home in California was a farm close by other Black farming families, but even among people she felt a kinship with, there was a distance — rumors flew about her and her parents and the family’s strangeness.

Montana isn’t exactly the promised land, though. Adelaide’s homestead is barren earth with a primitive cabin, about 16 miles from the nearest town, the tiny Big Sandy. While she suffers through the shockingly cold and windy weather of her new home, where it’s not even winter yet, she also starts to meet some of the other “lone women” nearby, and forms tentative first connections.

But Adelaide’s secret — and her locked steamer trunk — are never far from her mind, and keep her prisoner to her obligation to hide what she sees as her family’s curse from everyone nearby — for their own safety as well as hers. Meanwhile, there are other dangers as well — bandits who prey upon lone women, racist townsfolk who view conformity as the only virtue, and powerful town leaders who are intent on pushing out those who don’t abide by their rules and inflicting their own form of frontier justice whenever they deem it necessary.

Lone Women has violence and terror, but it also has remarkably strong women at its heart. Adelaide herself is wonderful, as are the other women she bonds with. It’s astonishing and admirable seeing her determination to survive, make her own way, and not give in.

The mystery of the trunk is unfolded slowly — and I won’t give anything away, but at a certain point in the story, I let out a very loud “OH!!!” when things finally became clear. Such an amazing reveal!

The actions of some of the townspeople represent the true horror of this story, and I loved how the frightening elements combine so well with the historical depiction, the character studies, and the fantastical elements too.

Overall, I loved Lone Women. The mood builds dramatically, the characters are distinct and memorable, and the resolution… well, again, I don’t want to give anything away, but it’s got a great ending!

19Jan2023

Books & TV: Fungus among us

Posted in Bookish Thoughts, Pop Culture by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Having just spent an intensely creepy 80-something minutes watching the series premier of The Last of Us (HBO), I’m now forced to sit here and contemplate just how terrifying fungi can be. If you’re not scared, then you definitely haven’t watched this show… or read any of the books I’m about to talk about!

Let’s start with The Last of Us. This show has been getting tons of hype — well deserved! For those who aren’t familiar with the history, The Last of Us started as a videogame (released in 2013) that was absolutely huge — and which is generally considered a giant step forward in gaming in terms of both graphics and storytelling. (For more on the game and its significance, read here — but note that there are spoilers for the overall storyline). I’m not a gamer, so that aspect doesn’t mean a whole lot to me, but I do love a good post-apocalypse story… and this one is a doozy.

Here’s the official trailer from HBO:

Are you scared yet?

After watching the first episode, I naturally starting thinking about the scary-as-hell books I’ve read over the past several years featuring horrific fungi — and thought I’d share the case of the creeps with everyone else!

If you’re into fungal horror (or want to know what books to avoid at all costs), then check out this list. I’ve provided links to my reviews, in case you’re interested.

The Girl with All the Gifts (and the sequel, The Boy on the Bridge) by M. R. Carey:

The Girl With All the Gifts was my first exposure to zombie apocalypse via fungus, and man, was it horrifying! It’s a great story — and at the time when it was released, the marketing cleverly didn’t disclose what it was actually about. I expected a story about kids with some sort of paranormal abilities, perhaps, and instead… FUNGAL HORROR. So good…

What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher

This was a 2022 release, and it’s just amazing (and creep-tastic). A retelling of The Fall of the House of Usher, but with fungi! You’ll never look at a rabbit in quite the same way again.

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Garcia-Moreno

I almost hesitated about including this one, since the very fact that I’m putting it here is entering into spoiler territory… but it’s a prime example of great fungus-based horror!

The Unfamiliar Garden (The Comet Cycle, #2) by Benjamin Percy

This is the 2nd book in the Comet Cycle trilogy (and I’m eagerly awaiting the release of #3!). In these books, a comet that passes close by Earth has a devastating effect on the world as we know it. The first book, The Ninth Metal, relates one aspect of the story, and here in book #2, we see an entirely different set of effects on the natural landscape, including… you guessed it… horrifying fungi! I tend to describe these books more as sci-fi than horror, although there’s plenty of ickiness too.

Those are the examples from my own bookshelves… but there’s more! If you just can’t get enough of deadly fungi, check Fangoria’s list of movies, TV episodes, and books with fungal horror plotlines.

And if you want to start on a less terrifying note, then there’s always this goodie (available via Amazon and elsewhere):

Wow, this is a cheerful post! So now that I’ve shared my selection of frightful fungal horror, I’ll ask you:

Have you read any other horror books with deadly/disgusting/horrifying fungi taking over the world (or at least a corner of it)?

Please share any recommendations… not that I need any further fuel for my nightmares.

15Oct2022

Book Review: Lute by Jennifer Thorne

Posted in Book Reviews by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Title: Lute
Author: Jennifer Thorne
Publisher: Tor Nightfire
Publication date: October 4, 2022
Length: 288 pages
Genre: Horror/fantasy/thriller
Source: Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Rating:

On the idyllic island of Lute, every seventh summer, seven people die. No more, no less.

Lute and its inhabitants are blessed, year after year, with good weather, good health, and good fortune. They live a happy, superior life, untouched by the war that rages all around them. So it’s only fair that every seven years, on the day of the tithe, the island’s gift is honored.

Nina Treadway is new to The Day. A Florida girl by birth, she became a Lady through her marriage to Lord Treadway, whose family has long protected the island. Nina’s heard about The Day, of course. Heard about the horrific tragedies, the lives lost, but she doesn’t believe in it. It’s all superstitious nonsense. Stories told to keep newcomers at bay and youngsters in line.

Then The Day begins. And it’s a day of nightmares, of grief, of reckoning. But it is also a day of community. Of survival and strength. Of love, at its most pure and untamed. When The Day ends, Nina―and Lute―will never be the same.

In the world of Lute, the residents of this peaceful place truly live in an island paradise. Lute is located in the Bristol Channel, a small place with one little village, a grove of trees, some goats, gorgeous views, and a manor house that’s been occupied by the Treadway family for centuries.

Lute is also a haven from a war-torn world. We’re never told exactly when this story is taking place, but it’s set at some indefinite point in the future when the entire world is engulfed in a devastating war… the entire world except for Lute, that is. While many of Lute’s residents have been drafted or volunteered to serve, the war itself has never touched the island — no invasions, no air raids. All is peaceful.

Nina Treadway, the main character, has lived on Lute for almost seven years, after meeting the son of Lord Treadway on an ocean voyage and then returning to the island with him after his father’s sudden death. After all her years on Lute with her husband and two children, Nina feels settled, but not truly a part of the island community. She doesn’t quite fit in with the townsfolk, and she accepts as quaint tradition the island lore about The Day.

What is The Day? Going back thousands of years, the islanders believe they live under the blessings of the old gods. In exchange for seven deaths on midsummer every seventh year, the island enjoys good weather, good fortune, and mostly importantly, peace. Nina scoffs at the stories, and really doesn’t believe that the good people of Lute actually believe in these stories that they tell.

But this is the seventh year, and as The Day approaches, the mood shifts to one of anticipation and dread. It can’t really be true… can it? These people can’t truly think that seven deaths are inevitable… can they?

Told in chapters that creep forward from three days before, to two days before, all the way through to The Day, which then unfolds pretty much hour by hour, Lute carries a growing feeling of anxiety and fear that’s hard to describe, but so impossible not to feel.

I wouldn’t describe Lute as a horror story — there’s very little in the way of gore or jump scares, and there’s no big bad lurking in corners. Still, I haven’t been this terrified reading a book in quite some time. The quiet creeping dread that builds and builds had my stomach in knots — and while part of me just absolutely did not want to know what was coming, another part simply couldn’t look away.

Lute is a fairly short book, and I think it’s probably best enjoyed in one big marathon read. I wish I’d been able to do that. By having to break up my reading time, it would take me a few beats before feeling immersed again, and that’s not at all the fault of the writing. This is a haunting, absorbing story that I think is best read by just diving in and staying with it to the end.

I’m not sure that I loved the wrap-up in the epilogue, although it does work. I also really did want to know more about the war and what was happening in the wider world… but then that would be a very different book. Those are my only quibbles, really.

All in all, I simply loved this book. The writing is beautiful and evocative and sets such an eerie, otherworldly tone. I loved getting to know the people of Lute, the history of the island, the origin of their legends, and the way the very rocks, waves, and trees seem to bring the mythology of the place to life. The beauty and isolation of Lute is presented as a blessing that comes with a price, and over the course of the book, we come to understand why the people of Lute are willing to pay that price, despite the pain and sorrows that come with it.

Lute is a very special reading experience. I highly recommend it.

10Aug2022

Shelf Control #330: Pandemonium by Daryl Gregory

Posted in Shelf Control by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Welcome to Shelf Control — an original feature created and hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies.

Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out my introductory post, here.

Want to join in? Shelf Control posts go up every Wednesday. See the guidelines at the bottom of the post, and jump on board!

Title: Pandemonium
Author: Daryl Gregory
Published: 2008
Length: 288 pages

What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):

It is a world like our own in every respect . . . save one. In the 1950s, random acts of possession begin to occur. Ordinary men, women, and children are the targets of entities that seem to spring from the depths of the collective unconscious, pop-cultural avatars some call demons. There’s the Truth, implacable avenger of falsehood. The Captain, brave and self-sacrificing soldier. The Little Angel, whose kiss brings death, whether desired or not. And a string of others, ranging from the bizarre to the benign to the horrific.

As a boy, Del Pierce is possessed by the Hellion, an entity whose mischief-making can be deadly. With the help of Del’s family and a caring psychiatrist, the demon is exorcised . . . or is it? Years later, following a car accident, the Hellion is back, trapped inside Del’s head and clamoring to get out.

Del’s quest for help leads him to Valis, an entity possessing the science fiction writer formerly known as Philip K. Dick; to Mother Mariette, a nun who inspires decidedly unchaste feelings; and to the Human League, a secret society devoted to the extermination of demons. All believe that Del holds the key to the plague of possession–and its solution. But for Del, the cure may be worse than the disease.

How and when I got it:

I bought a paperback over five years ago, most likely at a library sale.

Why I want to read it:

I think this book initially made its way into my hands based on a friend’s enthusiastic review. And given that she’s both a huge horror reader and someone who knows my tastes, I tend to pay attention when she insists I need to read something.

I love the sound of these possessions, and think it’s hilarious that Philip K. Dick is one of the people possessed in this story! The premise sound weird and original and truly engaging, and I do intend to read this book… now I just need to make time for it.

Pandemonium is author Daryl Gregory’s first novel. I’ve read two other books by this author (We Are All Completely Fine and The Album of Doctor Moreau, both terrific), and I’m very up for reading more. If you’ve read any other of his books, please let me know if you have a favorite!

What do you think? Would you read this book?

Please share your thoughts!

The Boston Bibliophile

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27Jul2022

Shelf Control #328: Red Moon by Benjamin Percy

Posted in Shelf Control by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

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Title: Red Moon
Author: Benjamin Percy
Published: 2013
Length: 544 pages

What it’s about (synopsis via Goodreads):

They live among us.
They are our neighbors, our mothers, our lovers.
They change.
When government agents kick down Claire Forrester’s front door and murder her parents, Claire realizes just how different she is. Patrick Gamble was nothing special until the day he got on a plane and hours later stepped off it, the only passenger left alive, a hero. Chase Williams has sworn to protect the people of the United States from the menace in their midst, but he is becoming the very thing he has promised to destroy. So far, the threat has been controlled by laws and violence and drugs. But the night of the red moon is coming, when an unrecognizable world will emerge…and the battle for humanity will begin.

How and when I got it:

I picked up a paperback edition several years ago, most likely through a local used book store.

Why I want to read it:

In case it’s not entirely clear from the synopsis, this is a werewolf book! I remember hearing about Red Moon when it was first released — especially, that this is not the story of a werewolf as an urban fantasy love interest, but a gory, violent, disturbing tale with (if I remember correctly) plenty of political allegory as well. (I could be wrong on that point).

I’ve read all sorts of werewolf stories, from before and after this one was published, and I enjoy a variety of approaches, but the only other truly super dark one I’ve read is The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan, which is very, very dark indeed (but also excellent).

I’ve held onto Red Moon for years, and since then, have read several other of Benjamin Percy’s books. He’s a gifted, inventive writer with a flair for telling unexpected stories. I think my favorite of his so far is The Dead Lands (published 2015), which is soooo icky at times but also mesmerizing and unlike anything else I’ve read.

I do think I still want to read Red Moon, but given how long it is and how much time has passed since I added it to my TBR pile, I’m going to really have to talk myself into giving it a try.

In case you want to know more, here are a couple of reviews that I bookmarked for future reference:
New York Times
NPR

What do you think? Would you read this book?

Please share your thoughts!

Literary Potpourri
Reviews Feed

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Want to participate in Shelf Control? Here’s how:

Write a blog post about a book that you own that you haven’t read yet.
Add your link in the comments or link back from your own post, so I can add you to the participant list.
Check out other posts, and…

Have fun!