Don't Trust Anyone!

TITLE: The Wasp Trap

AUTHOR: Mark Edwards

PUBLISHER: Atria Books

PUBLISHING DATE: September 16, 2025

PAGES: 327   

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: Six friends reunite in London to celebrate the life of their recently deceased ex-employer, a professor that brought them together in 1999 to help build a dating website based on psychological testing.

But what is meant to be a night of bittersweet nostalgia soon becomes a twisted and deadly game when the old friends find themselves held at gunpoint. They are given an ultimatum: reveal their darkest secrets to the group or pick each other off one-by-one. 

It soon becomes clear that their current predicament is related to their shared past. The love questionnaire they helped develop in 1999 for the dating site was also turned into a tool for weeding out The Wasp Trap. This and the other tragic events of that summer long ago may help reveal the truth behind a killer hiding in plain sight. 

Alternating between the past and present with a colorful ensemble of characters, The Wasp Trap is a fast-paced and twisty thrill ride that is perfect for fans of Lucy Foley and Alice Feeney.

MY THOUGHTS: If you love a good thriller where you have some truly despicable characters you are going to love to hate, this might be the book for you.  It is the first book I've read by the author, but I will definitely be checking out his backlist for more to add to my backlist.

Will and his post-college friends haven't seen each other in 25 years.  Following college, all six of them spent the summer at a reclusive professor's estate working on a dating app called Butterfly.net.  Soon though, the dating app wasn't enough and a side project, a test to see if someone is actually a sociopath, starts taking shape.  One night, during project ending celebration, something tragic happens and the project dissolves and everyone is sent home.  

Fast forward and the professor has passed away. Georgina and Theo, who married after that summer, and who are probably the most successful of the group have invited everyone to their home for a dinner and celebration of Professor Marlowe's life.  When they arrive, everyone soon realizes they have unpacked baggage and secrets from years ago.  In fact, Georgina and Theo have a college aged daughter themselves who has recently disappeared.  As the evening goes on, they gang finds themselves being held hostage by the chef catering the party and his assistant. They are demanding that someone in the group is holding a secret and unless they spill it, no one may make it out alive.  The problem is, there are so many secrets from that summer how will they know which is the right one?

This book was a lot of fun, and I basically read the whole thing one Sunday afternoon.  I found it hard to put down, in part because I love an alternating timeline and in part because this group of individuals was one hot mess.  Edwards managed to surprise me with some reveals as well as more than one twist and turn. The ending might be predictable to some, but it caught me off guard, furthering cementing my belief that I need to read more by this author. 

If you are looking for a solid lock-roomed mystery, then I definitely feel this is one you should grab.

MY RATING: 5 PAWS

I Am Groot! No Sorry, Root, It's Root!

TITLE: Carry Me to My Grave

AUTHOR: Christopher Golden

PUBLISHER: St. Martin's Press

PUBLISHING DATE: July 21, 2026

PAGES: 336   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Maggie Wise will take your eyes.

When Malcolm was growing up, the local kids made up that chant about his mother, claiming she was a witch. He and his siblings did their best to ignore it. Now, Maggie is dying, and those same siblings have left Malcolm and his sister-in-law Violet to hold a vigil at her bedside. 

But they’re not as alone as they think they are. A dark figure waits and watches from beneath the willow tree across the street. Hundreds of miles away, an ancient evil stirs in its burrow under a farmer’s cornfield. Across the country, other buried things begin to dream in anticipation of Maggie’s demise. On her deathbed, the old woman elicits a promise from Malcolm, her youngest child―when she dies, he and Violet must return her body to her birthplace in Shediak, Maine. 

From the moment she takes her last breath, before her remains are even loaded aboard the baggage car of the Imperial Limited, there are forces trying to stop Malcolm from fulfilling that promise. Violence erupts on the train, evil preys on its passengers, and once the sun goes down, those long-buried things are coming to make Maggie Wise pay for her past. God help anyone who stands in their way.

MY THOUGHTS: I have always loved Christopher Golden's horror and if you haven't checked him out yet, I highly recommend you do.  I have read at least five of his books, with All Hallow's Eve still remaining my favorite, and have several more on my shelves.  However, I have to say that this newest novel threatened to knock All Hallow's Eve off the top spot once or twice.  

Malcomb's mother is dying.  He and his sister-in-law Violet have been at her bedside for several days and when she finally passes, Maggie explains that Malcomb has a limited amount of days to travel to Sediak, Maine to bury her remains and if they fail, they cannot imagine the repercussions.  

Malcolm's family has never been close.  His brother is basically a gambler who hasn't been home in years and his older sister, even longer.  Violet is the only help he has had and together they have formed a forbidden love.  Maggie has always been rumored to be a witch but Malcolm never believed.  However, as the trip progresses, Malcolm starts to realize there may be some truth to the tall tales and that he has no idea who his mother really is or about the life she has lived.

This book kept me engaged from the first chapter and never let up.  The chapters on the train where Malcolm, Violet and Maggie's body are holed up in the cargo train are some of the most atmospheric and suspenseful ones I've read in a long time.  Also, the evil entities they contend with throughout their journeys are original and terrifying.  I won't clue you in to their supernatural nature (and no, they aren't really Groot) but they have lived underground for hundreds of years and when they finally pop up to introduce themselves, people all around better run.

I cannot recommend this book enough and am so glad I picked it up.  I really need to find time to read some backlist titles from the author because he hasn't disappointed me yet.

MY RATING: 5 PAWS

Hold Me Closer, Tony Danza!

TITLE: If You Would Have Told Me

AUTHOR: John Stamos

PUBLISHER: Henry Hold & Co.

PUBLISHING DATE: October 24, 2023

PAGES: 333   

SOURCE: Own

FROM GOODREADS: If you would have told a young John Stamos flipping burgers at his dad’s fast-food joint that one day he’d be a household name and that, at the height of his success, he’d be living alone, divorced, with no kids, high on a cocktail of forgetting, he might’ve asked, “You want fries with that?” 

John burst onto the scene in General Hospital, propelling him into the teen idol stratosphere, a place that’s often a point of no return. But Stamos beat the odds and over the past four decades has proved himself to be one of his generation’s most successful and beloved actors. Whether showing off his comedic chops on Full House or his dramatic skills on ER, pushing the boundaries on Broadway or living out his youthful dreams as an honorary Beach Boy, John has surprised everyone, most of all himself. 

A universal story about friendship, love, loss, and the courage to embrace love once more, John Stamos’s memoir is filled with some of the most memorable names in Hollywood, both old and new. Funny, deeply poignant, and brutally honest, If You Would Have Told Me is a portrait of a boy who went from believing in Disney magic to a man who learns that we have to create our own magical moments in life.

MY THOUGHTS: During my pre-teen years, I was obsessed with General Hospital.  It started out as a Rick Springfield kick, but I quickly became enamored with the bad-boy, misunderstood character of Blackie Parrish.  Well, fast forward many, many years and I still watch GH several times a week.  Now I can stream it and don't have to sit through the commercials and Mr. Barb, who claims it is stupid and pointless, asks every night if we are gonna watch it.  It's become a kind of tradition.

I've owned this book since it came out and got about 30 pages in and then set it aside.  While on vacation and doing a book unhaul, I ran across it and decided to finally knock it off.  I really enjoyed reading it and am glad to have finally finished.  I don't like to rate memoirs because who am I to put a rating on someone's life?  However, I will share a few things I learned or found interesting while reading this one.

    * As a young adult, John has plastic surgery on his nose - a fact he tried to hide from his parents.

    * John has been an honorary member of the Beach Boys for over 30 years and still pays with them from time to time (I do remember him from the Kokomo video). He is good friends with the members and their families, and Mike Love even officiated John's second marriage.

    * Despite both of them being into music, John and Rick Springfield were never close when working on GH.

    * John initially tried everything to get out of his contract for Full House thinking that since it was a family-centered kid show, it would sink his career.

    * John met his current wife on an episode of Law & Order: SVU.  She was engaged to someone else at the time, but he felt and instant connected and five years later, when she as single, he finally started to pursue her.

I've basically watched John grow up over the years and it was nice to get an inside glimpse into his life.  I really admitted how close he was to his mom and dad and how important they were to him.  The book was really positively written and even though he obviously has some hard feelings about his relationship with Rebecca Romijn, he didn't portray her in an overly negative fashion. My favorite role of his has to be when he was in ER although I caught them later on when they streamed rather than watching ER when it was initially released.

And oh yea, Tony Danza.  When in his early 20's, John's first love was a fellow actress. They dated over a year, and he felt there were getting pretty serious, even though their schedules often conflicted.  He eventually started to feel her pulling away so he came home early one day and drove to her home.  Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" was playing in the radio when he pulled into the driveway.  He ended up finding his girlfriend in bed with Tony Danza, who he didn't officially meet until many years later.

If you enjoy memoirs, this one is worth picking up.  It reads a bit choppy as each chapter is basically a little story about a certain time of his life, but it is definitely entertaining.

***Edited to add I am now aware that John Stamos has expressed some political affiliations that have come into question.  This is not a political blog and this review in no way supports the blow up that happened in 2025.

So, Are They Actually Related????

TITLE: The Summer Share

AUTHOR: Jenn McKinlay

PUBLISHER: Berkley

PUBLISHING DATE: May 26, 2026

PAGES: 368   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Free-spirited travel influencer Hannah Spencer has spent five years touring the country in her vintage van. An unexpected inheritance from her Pops brings Hannah to Cape Split, North Carolina, where she learns she’s the new owner of a worse-for-wear seaside beach house. Or, rather, fifty percent of one. Turns out Simon O’Malley inherited the other half from his Gramps. 

As Simon and Hannah spend the summer tag-teaming repairs on the crumbling cottage, they discover the house was once home to a timeless love story. Soon, they begin to wonder if the house’s romantic past may be a good omen for their future together. But there’s one problem—Simon is set on selling the property at the end of the summer. 

Hannah thought one summer at the Split would be enough, except it isn’t like any place she’s ever been, and Simon isn’t like any man she’s ever known—and she’s thinking about putting down some roots. She just needs Simon to see their budding relationship and this newfound community the same way or their first summer share might also be their last.

MY THOUGHTS: No matter what she is writing, be it cozy mysteries, romance or even cozy fantasy, McKinlay is one of my favorite authors and thanks to her Library Lover's Series, probably also one of my most-read authors too.  So, picking up this summery romance was definitely a no-brainer and a decision I don't regret.

Hannah has recently inherited a beach house in Cape Split following the death of her beloved grandfather.  After a few years living in her van and traveling the US with her horse, oops I mean Great Dane, Dude, Hannah is ready to put down roots.  However, when she arrives, she finds a stranger at the home as well - Simon.  Simon claims he is the rightful owner of the house as his grandfather died a few months back and left the residence to him.  They soon find out that their grandfather's co-owned the home and now it is up to Hannah and Simon to decide what to do with the run-down property.  Hannah wants to move in and Simon wants to sell, due to some family obligations.  There is one catch though, before anything can be done.  Also, as time goes on, Hannah and Simon realize there was something their grandfathers were hiding from them and together they work to find out all their secrets.

I really enjoyed this book.  I liked both Simon and Hannah and could understand both of their positions on the property.  I enjoyed learning about the grandfathers as the story progressed and the community neighbors who all seemed liked one big happy found family.  But Dude, the dog, is the star of this book if you ask me.  There are many scenes where Dude is knocking Simon and Hannah into the fishing lake behind the house and it almost becomes Dude's main trick.  Also, long before Hannah realizes she has developing feelings for Simon, she falls in love with how much he loves her giant dog. 

This book was a perfect combination of family drama, close-proximity enemies-to-lovers, and found family.  My only issue is that I felt the resolution was a bit rushed but maybe I just wanted it to continue so I'm not docking my rating for it. I practically devoured this book and can't wait for my next McKinlay read!

MY RATING: 5 PAWS

Man, He Was a Jerk, But I Loved Him!

TITLE: Mile High (Windy City #1)

AUTHOR: Liz Tomforde

PUBLISHER: Hodder

PUBLISHING DATE: June 7, 2022

PAGES: 603   

SOURCE: KU

FROM GOODREADS: ZANDERS Chicago hockey isn't complete without me - everyone's favourite player to hate. I know my role, and I play it well. In fact, I thoroughly enjoy spending the majority of my game time in the penalty box before leaving the arena with a new girl on my arm each night. 

What I don't like is the new flight attendant on our team's private plane. She works for me, not the other way around. But I'll be sure to remind her of that, and I can guarantee, by the end of the season, she'll be begging to quit her job. 

But every road trip blurs the lines, and I can't quite figure out if I keep pushing that flight attendant call button in order to push her buttons, or if it's more than that. 

STEVIE I've been a flight attendant for years. I thought I'd seen it all, but when my new job lands me onboard working for the most egotistical and self-righteous diva in the NHL, I start to second guess everything. Including the promise I made to myself of never hooking up with an athlete again . . . no matter how annoyingly tempting he may be. 

Evan Zanders is unfiltered, unapologetic, and too attractive for his own good. He loves his image, but I hate everything about it. 

Everything but him.

MY THOUGHTS: This was not a book I planned to read in May, but I ended up participating in a book club over on Instagram ran by Iulia @ Adopt that Monster where she focuses on book each month that features the bond between humans and their dogs.  I believe she is a dog trainer, and I have linked her account in case you want to check her out. Anyway, doesn't that sound like the perfect club for me so I grabbed this book on KU. 

Stevie is a flight attendant who has been hired to work on all the away trips for the Chicago Raptors.  She is currently living with her brother, a star basketball player, and loves the time in between trips because it allows her to do her favorite thing - work at a dog shelter which focuses on getting more senior dogs adopted.  Zander is the bad boy of the team who has fueled his team, and his reputation, by being a womanizing all-fun, no-commitment guy.  It's a reputation that is partly fake, but which he is playing into because he thinks that is what the fans expect of him and his contract is up for renewal at the end of the season.  

When Stevie and Zander meet on their first trip together, Zander is a complete ass.  Yet, Stevie is more than capable of holding her own and dishes his attitude right back which only intrigues me more.  You don't have to be a genius to see where this book was headed and while I initially thought 603 pages was WAY too long for a romance book, apparently, I was wrong because I loved it and finished it in under 24 hours.

Zander and Stevie have an insta-hate connection which drove me to turn each page quicker than the previous.  They both carry their own baggage and insecurities and as the book progresses, the reader learns more about their past.  In fact, even though Zander was a jerk in the beginning (aka - ass), I was able to see why and understand that he was more than meets the eye.  The author also did a wonderful job at character develop and at the end of the book, Zander went down as one of my favorite leading men ever in a romance book.  Stevie was sweet and endearing and this really showed in her volunteer work with the dogs at the shelter and her commitment to fining every last one a forever home.  And the dog shelter plays a huge role in this book which of course I loved. 

I believe there are five books in this series and the next one focuses on Stevie's basketball-playing brother.  I do enjoy sports, especially college and pro football, and can finally see some of the lure in sports romances.  Don't know that they will dethrone my cowboy-romance era anytime soon, but I will definitely pick up the next book when I need a romantic palette cleanser.

MY RATING: 5 PAWS

I'll Never Look at a Roomba the Same Again

TITLE: Samantha Spük: Paranormal Wedding Planner

AUTHOR: Aleese Lin

PUBLISHER: Saga Press

PUBLISHING DATE: June 2, 2026

PAGES: 320   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Samantha Spük is your go-to wedding planner, be it for werewolf, vampire, or fae! ...even if that's the last thing she would’ve imagined.

Samantha “Sabby” Spük has spent her life trying to escape her family’s legacy of supernatural chaos. She’s finally graduated and landed a nice, normal 9–5 at a New York accounting firm. But then she gets the Grandma Rose is gone, and Sabby has been named executor of her (ahem, magically binding) will. 

Now Sabby is stuck in her dreaded hometown of Salem, Massachusetts, taking on odd jobs—some very odd, like wedding planning for not-so-human locals—until she can sell the family home. At least this means a date with Hanry, the mysterious hottie Sabby meets in the neighborhood graveyard. With help from Hanry, a talking-head sidekick, and a manic pixie assistant, Sabby might pull these weddings off in time to salvage her accounting career…but is she ready to say goodbye to her paranormal one?

MY THOUGHTS: While I didn't think this book was without issues, I will say it is one of most fun books I've read in a long time.  Also, the chapters have titles which are an absolute hoot at times such as "And Now I'm Dancing with Demons. I Guess This is My Life Now," and "The Goddamned Fairy Castle."  I really enjoyed seeing what chapter as up next.

Samantha, aka Sabby, returns to Salem to settle the estate of her grandmother, who recently passed.  Grandma Rose always claimed to be a witch but Sabby always believed she was just eccentric.  And due to a stunt Grandma Rose's friends (coven?) played on her when she was 12, she rarely returned to visit.  Because of that, plus her wack-a-doodle mother, Sabby has spent all her life trying to be "normal" and blend in.  Imagine her surprise when she finds out Grandma Rose's will is cursed and until Sabby figures it out, she can't leave Salem for her new accounting job in New York.

Sabby ends up making friends with Rose's talking head, Bulan and together, while at Rose's shop one day, end up talking on the job of planning a vampire wedding.  After all, Sabby has to have some kind of income while she is stuck in Salem.  Along the way she hires a pixie named Mandy and together the three of them gain a reputation of THE supernatural wedding planners everyone wants to plan their wedding.  Sabby even starts dating a guy she met in the cemetery one night, Hanry.  Life is definitely unpredictable until Mandy solves the will's puzzle and returns to New York, right after Hanry dumps her.  Sabby soon discovers normal isn't all it is cracked up to be and hops back to Salem in a pumpkin carriage to help Mandy pull off the fairy wedding of the year.  But oh, what surprises THAT wedding holds.

As I mentioned, I found this book to be loads of fun.  But I will say that about halfway through, it seemed like one story ended and another began.  Almost like I was reading a shorter book and then the sequel all in one.  Another thing, the names, Sabby and Hanry?  Although they are explained later on, I still found them rather annoying.  As for the main characters, I liked Sabby well enough although her strive to be normal was obsessive at best.  Mandy was scattered but was a great offset for Mandy's seriousness. And then Bulan - he steals the show.  Bulan has to be one of the best "animal companions" who is actually a talking head I've met in a long time.  He almost had me wishing for a talking head (who disguises himself as a Roomba) of my own.

If you like paranormal romances and cozy fantasy books, this is one you definitely want to check out.  The ending definitely sets up a sequel, and I can only hope it comes out soon because I need fun books like this in my life more often. 

MY RATING: 4 PAWS

This Woman's Lists Had Lists!

TITLE: Femme Feral

AUTHOR: Sam Beckbessinger

PUBLISHER: Penguin Books

PUBLISHING DATE: April 09, 2026

PAGES: 384   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: The head of a company she started from the ground-up, the worried mother of a troublingly secretive daughter, and the wife of an easy-going man who always has her picking up the slack—Ellie is already juggling too much. So, it's an inconvenient time to find herself beset by strange physical changes: hair sprouting in new places, running hot, trouble sleeping, losing time, finding bloodstains in all her clothing. And underneath it all, a boiling rage that threatens to disrupt the life she's worked so hard to build. 

Her doctor diagnoses perimenopause. But it's another twenty-eight-day cycle that's taking hold, one that involves fur, teeth, and a not-insignificant amount of howling at the moon—and that gifts Ellie incredible strength and speed. Her new power's thrilling, as is releasing the anger she’s suppressed for years—especially as it turns out that there are some problems that can be solved with violence: The terrible new hire who is sabotaging her careful plans. The creep who's stalking her daughter. Only, the beast within isn't easy to control, and its bloody trail is getting harder to hide. With an obsessive hunter on her trail and a growing fear of what she's becoming, Ellie must find a way to yoke her fury before she tears through the people she loves. 

A deeply gratifying, highly addictive and provocative read, Femme Feral is an exhilarating expression of feminine rage, with a warning: If you swallow your anger, it's sure to come back with a bite.

MY THOUGHTS: I would like to see a finished copy of this book because I ran into problems with the formatting of my digital arc which I feel greatly impacted my enjoyment and it was so severe it even impacted my overall rating which rarely happens.  My copy read as one long 384 chapter.  And there are some multiple POVs in some areas of the book that I often didn't pick up on until I was a paragraph or two in which made for some very disjointed reading (and later a game at the end where I would see how quickly I could tell who was narrating).

Ellie is contently married, caring for a daughter with a history of anorexia and a father--in-law who has moved in due to medical issues, including dementia.  She also has a very prominent job in the tech industry for a business that runs and launches updates to a very popular wellness/meditation app.  Ellie is trying to juggle everything and does so by carefully orchestrated lists.  All of Ellie's lists made me overwhelmed so I can only imagine how her life felt.

Ellie gets passed over for a promotion about the same time she starts losing time and starts experiencing some health concerns.  She isn't sleeping well, is having hot flashes, is more quick-tempered than usual, and is experiencing massive hair growth.  Her doctor snubs it all off as perimenopause, but Ellie starts to think it's something more - especially when she awakens to find her neighbors fluffy dog clogging her downstairs bathroom drain.

Around town, pets are coming up missing.  An elderly lady recently lost her cat and given she had very little else to live for, she starts investigating what is happening in the neighborhood.  The local cops think she has lost her mind, and her Facebook group is questioning her mental capacities.  However, she is determined to unearth the culprit. I actually enjoyed reading from this POV more than Ellie because despite her problems, which I get, she was rather unlikeable.  

Overall, I just found this book middle of the line. While referencing a few things in writing this review, I guess the author has admitted to using ChatGPT to write a lot of it.  I don't use that a lot but it sure might explain some of the disjointedness.  If you pick this one up, just know there are actually werewolves but also a lot of descriptive animal deaths.  

MY RATING: 3 PAWS

It's the End of the World and I Feel Fine???

TITLE: We Burned So Bright

AUTHOR: T.J. Klune

PUBLISHER: Tor Books

PUBLISHING DATE: April 28, 2026

PAGES: 176   

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: The road stretched out before them. No other cars, just the headlights on the blacktop. Above, the cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky….

Husbands Don and Rodney have lived a good long life. Together they’ve experienced the highest highs of love and family, and lows so low that they felt like the end of the world. 

Now, the world is ending for real. A wandering black hole is coming for Earth and in a month everything and everyone they’ve ever known will be gone. 

Suddenly, after 40 years together, Don and Rodney are out of time. They’re in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington State to take care of some unfinished business before it’s all over. 

On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how—impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals, and new friends. 

And as the black hole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough. 

Is it enough to burn bright if nothing comes from the ashes?

MY THOUGHTS: Having absolutely adored two previous works by this author and given he created one of my favorite characters ever (I'm looking at you Lucy), I knew I had to read this short novella. I'm glad I did.

The story centers around Don and Rodney, who have been married for over 40 years.  There is a black hole which is rapidly approaching Earth and everyone has known for over a year that the end is near.  Don and Rodney have one last task they want to complete before it is too late, so they hop into their old RV to travel across the US.  Pretty early on it is pretty evident what the task is but I don't want to be any more specific as it could be viewed as a spoiler.

Along the way, they encounter all sorts of individuals, including some hippies in a field in Ohio, a young lady on a farm who are making sure her loved one don't suffer while waiting, and a nice old woman who manages to help them make the last few miles of their trip. As they travel, the reader learns a lot about Don and Rodney and how this marriage of opposites has managed to last so long. 

I loved everything about this book.  Don and Rodney are two totally different people but together, they are beautifully cohesive. At times their journey is laid-back, and you see some sparks of fun and other times, it is stressful and their survival instincts really kick in.    

For me, reading a Klune book is like wrapping up in a warm blanket on a cool evening and being comforted by a glass of whiskey.  And only Klune could make the end of the world be both scary and gratifying.  While the world ending is an awful thing to ponder, I honestly think there would be an immense amount of comfort of everyone going at once.  While reading this book, I thought about it a lot and believe I could handle it if my loved ones and my pups all embraced each other and went out at the same time.  Hats off to Klune for delivering such a diverse, thought-provoking book!

MY RATING: 5 PAWS

Wish There Had Been Even More Bodies!

TITLE: Body Count

AUTHOR: Codie Crowley

PUBLISHER: Disney Hyperion

PUBLISHING DATE: May 5, 2026

PAGES: 304   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: In this sapphic slasher novel, Sundae Valentine made a deal with a monster in Wildwood, N.J., when she was a child, and barely escaped with her life. Six years later, Sundae’s braving Wildwood again for a killer beach party to celebrate prom with the cheerleaders and the football team. But the monster is back, too, and this time he’ll stop at nothing to make sure she pays her debts.

MY THOUGHTS: I love a good slasher tale so when I was offered this arc, of course I was going to give it a chance, even though I was not the targeted audience.  That being said, I also don't think YA is really the targeted audience because boy, did I have some issues.

When Sundae (yep, as in ice cream) is a child, she and her mother were on the run from her abusive father.  While her mom is working at small tourist hotel, Sundae encounters Holly Jolly in a pool, which is where he finds his prey, and ends up falling for his promises.  She ends up making two wishes and experiencing the awful aftermath before they move from town.  Now as a high school teen, her group of best friends, cheerleaders of course, and the football players, travel to this small town for Prom Weekend (is this really a thing) where they plan to party it up.  But Holly Jolly knows Sundae is back and he has one final wish to collect. 

Let's get to the good parts first.  This book was super readable and I flew through it.  The monster in Wildwood, the Holly Jolly Killer, is unique and something I don't believe I've ran across before.  He is actually a do-wop performer from the 50's who survived a fire one night which killed everyone but him, only to kill himself later.  He also offers people wishes in the form of three candy Taffe pieces. Eat a piece, make a wish, and see what happens. There is also a band playing at the hotel the weekend of the trip which consists of Lia, basically a grunge high school outsider, and her two best friends, think Bill and Ted from the Excellent Adventure movie, who play a big part in the tale. I found them mildly tolerable, which is more that I can say about the rest of the kids. 

Now for the not-so-good.  I've never met a more sexualized group of teenagers in a YA book.  Sundae and her friends spend all weekend competing for the "Slut Cup" where the winner is the person who has the most sexual encounters during that time.  Seriously?  I am far from a prude, but I would have found this out of place in a college setting, let alone a high school one. Also, Sundae is just insufferable.  She knows she shouldn't return to Wildwood, but does that stop her from going?  No, she can't let down her friends and of course, she is a high schooler and doesn't she deserve some fun?

Let's just say there is a serial killer, creepy monsters and a decent setting and leave it at that.  Unless you are just curious after reading this to see if you dislike it as much as I did, I can't recommend it.  I would try this author again in the future strictly because of the uniqueness I found in Holly Jolly. If it wasn't for that, the book would definitely rate lower for me.

MY RATING: 3 PAWS

Makes Me See Pooh Bear in a Whole Different Light

TITLE: Teddy Bears Never Die

AUTHOR: Yeeun Cho, Sung Ryu (Translator)

PUBLISHER: Run For It

PUBLISHING DATE: May 26, 2026

PAGES: 304   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Yamu, pop. 200,000 - A coastal town that has seen better days. A massive redevelopment plan is in place, including that for a luxury apartment complex dubbed Sea View Park. One day, a delivery of rice cakes is made to the building supposedly from one of the new neighbours. The rice cakes are laced with cyanide, however, resulting in a lethal mass poisoning. 

Hwa-young's mother, who works as a live-in housekeeper at Sea View Park, is one of the victims. Hwa-young, turned out on the streets, lives in a flophouse for runaways at the mercy of landlord Young-jin, who regularly extorts money from her. Hwa-young refuses to believe that her mother, who never touched rice cakes in her life, died from eating them, and suspects foul play. Swearing to find the true culprit and avenge her mother's death, Hwa-young is determined to save 20 million won in order to place a hit on the suspect, and does whatever work she can find. 

One day, Hwa-young is bullied into playing bait for one of Young-jin's scams. Left in a motel room alone with the mark, she is alarmed when he begins to unpack one lethal weapon after another. She signals Young-jin for help, but when no one comes she realizes that she has been tricked, and that Young-jin has sold her to the would-be murderer. Just when the man is about to attack Hwa-young, he collapses in pain, bleeding. Hwa-young is about to escape when a teddy bear speaks to her. It's a grubby Happy Smile Bear doll. 

And thus begins the extraordinary journey as a Happy Smile Bear, possessed by the spirits of a murdered young boy, and Hwa-young, an orphaned young girl, join forces enact vengeance and bring the true culprit to justice.

MY THOUGHTS: When I saw a book about a killer teddy bear, of course I knew I was going to read it.  I ended up finding what I would consider a hidden gem as I haven't heard a lot about it and a book that left me recalling all the nights I spent sleeping with my best friend Pooh growing up. 

Hwa-young is a young girl who is barely scraping by.  She is currently living in a flophouse room run by a supposed crime lord and certified scum, Young-jin.  Hwa-young's mother died in an incident where several individuals in the apartment building ate poisoned rice cakes and since then, her sole purpose has been to figure out exactly what happened and get revenge.  One night, she finds a grubby Happy Smile Bear in an alley, takes him home and cleans him up. Shortly afterwards, strapped for cash, Hya-young agrees to do a job for Young-jin and almost ends up killed.  However, this is where Happy Smile Bear comes in.  He ends up saving Hwa-young because he is actually a stuffed bear possessed by the soul of an old school classmate.  Together, they work together to avenge the death of Hwa-young's mother, mend a broken friendship, and find a way for the soul to reclaim his old body.

I really enjoyed Hwa-young, and Happy Smile Bear's story.  This book had a tad of whimsicalness but don't let that fool you.  I do not really pay attention to trigger warnings, but this book also contains a lot of blood, gore, child abuse, trafficking and death. There was a lot of action and overall, the book flew pretty quickly, although I did encounter a problem or two.  Mainly, the book is told in chapters with chapter titles which seemed to be their own individual tale which combines together to form the whole story.  AS a format, it didn't confuse me too much once I caught on but was a bit jarring at first.  

I am so glad I read this book and I definitely recommend it to anyone who loves bizarre reads and of course, teddy bears!

MY RATING: 4 PAWS (dog paws, teddy bear paws - you choose!)

More Kea and Sora Please

TITLE: The Killing Spell

AUTHOR: Shay Kauwe

PUBLISHER: Saga Press

PUBLISHING DATE: April 14, 2026

PAGES: 288   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Kea Petrova is dealing with more than her fair share of trouble. 

At just twenty-five years old, she’s the youngest of five Hawaiian clan leaders living on the Homestead in outer Los Angeles. Nearly 200 years ago, when a catastrophic flood submerged the Hawaiian islands and unleashed magic into the world, these clans forged a treaty with the city, establishing a new Hawaiian homeland. But that treaty is about to expire.

Kea struggles to keep her small clan afloat, scraping together rent each month through odd jobs and selling her own crafted Hawaiian language spells. While her talent for language magic is her saving grace, she feels like a shadow of those who came before her. Just when she thinks things can’t get any more complicated, the murder of Angelo Reyes—LA’s most prominent Filipino activist—turns her world upside-down. 

Angelo was killed by a death spell—something that, due to the properties of each school of language magic, can only exist in Hawaiian. With independent spellsmithing being technically illegal, Kea quickly becomes the prime suspect, known for her spellwork on the Homestead. To clear her name, she must unravel the mystery behind Angelo’s murder and confront LA’s most powerful (and dangerous) players, each wielding their own type of magic. The clock is ticking—can Kea save herself, her clan, and the Homestead before it’s too late?

MY THOUGHTS: I won't lie.  I initially picked this one up because I was interested in reading an Indigenous Fantasy featuring Hawaiian culture. Little did I know that although not a big part of the book, I would meet one of the hottest couples I've met in a long time.  

Kea is struggling to maintain her family's Homestead despite most areas being taken over by the LA area syndicate.  When an prominent LA activist ends up dead, the LA Board comes to Kea for assistance, as it is believed the spell used to kill Angelo is Hawaiian in nature.  Basically being forced to take on the task despite being out of her league, Kea soon has to find the murdered or risk losing her Homestead.  She ends up getting assistance for Sora Kaiser.  An elite and snobby individual also on the LA Board.  The two clearly are not compatible to work together but they manage to somehow and of course, along the way, tension turns to angst and before you know it, Sora is doing everything he can to help Kea succeed.

I am sure I'm doing a really poor job of describing the plot adequately as there is a lot of world-building and political intrigue packed in such a short book.  I loved learning more about the spellsmithing and the importance of languages, both written and oral, in the world Kauwe created.  I loved Kea's family connections, especially how everyone came together to create and protect the life they cherished so much.  And finally, there is the relationship between Kea and Sora.  Definitely a tad of enemies to lovers with slow-burn relationship development and plenty of banter and snark.  Don't get me wrong, this really isn't a romance book, but the extra addition definitely added to my enjoyment.

This book reads a lot like an urban fantasy which is a genre I recognize I love and need to read more of.  My only real issue is I found the pacing a bit slow at first but that may have been because I was trying to get a grasp on the world and the spellsmithing.  If you love fantasy, a good mystery and some angsty tension on the side, please consider picking this one up.  I believe it is a debut from this author, and I will be looking for more from her in the future.

MY RATING: 4 PAWS

I Cried Like a Baby!

TITLE: Dog Person

AUTHOR: Camille Pagán

PUBLISHER: Delacorte Press

PUBLISHING DATE: April 7, 2026

PAGES: 336   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Harold may be an aging mutt—but Amelia May, the romance novelist who adopted him, taught him a thing or two about the human heart before she died. And she also left Harold with a final to help her partner, Miguel, find love again. 

Trouble is, the grief-ridden recluse rarely goes out, not even to the bookstore he and Amelia owned together. Now it’s in danger of going under, and when a renowned author doesn’t show up for his event, it pushes the store’s already precarious finances into the red. In a final attempt to save the bookstore, Miguel and Harold set out to find the no-show and insist he fulfill his obligation. But instead, they’re greeted by Fiona, his sunny yet secretive sister. 

Fiona is intent on protecting her brother’s privacy—and to Harold’s horror, she doesn’t like dogs. But her precocious eleven-year-old daughter, who's also named Amelia, immediately befriends Harold . . . who can’t help but wonder if his Amelia was right when she said there are no coincidences in life.

Harold’s quickly running out of time to accomplish his mission, but if he can just convince his infuriatingly stubborn person to let Fiona in, he’s certain Miguel will find something far more important than a missing his own happy ending. 

Uplifting, smartly observed, and hilariously insightful, Dog Person is as undeniably charming as its beloved narrator, Harold, and offers a much-needed reminder that while not all love is unconditional, it is still always worthwhile.

MY THOUGHTS: Why do I do this to myself?  As I sat on the couch last night finishing this book, bawling my eyes out, my initial thoughts are best summed up by what I shared with one of my besties via text. 

•     OMG! I'm freaking bawling...
•     and now I'm worried about Apollo getting old.  I'm a mess 😭😭
•     But it was so good.  And even though the ending was tragic, the author did it so well.
•     All the stars.  But I need to read something stabby fast.

Harold knows he has growing old.  18 months ago his beloved owner Amelia May leaving him and her 14-year-old partner Miquel alone and grieving.  Harold promised Amelia he would help Miquel and make sure he is good even after Harold is gone.  However, time is running out and Harold, who rarely trusts people ever, has given up on ever being happy again. Add in a bookstore setting I would love to visit, a precocious tween named Amelia Mae, a constant reminder to Harold and Miquel of the Amelia Mae they lost, and employees of the store who are not only trying to keep the shop afloat but also pull Harold out of his darkness, and you have a wonderful tale I'm not soon going to forget.

I ADORED this book even though I KNEW it was probably going to break me.  The entire book is told from Harold's POV, and he is definitely going on my list of favorite dog characters ever! Harold is loving, insightful and smart as a tack.  And even though he knows he is slowing down, he is up for one more grand adventure, especially if it means leaving Miquel in a good place.   

My second favorite character is 12-year-old Amelia Mae, which is important because kids usually ignore me.  However, this kid has an immediate attachment to Harold the moment they meet and almost knows instinctively she must work with him to set her mother up with his father. She is independent, head-strong and loves to read to Harold, especially Stephen King books (but not Pet Sematary). 

Part of me wants to warn people that if they read this, skip the last chapter.  The book could have finished without it.  Yet, doing so would mean you would miss the end of Harold's journey and between the tears, it was one of the most touching and heart-warming ones I've read in a long time.  I can't give this author enough credit for how she honored Harold and I will definitely be looking out for more of her work.

MY RATING: 15 BILLION PAWS!

Beware Sally Pencilneck!

TITLE: Killarney Lake Massacre

AUTHOR: Kumar Sivasubramanian

PUBLISHER: Self published

PUBLISHING DATE: March 13, 2026

PAGES: 360   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: They bashed their beef, and she bashed their brains! 

Sally Pencilneck, the nunchaku killer, was supposed to be an urban legend out of the past, a campfire story about a horrific woman that butchered people in the goriest of ways for having “impure” thoughts in the woods. But when men start turning up dead after an internet craze inspires them to practice self-love in the wild, whether Sally is more than a myth or not, a host of sinister forces descends upon the small Canadian city of Fredericton, New Brunswick. 

Now, Nandini Rajan’s annoyingly monster-obsessed sixty-one-year-old mother, Aruna, wants to prove that Sally exists, and, out of spite, Nandini is determined to prove that she doesn’t. However, the moment they set foot in the forest, as if cursed, they find themselves at its mercy and have to contend with not only Sally’s return, but also her unhinged leaf-disguised nemesis, weaponized papier-mâché horse butts, an alpaca-sacrificing Black Metal fanatic, demonic frogs, an international conspiracy of sexual degenerates, and energies from another dimension that threaten to tear apart the very fabric of reality... 

Gruesome and outrageous, but also full of touching moments and inappropriate touching moments, Killarney Lake Massacre is the deranged new novel from the author of Weird Crime Theater and Tanuja Hunter-Seeker!

MY THOUGHTS: Wow, where do I begin?  First of all, did I request this ARC because of the cover?  Yep, sure did.  But I DID read the synopsis, and I DID expect something weird, but I don't think anything could have really prepared me for this one.

Sally Pencilneck is an urban legend Fredericton, New Brunswick, who kills people who have "unpure" thoughts.  She does so in extremely gruesome and extremely graphic manners.  Oh, and the murders often involve anatomy.  Nandini's mother Aruna is obsessed with monsters.  So when she hears Sally is once again terrorizing the area, she wants to investigate.  On a good day, Aruna irritates Nandini but even so, she can't think of letting her mother take off alone.  So together then go off into the woods to find Sally and from the start I knew it wouldn't end well.

I have to say one major thing about this book - it is EXTREMELY political.  In fact, had I gotten even a small vibe from the synopsis, I would have never picked it up.  A lot of names have been changed to protect the not-so-innocent, and I actually ended up having a lot of good laughs but because of how heavy-handed the author is, I think I will play it safe and say this is one I just can't recommend. 

I did enjoy this though, even though it's not a fave.  I enjoyed the legend of Sally Pencilneck and the relationship between Nandini and Aruna which although not perfect, is definitely reminiscent of a lot of mother-daughter relationships, I am sure.  I also enjoyed the cultural aspects included by the author, who himself is Indian-born Canadian.  This is borderline extreme horror as well, so I know that turns a lot of readers off.  So overall, knowing what I know now I might never have read it but at the end, I don't completely regret the choice.  

MY RATING: 3 PAWS