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

Summer of Horror 2026 Kickoff Post!

 

Last year was the first year Tammy hosted the Summer of Horror and I'm so happy she is doing it again!  I've been waiting for her kickoff post and want to share it with as many people as possible.  I love Tammy's blog and I love horror so what could be more perfect?  Hop over to her site for all the details.  It is pretty lowkey with no real challenges just loads of fun where you can tap into your own creativity.  Below I am posting some books sitting on my Pile of Possibilities.  I also want to do some themed recommendations/cover posts as well as posting about some horror movies and even some music which I think has haunted vibes.  

As you can see, there is a definite summer slasher vibe.  Hope I don't burn out on them but if I do, I have plenty of backups.  

Do you know of any books I should add to my possibility pile??? And let me know if you are participating so I can check out your blog.

2 Bloggers 1 Book - Stage Fright

My friend Stormi always participates in Middle Grade May, so I had her pick a MG "horror" book for us to buddy read and this is what she came up with. It was a cute, quick read which I ended up enjoying quite a bit.  So read on for my thoughts and then hop over to Storm Reads to see what Stormi thought.

 

TITLE: Stage Fright

AUTHOR: Wendy Parris

PUBLISHER: Delacourt Press

PUBLISHING DATE: September 27, 2024

PAGES:    

SOURCE: Library

FROM GOODREADS: When Avery returns to her hometown after moving away a year earlier, she is hoping to jump back into her friend group as if nothing’s changed. Unfortunately, new interests, secret crushes, and changing dynamics get in her way. To reunite her BFFs, she suggests they host a séance at an abandoned theater that was the site of a horrible tragedy. What starts as a fun outing, soon becomes a fight for survival after the group gets locked in…and discovers they’re not alone.

MY THOUGHTS: My friend Stormi always participates in Middle Grade May, so I had her pick a MG "horror" book for us to buddy read and this is what she came up with. It was a cute, quick read which I ended up enjoying quite a bit.  

Avery is returning to her hometown to spend a few weeks with her friends.  She desperately missed them the past school year and can't wait to catch up.  However, when she arrives, she learns that even though they missed her to, they have all seemed to move on and Avery feels left behind.  All the activities she looked forward to they seem to have outgrown.  As a nod to a mystery game they used to play, Avery suggests they go to the abandoned theatre in town and have a seance to summon the ghost of a young girl who died there who allegedly still haunts the place. They end up getting trapped and soon learn they might not be alone.  Things get pretty intense for these preteens, and they start to wonder if they will all get out alive.

It was cool to see how the author managed to make this book spooky enough for the target population and also address some heavier topics the friend encountered growing up and moving on.  In the end, they realized how much they have grown, but how much they still need each other, and I think a lot of kids who enjoy spookier tales would really love this.  There weren't a lot of books like this when I was young, probably why I started reading Stephen King at age ten, so sometimes it is fun to go back and pick one up. 

MY RATING: 3 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!)

Feed Your TBR - Monsters of Ohio

 

Can't Wait Wednesday, which I have adapted to better suit my blog as "Feed Your TBR" is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings to spotlight highly anticipated books.  It is based on the Waiting on Wednesday meme which used to be hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

November 3, 2026

FROM GOODREADS: In many ways Richland, Ohio is the same tiny, sleepy rural village it has been for the last 150 The same families, the same farms, the same heartland beliefs and traditions that have sustained it for generations. But right now times are especially hard, as social and economic forces inside and outside the community roil the surface of the once-placid town.

Richland, in other words, is primed to explode... just not the way that anyone anywhere could ever have expected. And when things do explode, well, that’s when things start getting really weird.

Daniel Garvey left Richland decades back, to find his own way in the world. But when he is called back to his hometown to tie up some loose ends, he finds more going on than he bargained for and is caught up in a sequence of events that will bring this tiny farm village to the attention of the entire world... and, perhaps, spell its doom.

WHY I CAN'T WAIT: You know I love some good tentacles on covers and hey on this one, I get the whole squid.  I need to read more from this author, and I think this one will be a lot of fun.

WHAT BOOK CAN'T YOU WAIT FOR THIS WEEK???

2 Bloggers 1 Book - Bats

 

 In April, my pal Stormi was participating in a readathon, Old School April, and had pulled some retro reads.  I decided to join her and read a backlist horror novel we had been interested in for a while.  So read on for my thoughts and then hop over to Storm Reads for hers. 

TITLE: Bats

AUTHOR: William W. Johnstone

PUBLISHER: Kensington/Lyrical PRess

PUBLISHING DATE: January 1, 1993

PAGES: 316   

SOURCE: Own Library

FROM GOODREADS: Wings of Death They’d flown north from Central and South America, appearing one day in the southern wetlands of the U.S. like ominous ink stains in the twilight sky. With each sunset, more appeared, first hundreds then thousands. Massing into a great black cloud of terror, the vampire bats were beating their wings in time with the panicked heartbeats in the towns below. No one knew how to stop them as they fell onto their prey like dark, deadly shadows. But someone had to find a way. Because somewhere in the night, they had become a threat to more than wild animals and livestock. Somewhere in the night madness took hold as these vampire bats developed a taste for human blood. And the feasting had only just begun.

MY THOUGHTS: I do love a good creature feature and this book lived up to all my expectations and more.  I was a tad worried due to it being a bit older, but honestly, this book made me want to ready more backlist horror from this author.

Johnny is ex-military living a quiet, but secure life in Louisiana.  Johnny had some pretty high clearance and was involved in some pretty secretive miliary activities, so he has a lot of knowledge and even more common sense. Late one night his two dogs start acting strangely and he hears some strange noises.  The next day some farm animals are found massacred, and Johhny starts to become suspicious.  He soon learns that for some reason, the area is being overrun by giant bats.  

Soon scientists and local law enforcement gather and try to figure out what is going on and what can be done to stop them because these bats are out to kill everything and everyone in their path.  Also, Johnny, soon realizes the government may have more to do with this than nature actually does so throw in some bureaucratic shenanigans as well. Johnny also starts working closely with a local veterinarian Blair, who is using her expertise to help battle the bats and save lives and they hit it off well so you can guess where that heads.  

First, I have to point out how much I love Johnny mainly because the first thing he does is assure his dogs safety.  He bat-proofs his entire residence and surrounding land, including encasing a run for his dogs when they are outside, so they don't get hurt. Next, Johnny and some of the law enforcement officers are on the same page and are presenting a united front rather than butting heads which was nice as sometimes in books like these, that is where the adversarial relationships start popping up.

As I mentioned, overall, this was a really enjoyable read.  I have already researched some of the authors other backlist horror titles (he primarily writes old school westerns I believe) and hope to read another one soon.  If you like creature books, this is one I would definitely recommend.

MY RATING: 4 PAWS