Category: Book Review

.@huntershea1 Talks #IslandoftheForbidden & Cats (Maybe He’s a Fellow Cat Whisker Collector!)

by Lindsey Loucks, posted in Book Review, Hunter Shea, Island of the Forbidden

Island of the forbidden tour logo

Hunter Shea is quickly climbing the ranks of not only one of my favorite horror authors but also one of my favorite people. Period. Not only does he write spine-chilling books with bad ass heroines that I’m always making grabby hands at, but he also likes cats. You already know how I feel about felines. So Hunter, like I always whisper to my own cat, “You’re my favorite.”

Now that everyone’s thoroughly creeped out, I have all sorts of goodies in this blog post: First a guest post from Hunter on, you guessed it, cats! Second, information on his newest release, Island of the Forbidden, including a giveaway!!! And third, my review of IOTF!

Let’s go!

Cats

 

I dig cats.

And not because Hemingway was a cat person. I’ve just always liked them. They can be affectionate and funny to watch, but independent enough to walk away when fun time is over. They are the very opposite of the clinging, needy ex that made your life a living hell.

As they get older and settle into lap cat status (if you’re lucky), they keep you warm in winter. Or they could morph into the under-the-bed type cat, in which case you see them at feeding time and when they do their litter box soft shoe.

We have two cats. One is eight, a rescue cat that we brought home 7 years ago. Iris spent the first few years attacking us like a damn Predator, leaving our legs battle scarred. Now that she’s older, she loves being around people and is a soft, furry lump on the chair.

We recently brought home a kitten from the shelter, a black cat my daughter named Salem. This cat is nuts. He’s skittish, but he loves people. We truly believe Salem is turning the clock back for Iris, who has become livelier than ever, though she attacks Salem now instead of us.

I enjoy watching them. Iris is regal, self-assured and in charge. Salem is scatter brained, clumsy and bursting with energy.

My favorite moments are the ones that give me pause. Like when Iris will be plodding along into the dark kitchen and suddenly stops and stares at a blank space on the wall. Her hackles rise and she crouches into a fighting stance. I look and there’s nothing there. What the hell is she seeing?

Or when Salem is running around at full speed and suddenly slams the brakes. His wide, orange eyes see something we can’t. Sometimes it keeps him frozen in wonder, other times it literally flips him out. He can’t run away fast enough after his initial back flip.

I like to think cats have the ability to see other dimensions. It might be something with the construction of their eyes or the wiring of their brains. A day doesn’t go by when Iris or Salem don’t stop to peer at the unknown. What I wouldn’t give to plug into their little minds and read their thoughts, feel their emotions.

If they can see what’s in our house, can it see them too? Do the cats keep the ‘bad man’ away as much as they do the mice? Dogs are great for keeping out physical intruders, but cats, I think they hold sway over something much bigger, and at times, darker.

It’s too bad that Hemingway’s felines couldn’t keep the madness from claiming him. Perhaps they protected him from something much worse.

So I surround myself with cats, sleek sentinels that watch over me as I write stories that sometimes even give me the goose bumps.

 

I loooove this post! When my cat gets the crazies, we call them Vietnam flashbacks. Unfortunately, I don’t live somewhere haunted like Hunter does, so my cat doesn’t appear to see things I can’t.

 

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Island of the Forbidden by Hunter Shea continues the story of Jessica Bockman, the ghost-hunting heroine who has appeared in Forest of Shadows, The Graveyard Speaks and Sinister Entity, all published by Samhain Horror.

To read more about the series and Jessica Bockman, read Hunter’s recent article.

Island of the Forbidden Synopsis

Sometimes, the dead are best left in peace.

Jessica Backman has been called to help a strange family living on a haunted island in Charleston Harbor. Ormsby Island was the site of a brutal massacre two decades ago, and now the mysterious Harper family needs someone to exorcise the ghosts that still call it home. The phantoms of over one hundred children cannot rest.

But something far more insidious is living on the island. When the living and the dead guard their true intentions, how can Jessica discover just what sort of evil lurks on Ormsby Island? And why is Jessica the only one who can plumb its dark depths?

 

Giveaway

Enter to win one of five Hunter Shea books being given away! Two signed copies of Montauk Monster, one signed copy of Sinister Entity, and two e-books of choice of his titles are up for grabs! One book to each winner, given in order of random drawing. Enter to win at the Rafflecopter link. Must use valid email that winners can be contacted by. Print books are U.S. residents only. Contest ends Feb. 28, 2015. Any questions, contact Erin Al-Mehairi, Publicist, at hookofabook@hotmail.com.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Purchase Links

GoodReads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23622071-island-of-the-forbidden

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Island-Forbidden-Hunter-Shea-ebook/dp/B00PDJV156/

Samhain Horror:

https://www.samhainpublishing.com/book/5298/island-of-the-forbidden

Barnes and Noble:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/island-of-the-forbidden-hunter-shea/1120724210?ean=9781619226906

Raves for Hunter Shea

Forest of Shadows

“A frightening, gripping story that left me too frightened to sleep with the lights off. This novel scared the hell out of me and it is definitely a creepy ghost story I won’t soon forget.” —Night Owl Reviews

Sinister Entity

“This is the real deal. The fear is palpable. Horror novels don’t get much better than this.” —Literal Remains

“. . .Culminates in a climactic showdown between human and spirit that keeps you glued to the pages!” —Horror Novel Reviews

Evil Eternal

“Hunter Shea has crafted another knockout. At turns epic and intimate, both savage and elegant. . .a harrowing, blood-soaked nightmare.” –Jonathan Janz, author of The Sorrows

Swamp Monster Massacre

“If you’re craving an old-school creature-feature that has excessive gore. . .B-horror movie fans rejoice, Hunter Shea is here to bring you the ultimate tale of terror!” —Horror Novel Reviews

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Hunter Shea, Biography

Hunter Shea is the author of paranormal and horror novels Forest of Shadows, Swamp Monster Massacre, Evil Eternal, Sinister Entity,  HellHole and Island of the Forbidden, which are all published by Samhain Horror.

The June 3, 2014 release of his horrifying thriller Montauk Monster was published by Kensington/Pinnacle. His second Kensington novel, Tortures of the Damned, will be published later this year.

He has also written a short story to be read prior to Sinister Entity, called The Graveyard Speaks (it’s free, go download!), and a book of stories called Asylum Scrawls.

His work has appeared in numerous magazines, including Dark Moon Digest, Morpheus Tales, and the upcoming anthology, Shocklines : Fresh Voices in Terror. His obsession with all things horrific has led him to real life exploration of the paranormal, interviews with exorcists, and other things that would keep most people awake with the lights on.

He is also half of the two men show, Monster Men, which is a video podcast that takes a fun look at the world of horror. You can read about his latest travails and communicate with him at www.huntershea.com, on Twitter @HunterShea1, Facebook fan page at Hunter Shea or the Monster Men 13 channel on YouTube.

 

My Review:

I was salivating to get my hands on this book, and it sure didn’t take me long to tear through it!

After the events in Sinister Entity, it makes sense that Jessica and Eddie have a lot to work through in terms of their own mental well-being and relationships with others. It’s a struggle for both of them, which paints this book a darker color. But when Hunter Shea throws these two in a haunted house on a deserted island, the book gets super creepy.

I loved the character arcs of both Jessica and Eddie. Hunter writes these characters with such intelligence and heart (not to mention a large dose of kick-ass) that they leap off the pages.

While not as scary as Sinister Entity, the story still gave me chills in some parts. Even though I wasn’t a huge fan of the very, very end (it was so abrupt!), I’ll continue to stalk Hunter Shea across the interwebs.

Anna Dressed in Blood

by Lindsey Loucks, posted in Book Review

I started writing this book review in my head before I finished reading. It’s receiving 5/5 stars, and I knew that about a third of the way through the book. That rarely happens with me because I automatically hate everything. Just kidding.

Summary: Cas kills ghosts. You know those nasty ones who won’t leave? Yep, he kills them and sends them… somewhere. He’s off to hunt down the ghost called Anna Dressed In Blood. She has a bad habit of delimbing everyone who comes inside her house. After Cas’s head gets smashed by a jock with a two by four, he wakes up inside a house. Inside Anna’s house. Oh. Crap.

Here’s what I liked: 1. Cas. Ms. Blake did an amazing job characterizing him. He had faults and insecurities, had a beautiful relationship with his mother, and was a likable boy. 2. Anna. Her introduction into the story was epic. I won’t say anything else for spoiler-type reasons. 3. Ms. Blake – I blazed through this story, but I had to stop every once in a while to reflect on the writing. I had to read many sentences again and again because Ms. Blake puts descriptions and reactions in ways I’ve not seen before. The writing was crisp and refreshing and so like a Diet Coke at 1:30 in the afternoon.

Here’s what I didn’t like: (cue the crickets chirping because I got nothing)

My rating: 5/5

Will I read the sequel: Yes! When does it come out?!

Do I recommend it? If you can handle YA horror, gore, and some naughty words, then yes!

3.5 Points for Divergent!

by Lindsey Loucks, posted in Book Review
I finished Divergent by Veronica Roth a few weeks ago, but it has taken me a while to think about how I felt about it. It’s a YA dystopian novel that has received much buzz on the Internets. I was naturally stoked since I love all things dystopia. Make of that what you will.
Anyway, here’s the summary: Sixteen-year-old Tris must choose one of five factions (Candor, Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity, Erudite) to devote her life to. She’s grown up in the Abnegation faction, but will she stay?
No, I won’t tell you.
Here’s what I liked: The writing – Ms. Roth’s words were crystal clear and detailed when they needed to be. Also Tris, her selflessness, and the wicked hot romance between her and Four. Yes, that’s the dude’s name, and no, I won’t tell you why.
Here’s what I didn’t like: throughout much of the book, I’m pretty sure I had this expression on my face:
Why is society divided into these five factions? Why these five? Why must sixteen-year-olds decide which faction they will devote their lives to? Why? Why? Why? Nothing was explained. I get why Hogwarts students were sorted into different houses in Harry Potter. So they’d have a section of the school to sleep in, right? Also, so the teachers could say, “Ten points to Gryffindor!” But the factions? Nope, I don’t get it. Usually I’m okay with unexplanations, but this was a major plot point. Maybe things will be explained in the sequel? Maybe?
Some of the twists in this book came out of nowhere. Foreshadowing is an author’s friend, but maybe foreshadowing and Ms. Roth got into a fight.
My rating: 3.5/5
Will I read the sequels? Hmm… I don’t know yet.
Do I recommend it? I would recommend it to die-hard fans of The Hunger Games, but I would warn them that it is not The Hunger Games. Part of the reason I picked this one up was because of the comparisons everyone made and that people raved on and on about it. Maybe I’m missing something, or maybe I loved THG so much that everything else is meh.

The Knife of Never Letting Go

by Lindsey Loucks, posted in Book Review

I’ve never done a book review on my blog before. I don’t know why. There’s tons of great books I could review, but the one I’ll do today made me really want to chat about it right after I finished reading it. By chat about, I mean chype about (see previous post). So here I go with my chyping review.

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness is YA SciFi. Todd Hewitt lives on a planet where all the women are dead, and all the men and animals can hear each other’s thoughts. This is called Noise, because as you can imagine, men’s and animal’s thoughts are pretty loud sometimes. One day, Todd and his faithful dog Manchee take a stroll to get some food, and he hears a break in the Noise. All hell breaks loose, and soon Todd and Manchee are running for their lives.

Sorry, that’s all I can give away.

Here’s what I liked: Todd and Manchee – their conversations with each other were laugh out loud funny. Todd – an extremely likable character. The villains – they were so deliciously evil. The plot – not like anything I’ve ever read before. When I read the summary of this book, I thought Oh great, another book with telepathic characters. But, I’d never read one where everyone, including animals, was telepathic.

Here’s what I didn’t like: The story kind of plods along until about the end of chapter three, then quite suddenly picks up. There were a few more instances where the pace could have been sped along. Todd learns things at the beginning that he won’t share with the reader, which drove me crazy. The book was written in first person which is supposed to allow the reader into every nook and cranny in the MC’s brain. I felt left out. 🙁

My rating: 4.5/5
It’s been awhile since I’ve read a book that I needed to chat/chype about. If a book can crawl under my skin enough to make me want to do that, then yay. I think part of the reason why I needed to say something about it was because it was an emotional roller coaster to read. One minute I was laughing, the next I was sobbing my eyes out and had to stop reading. It’s good stuff if a book can make you do that.

Will I read the sequels? Yes. Even if the book didn’t end with a cliffhanger, I’m so invested in the story now, I kind of have to. That’s saying something, too. I’ve started several series where the first book was just meh, so I didn’t continue.

Do I recommend it? Yes. 🙂