Tag: 3stars

Short Stories

My Evil Mother: A Short Story – Margaret Atwood ★★★

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Blurb: Life is hard enough for a teenage girl in 1950s suburbia without having a mother who may—or may not—be a witch. A single mother at that. Sure, she fits in with her starched dresses, string of pearls, and floral aprons. Then there are the hushed and mystical consultations with neighborhood women in distress. The unsavory, mysterious plants in the flower beds. The divined warning to steer clear of a boyfriend whose fate is certainly doomed. But as the daughter of this bewitching homemaker comes of age and her mother’s claims become more and more outlandish, she begins to question everything she once took for granted.

My Review; My first book by this author and it is currently free for Amazon prime or Kindle Unlimited members. It is an extremely short read at 32 pages. A bit of a wierd read to be honest. One I felt I did get at first… Her mum was a witch or at least pretending to be a witch? But then I just felt I didn’t get the story at all. Like what was the point of it? Very wierd. Very confusing. But didn’t take me long to finish so wasn’t a waste of time. Half and half on this one, so it’s a three star read. Hmmm.

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mystery · suspense · thriller

I’m Thinking of Ending Things – Iain Reid ★★★

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Blurb; Now a Netflix original movie, this deeply scary and intensely unnerving novel follows a couple in the midst of a twisted unraveling of the darkest unease. You will be scared. But you won’t know why…

I’m thinking of ending things. Once this thought arrives, it stays. It sticks. It lingers. It’s always there. Always.

Jake once said, “Sometimes a thought is closer to truth, to reality, than an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can’t fake a thought.”

And here’s what I’m thinking: I don’t want to be here.

In this smart and intense literary suspense novel, Iain Reid explores the depths of the human psyche, questioning consciousness, free will, the value of relationships, fear, and the limitations of solitude. Reminiscent of Jose Saramago’s early work, Michel Faber’s cult classic Under the Skin, and Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk about Kevin, “your dread and unease will mount with every passing page” (Entertainment Weekly) of this edgy, haunting debut. Tense, gripping, and atmospheric, I’m Thinking of Ending Things pulls you in from the very first page…and never lets you go.

My Review; I picked this up as it’s a small novel at just over 200 pages. Easy reading. The beginning started off a bit dull where they’re on their way to somewhere and just chatting about all lifes issues along the way. Things started to get wierd and disturbing when they arrive at the farm house with his family and from then on the story just gets wierd, tense, twisted and for me confusing. After finishing this I was questioning myself over what I had read, what was really going on and who was who.

I gave it three stars as it proper ended up confusing me. I might have to go back and read it again at some point and see if its any clearer but I got 90% of the plot. The ending was just fast and confusing for me. Throughout the message is strong she’s thinking of ending this relationship.

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horror · Short Stories · suspense · thriller

Blanky – Kealan Patrick Burke ★★★

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Blurb; In the wake of his infant daughter’s tragic death, Steve Brannigan is struggling to keep himself together. Estranged from his wife, who refuses to be inside the house where the unthinkable happened, and unable to work, he seeks solace in an endless parade of old sitcoms and a bottle of bourbon.

Until one night he hears a sound from his daughter’s old room, a room now stripped bare of anything that identified it as hers…except for her security blanket, affectionately known as Blanky.

Blanky, old and frayed, with its antiquated patchwork of badly sewn rabbits with black button eyes, who appear to be staring at the viewer…

Blanky, purchased from a strange old man at an antique stall selling “BABY CLOSE” at a discount.

The presence of Blanky in his dead daughter’s room heralds nothing short of an unspeakable nightmare that threatens to take away what little light remains in Steve’s shattered world.

Because his daughter loved Blanky so much, he buried her with it.

My Review; This was the first book I have read by this author. He was highly recommended by many bookstagrammers. I went into this story expecting pure horror but this was not the case. For me this was more of a spooky read. Creepy. But still a great read. A short read at 75 pages. This gave me a great introduction to this author and his level of horror so I knew what to expect for his following books I read. I would recommend. Perfect for those who don’t have time for the big books. Its brilliant written. Gripping. Tense. Edgy. I really felt sorry for Steve’s character throughout. Poor man.

A well deserved three stars from me. Mostly cause I went in expecting dark horror. I was wrong. This also gave me a phobia of baby blankets. Good job my kids have both grown up now.

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