Booked with Boba: thriller/horror

"I REALIZE THIS FITS INTO THE WAY I'VE ALWAYS SEEN MYSELF, WHICH IS: ART, ATTEMPTED, THOUGH OFTEN SPOILED BY THE DEMANDS OF ANOTHER'S TASTES"

Mars has always been the lesser twin, the shadow to his sister Caroline's radiance. But when Caroline dies under horrific circumstances, Mars is propelled to learn all he can about his once-inseparable sister who'd grown tragically distant.

Mars's genderfluidity means he's often excluded from the traditions -- and expectations -- of his politically-connected family. This includes attendance at the prestigious Aspen Conservancy Summer Academy where his sister poured so much of her time. But with his grief still fresh, he insists on attending in her place.

What Mars finds is a bucolic fairytale not meant for him. Folksy charm and sun-drenched festivities camouflage old-fashioned gender roles and a toxic preparatory rigor. Mars seeks out his sister's old friends: a group of girls dubbed the Honeys, named for the beehives they maintain behind their cabin. They are beautiful and terrifying -- and Mars is certain they're connected to Caroline's death.

But the longer he stays at Aspen, the more the sweet mountain breezes give way to hints of decay. Mars’s memories begin to falter, bleached beneath the relentless summer sun. Something is hunting him in broad daylight, toying with his mind. If Mars can't find it soon, it will eat him alive.

publication date: August 16th, 2022 | source: kindle

page count: 344 pages | genre: mystery, thriller, horror, contemporary, fantasy, lgbtq

Hi I’m back with another book that scarred the living shit out of me!! Jesus this book, where do I even begin with this review. If anything I should be surprised I even remember what happened considering I read this in freaking January but I do remember being extremely grossed out and hella confused at what I was reading which honestly should not be a surprise anymore at this point because a good book always confuses the living shit out of me! I have acquired my peach slices so I will now shut up and actually start this already also overdue ass review so grab some bubble tea and let’s get started!

After his twin sister Caroline died under horrific circumstances, Mars decides to attend his sister’s prestigious summer academy in her place so that he can attempt learn more about her. What he finds there is a fairytale that’s not meant for him. The charm and festivities hide the old-fashioned gender roles and a toxic conservative environment that forces Mars to feel like he’s constantly in the spotlight. Desperate, he seek out Caroline’s old friend group, dubbed the Honeys for the beehives they maintain in the woods. The Honeys have a secret, and the longer that Mars stays at the academy, the more certain he is that this place and everyone here are involved in her death and the more desperate he becomes at uncovering the truth.

This book fully yeeted my expectations out the window and I’m not sure if I should be impressed or grossed out at this point. The mystery was pretty intriguing and I remember being so invested in trying to figure out what the actual heck was going on that I felt like I missed the most obvious hints towards the big plot twists since when I recommended this book to a couple people, they were able to guess the huge plot twist in like 5 seconds. Nevertheless I was properly horrified with the plot twist and can say that La Sala did an amazing job and building up the plot while still keeping up the air of suspense as the story progressed until the dark truth was revealed.

Speaking of surprises, oh my god the romance? The romance. I mf’ing love the romance. It was a little unexpected (but not really because I swear I have the nose of a bloodhound when it comes to ships in a book) and it was SO CUTE. I literally love them and I want more please. On a more serious note, this book did a fantastic job at weaving in more heavy topics within the story and I loved seeing Mars’ character growth throughout the novel as well, battling his internal struggles as well as the backlash they receive for being genderfluid. The internalized toxic conservatism that was bluntly symbolized in the oh so very prestige summer camp was really interesting to see especially with Mars being the polar opposite of everything they stood for which resulted in a riveting dynamic that I thought was pretty intruiging to see as the story progressed.

This book was one of the creepiest and most confusing books I’ve read this year and I loved it. The atmosphere was instantly set and the eeriness only continued to escalate as the book progressed. There were plot twists upon plot twists which only got better as the book went on and I’m pretty sure I threw my kindle a couple times out of shock. The characters were so well developed, especially Mars, and the setting of the summer academy Aspen completely juxtaposed Mars’ character perfectly and that made it all the more captivating to read. The story itself is incredible and I genuinely could not put this book down. As a side note though, I don’t think I can ever look at honey the same way again.

FINAL RATING:

What's one of the creepiest books you've read?

IT IS BELIEVED THAT WHEN PEOPLE HEAR THE SCREAMING, SOMEONE IS IS ABOUT TO DIE"

An island oasis turns deadly when a terrifying legend threatens to kill off visitors one by one in this haunting novel from the highly acclaimed author of The Girl from the Well and the Bone Witch trilogy.

Pristine beaches, lush greenery, and perfect weather, the island of Kisapmata would be the vacation destination...if not for the curse. The Philippine locals speak of it in hushed voices and refuse to step foot on the island. They know the lives it has claimed. They won't be next.

A Hollywood film crew won't be dissuaded. Legend claims a Dreamer god sleeps, waiting to grant unimaginable powers in exchange for eight sacrifices. The producers are determined to document the evidence. And they convince Alon, a local teen, to be their guide.

Within minutes of their arrival, a giant sinkhole appears, revealing a giant balete tree with a mummified corpse entwined in its gnarled branches. And the crew start seeing strange visions. Alon knows they are falling victim to the island's curse. If Alon can't convince them to leave, there is no telling who will survive. Or how much the Dreamer god will destroy...

publication date: September 27th, 2022 | source: kindle

page count: 332 | genre: horror, fantasy, thriller

I'M BACK WITH THIS VERY MUCH OVERDUE REVIEW AS PROMISED BECAUSE IT WAS MIDTERMS WEEK AND CHEMISTRY IS A PAIN IN THE ASS I'M SORRY!! Anyways, hi people, I'm alive yes thanks for asking. Y’all Rin Chupeco is a BEAST because this book was terrifying in all the right way possible. My sister picked this up before I did and like freaked out while reading so I got curious. And when I say freaked out, my sister was asking me to hold her hand and saying “Oh my god oh my god” over and over. Also she refused to go upstairs by herself and was very spooked. Needless to say, I was not that spooked but this book still have me the chills. I will now word vomit my pain and admiration for Rin Chupeco and this roller coaster of a book so grab some bubble tea and let’s chat with ghosts!

The story opens up with a film crew from the US here to film a ghost hunting documentary thingy on a deserted island in the Philippines that’s supposedly haunted with a curse. They meet Alon, a local teen who seems to have a special relationship with the island and warns the crew to stay away if they know what’s good for them. And in a very Hollywood fashion with entitled celebrities and white men, they ignore Alon’s warning. With Alon agreeing to be their tour guide, the crew begin to settle down but the island’s little horrors begin showing themselves one by one. Cue the scary shit.

I do not know what to think anymore man. I was so confused when reading this which obviously means that this book is amazing and you should go read this right now. First things off, the horror. I don’t really read horror books with like ghosts and stuff because then I become paranoid but this book was extremely creepy and I mean that in the best way possible. The crew members have their own ghosts and the island is dead set on exposing the living shit out of them with said ghosts! Specifically the ones who have commited a big no no. If this book taught me anything, it’s that people are greedy as heck and karma is real people. Y’all should’ve gotten off the island when you had to chance but nOo, you just had to stick around because of legends of a Dreamer god who’ll grant unimaginable powers in exchange eight sacrifices. Now doesn’t that sound like a lovely time.

So the horror is amazing and creepy af. What next? I’m glad you asked because the romance is FREAKING ADORABLE. I was literally reading this in my room and squealing the second said characters were introduced to each other. When you read as many romance novels as I have, you can spot a ship from a mile away; it’s an amazing skill to have. Seriously though, they’re adorable and I feel perpetually single. Also I was not satisfied with the amount of cuteness and I want more.

I don’t think words can express how much I adored reading this and this book without a doubt made it onto my all time favorites lists. I loved the world that Rin Chupeco created and I hope to see more of it in the future. This is definitely one of their more underrated books but I would highly recommend more people check it out. Don’t read this book at night if you spook easily though, because I don’t think you’ll be able to sleep. And seriously, I don’t think I can ever look at a tree the same way ever again.

FINAL RATING:

What's your favorite creepy urban legend?

ALSO HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR OF THE RABBIT TO THOSE WHO CELEBRATE IT!!!

"UNLIKE THE INTERNET, INFORMATION ON PAPER WASN'T FOREVER. IT COULD BE BURNED, CONSUMED, NEVER SEEN AGAIN. LOVE LETTERS COULD BE FORGOTTEN. SECRETS COULD BE DESTROYED. STAINS COULD BE SCRUBBED AWAY. INK WAS NOT FOREVER."

Tess Matheson only wants three things: time to practice her cello, for her sister to be happy, and for everyone else to leave her alone.

Instead, Tess finds herself working all summer at her boarding school library, shelving books and dealing with the intolerable patrons. The worst of them is Eliot Birch: snide, privileged, and constantly requesting forbidden grimoires. After a bargain with Eliot leads to the discovery of an ancient book in the library's grimoire collection, the pair accidentally unleash a book-bound demon.

The demon will stop at nothing to stay free, manipulating ink to threaten those Tess loves and dismantling Eliot’s strange magic. Tess is plagued by terrible dreams of the devil and haunting memories of a boy who wears Eliot's face. All she knows is to stay free, the demon needs her... and he'll have her, dead or alive.

publication date: August 10th, 2021 | source: library

page count: 368 | genre: fantasy, horror, young adult, thriller, mystery

2022 reading-wise was off to a great start, Ace of Spades was incredible by the way and you should go read that book, but The Devil Makes Three was a bit disappointing and didn’t reach my high expectations after reading Ace of Spades. I heard a lot of intriguing things about this book from said older sister to be a YA Dark Academia Horror/Thriller novel, spooky and chilling which obviously sounded like a book I would really enjoy because I’m weird that way, but guess I didn’t end up liking it as much as I though. I need to shut up now and actually start writing this review so here’s my honest and critical review of The Devil Makes Three.

The book stars with introducing the protaganist: Tess Matheson, who’s working as an assistant at her elite private high school. Her character was more expected as a character who is not as privilaged as the other students, a cello prodigy who got into the school, and as expected of any older sibling-fiercely protective of her younger sister. She meets Eliot Birch, a seemingly rich bastard who has more than meets the eye. His mother’s dying from Cancer, his father is a grade A a-hole, and he secretly has an passion in grimoires and magic books, hoping that studying them will fix his life above. The two meet in the weirdest way possible and what they unleash is a lot bigger than either of them signed up for.

Honestly, I think the reason why this book was bumped down to a 2 stars was because instead of a chill that was supposed to come of excitment and thrill, I got chills from how creepy this book was. Which normally would be a fantastic thing but this book took that up to a whole new level. Like theres chilling creepy and then there’s the kind of creepy that makes you just freeze and look around your room to make sure there’s no demons in your room to haunt you. The plot of the story was also a bit slow and I felt like Tess and Eliot’s love life was so rushed throughout the book as well. I mean they go down into a no no basement thingy and decided to open a book that clearly looks like it’s posessed and suddenly he’s in love with her. Did we skip the chemistry between the two or something? My train of thought when he made a move was just ‘Y’all just nearly died and now you’re asking her out to dinner???’ If all it took was a near-death or truamatic experience to make someone fall in love with me, I would’ve had a line of guys asking for my number or to take me out to dinner. Sadly, my butt is still single so clearly that does not work. Obviously.

Speaking of chilling, I mentioned that instead of like getting good chills from this book I got what-the-heck-did-I-just-read-is-my-room-now-haunted kind of chills. To be fair, I have to give props to the author for writing it so well that it made my blood run cold but I am like the biggest baby in the world according to my older sister and I was reading this book at night like the idiot I am so yeah, not the biggest fan. Reading this book did remind me why I sometimes enjoy horror movies even though I cannot for the life of me do jump scares but I’m fine with blood and gore by itself for some reason. This book just reminded me a lot a horror movie that was a book instead because Tess and Elliot made a lot of uh, questionable decisions. The main reason why I love watching horror movies is to mainly make fun of the characters in the film for making dumb choices to move everything along. While it’s all staged, it’s still extremley stupid and entertaining to watch, and Tess and Elliot’s choices to go down into the forbidden basement in search for a grimoires or touch that clearly possesed book was just that. Except less entertaining and more exsaperating.

The Devil Makes Three was more of a book that I didn’t really enjoy most of it and clearly had more thoughts than I expected, just look at this moutain of a review, I did not expect this review to turn out as long as it did. Then again, with books you don’t tend to enjoy as much, writing a review becomes a whole rant and I am fantastic at those so to speak. Ahem. Moving on. Recommendation wise, I wouldn’t really recommend it but I think a lot more of you would enjoy it but this book was just not for me, I hope that if you do pick it up, you’ll enjoy it more than I did.

FINAL RATING:

If you were trapped inside a book, which book which would it be?

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