Category: The Reviews.

Comfort Me with Apples by Catherynne Valente

Synopsis.

Sophia was made for him. Her perfect husband. She can feel it in her bones. He is perfect. Their home together in Arcadia Gardens is perfect. Everything is perfect.

It’s just that he’s away so much. So often. He works so hard. She misses him. And he misses her. He says he does, so it must be true. He is the perfect husband and everything is perfect.

But sometimes Sophia wonders about things. Strange things. Dark things. The look on her husband’s face when he comes back from a long business trip. The questions he will not answer. The locked basement she is never allowed to enter. And whenever she asks the neighbors, they can’t quite meet her gaze…

But everything is perfect. Isn’t it?

The Review

Comfort Me With Apples

This little horror novella was such a treat to read. I had no idea what to expect. Although it received a Goodreads Choice Award for horror in 2021, it doesn’t have a lot of ratings compared to other nominees of the same year. It could have to do with its late-year release date of November.

Either way at just over 100 pages, it’s a super quick read. I listened along with the audiobook which heightened my experience and Karis Campbell did a fantastic job with narrating.

Not much to say as I don’t want to spoil a single thing. Look for clues in the pairings to determine if this might be a good fit for you.

Four Stars!

Vladimir By Julia May jonas

Synopsis.

A provocative, razor-sharp, and timely debut novel about a beloved English professor facing a slew of accusations against her professor husband by former students—a situation that becomes more complicated when she herself develops an obsession of her own…

“When I was a child, I loved old men, and I could tell that they also loved me.”

And so we are introduced to our deliciously incisive narrator: a popular English professor whose charismatic husband at the same small liberal arts college is under investigation for his inappropriate relationships with his former students. The couple have long had a mutual understanding when it comes to their extra-marital pursuits, but with these new allegations, life has become far less comfortable for them both. And when our narrator becomes increasingly infatuated with Vladimir, a celebrated, married young novelist who’s just arrived on campus, their tinder box world comes dangerously close to exploding.

With this bold, edgy, and uncommonly assured debut, author Julia May Jonas takes us into charged territory, where the boundaries of morality bump up against the impulses of the human heart. Propulsive, darkly funny, and wildly entertaining, Vladimir perfectly captures the personal and political minefield of our current moment, exposing the nuances and the grey area between power and desire.

The Review

This is my biggest disappointment of 2022 and we’re only in February.

There isn’t anything sexy about VLADIMIR, sorry guys!

It might be the equivalent of a wading pool. Not a lot here. I wanted something dripping with scandal and I came to realize my imagination running wild thinking about what might be in the book is much more fun than the actual words in the book.

While listening I’d find myself thinking of chore schedules I needed to put my boys on and how to get more cashback on groceries. I was not in a salacious place.

Described as a character study, I can see that. The characters though are cheeky and flimsy.

VLADIMIR, and the way his character is constructed, leaves you feeling sorry for him. I do not think this was the intention.

The villain, which I’ll leave up to you to name, is both guessable and forgettable. They were paper people with no depth.

Nothing here guys!

In the best light, VLADIMIR is a feminist perspective of the Me Too Movement or at least another conversation about the topic.

In the worst, it’s a #bookstagram made me buy it and I want my money back.

I’m giving it three stars because the writing was solid. It was a good length for what it was and for its perspective, as meek as it was.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to @librofm for the advanced listening copy!

Sundial By Catriona Ward

Synopsis.

“A story where nothing is what it seems—a thrilling hall of mirrors full of deeply disturbing twists. This book will haunt you.” —Alex Michaelides, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Sundial is a new, twisty psychological horror novel from Catriona Ward, internationally bestselling author of The Last House on Needless Street.

You can’t escape what’s in your blood…

All Rob wanted was a normal life. She almost got it, too: a husband, two kids, a nice house in the suburbs. But Rob fears for her oldest daughter, Callie, who collects tiny bones and whispers to imaginary friends. Rob sees a darkness in Callie, one that reminds her too much of the family she left behind.

She decides to take Callie back to her childhood home, to Sundial, deep in the Mojave Desert. And there she will have to make a terrible choice.

Callie is worried about her mother. Rob has begun to look at her strangely, and speaks of past secrets. And Callie fears that only one of them will leave Sundial alive…

The mother and daughter embark on a dark, desert journey to the past in the hopes of redeeming their future.

“A wild, twisted, family gothic unlike any you’ve read before, and one you won’t soon forget.” —Paul Tremblay

The Review

SUNDIAL by Catriona Ward is a horror take on an old, sad country-western song.

Specifically, STAND BY YOUR MAN by Tammy Wynette. But not so simple. That would be too easy.

Maybe it’s like A HORSE WITH NO NAME by AMERICA, on PCP. Yes, it’s probably something like that.

40 pages in and I can see the author playing with structure.

Everything is up for grabs.

“Two words, three lies”

Le Diaboliques 1955

Everything is plural. Except what isn’t.

Wards writing is interesting as it’s very rocky. I love that she will introduce unexpected characters and povs and they may not always resolve themselves.

Rich with detail, writing like a rocking boat. All kinds of beautiful folkish features.

90% of the time you might feel disoriented and confused. There are so many characters. And combine that with the multiple povs. It’s a lot.

You might come out of it asking: “Wtf did I just read” and maybe that’s the beauty of it.

For me as a reader, I couldn’t connect with any part of the story. And from the beginning, it felt more like a spectacle than an immersive experience. Unfortunately, I was too outside of my reading experience to truly enjoy the enrapturing quality.

For those of you who are going to pick this up, try to allow the details to wash over you like some kind of literary starfish. Don’t get caught up on all the details.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I will most likely reread this at some point to see if I’d rate it higher. Such a unique story!

Thanks to Tor/Nightfire for the advanced copy and Netgalley for the galley!

This one is out March 1st, add it to your tbr and preorder below!