The Agony House by Cherie Priest

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

Coming home to New Orleans has not been the grand welcome that Denise, her mother Sally and stepfather Mike would hope for. They have purchased a broken down house with the goal of refurbishing it and turning it into a bed and breakfast with the meager funds they are getting through a small business loan. Denise is less than happy to be leaving her friends behind, starting at a new school, and living in a funky, dirty, falling down house. Add on to the fact that it's haunted by two presences: a small woman and a big man. While the woman seems benevolent, the man is far from it. She finds a comic book in the attic from an artist and author who was quite popular in the 1950s, one that may unlock the mysteries of the house, which seems to fall apart quicker than they can fix it.

This was such an entertaining read. I listened to the audiobook, and I loved how there was actually a dramatic reenactment of the comic book with different actors. That was my favorite part of the book. I enjoyed the twist of the ongoing series in which its lead is the intrepid young woman who constantly has to save her boyfriend, who constantly is the one in danger. A nice turnaround from the typical scenario. Careful attention to this plot device will reveal much of the underlying themes and mystery in the book.

Along with the ghost story and mystery of the house, there's a good story about a young teen finding her feet in a new place and making friends. There is also some great commentary about Hurricane Katrina and the upheaval that the city has not fully recovered from. Additionally, the story explores themes of gentrification and racial profiling, but in a very organic manner. I do think some of that was simplified, but that's understandable as this is appealing to a younger audience.

I loved the characters, from Denise to her parents (both kind and caring with good sense of humor), to the friends she makes, her nosy neighbor Terry (an aspiring ghost hunter), Norman (a hunky young man who had about eight thousand jobs and is a potential love interest, and Dominique (who starts out as an abrasive potential enemy but becomes a friend in the end). I thought the ghostly presences were well down, and how things seem to escalate as the story unfolds.

Despite this being a ghost story with some dark themes, there's a lot of light here as the focus on family, connection and community prevails over the very present evil that the characters face. It wasn't exactly scary, but it was nicely spooky and a very good read for October spooky season.

Check out My Profile on Goodreads!

 

The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

This is an engaging, engrossing read. I listened to the audiobook, and I loved the narrator. I love paranormal/supernatural stories, and it is so awesome to read books about African American culture and stories. Set in 1919, Penelope sets the scene very well with real black history as the background. She doesn't shy away from discussing the travails of black people in that time period. The dangers faced by black people due to racism, racial violence, white supremacy and Jim Crow segregation. Neither does she downplay issues in the community such as colorism and elitism, and the extremes of the haves versus the have nots (often justified by Social Darwinism). Stuff that I know about due to my heritage is a part of this story. But I also learned something new. The lead character is based on a real life woman who was put on trial for shooting and killing a rioting white policeman who broke into her house and shot her and her father. In this case, Penelope gives it a paranormal element. However, it's a hair-raising story that is familiar even to this day as parallels to black people killed by the police in their own homes, such as Breonna Taylor and Atatiana Jackson, among others, and how justice is often elusive in those cases. Fortunately, Clara (and her true life counterpart)'s charges were dropped. With this history, it's not surprising that Clara is hardened to the world and others, and you find out as the story unfolds why she comes off as so misanthropic. It's more from a shell of self-protection as opposed to genuine antipathy towards others. She also has the burden of seeing ghosts her whole life, and is often petitioned by others in the community in need to contact the spirits, called Enigmas. Clara knows they will come to regret any bargains they make with the Enigmas.

The characterization in this story was flawless. I appreciate how each pivotal character gets a POV and a bio of their life. Why they have unique abilities and the trauma they have faced in their lives.
I like how they come together in a way that compliments each other as they face a terrible threat to everyone. Each character found their way into my heart and I wanted them to have a happy ending. I feel like Zelda is such a mysterious character, and I want to know more about her.

As much as I enjoyed this book, I feel like some of the plotting got a little muddled towards the end. There was a lot going on in the climactic scene and I had to rewind the audiobook at some points because I was confused about what was happening. That being said, the storyline has a distinct feel, and some moments were genuinely spooky. I wasn't mad about the fact that I ended up finishing this book in October, even though I can't count it towards my October Scare Fest challenge. Lots of haunting imagery, and something about Southern folklore of haints, root magic, and bargains made at crossroads (figuratively and literally) always appeals to me. As I wrote earlier, the mix of authentic history and allusions to legends and folk wisdom the author used added so much to the texture of this story. Penelope even includes well known figures from Black history such as Carter G. Woodson and Langston Hughes (his cameo is quite amusing). Even WEB Dubois indirectly. Despite the nods to history and folklore, the story that Penelope added feels very unique, successfully building the author's own particular world in which people are gifted but those gifts are often due to powers given by spirits who demand much in return. There are some romantic subplots that I loved. It reminded me that I am still a romance lover (even though I haven't read much romance lately because I've been burned out and I'm not in the best mental space for it right now).

I definitely recommend this book to readers who love historical fantasy/paranormal rooted in American folklore and legends, especially those looking for stories featuring the Black experience in the early 20th century. I hope to read more books by this author, and I honestly would love it if this was an ongoing series.

 Gallant by VE Schwab

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

I have mixed feelings about this book. I loved the Gothic atmosphere. Definitely the best thing about the book besides Olivia. The characterization of the house was so strong and well-rendered. I could see this as a movie very clearly. The imagery of this old, decaying manse and the darkness that surrounded it was quite impactful.

I feel like the characters were less well rendered, with the exception of Olivia. I do think I got to know Olivia very well and I felt very attached to her. I appreciated the viewpoint of a young girl who could not speak and how she was able to convey herself and define herself despite not having the ability to use her voice. She is trying to find out who she is and where she came from, and longs for a family. She was strong and determined, but also vulnerable. While she was rebellious, it was for a reason, as a young girl who had no control of her life and no security, she had to learn to advocate for herself.

I listened to the audiobook read by actor Julian Rhind-Tutt and I had some trouble initially with his narrative voice although I do like him as an actor. I feel like the book should have been narrated by a woman, honestly, or at least had a female and male narrator. The older male voice threw me off when I was supposed to be seeing the story through a young girl's viewpoint. Having said that, I did think his work was well done from the aspect of narrating the sinister moments and the point of view of the villain.

I also appreciated the unique elements of the plot. I haven't read a book like this. It took me a while to figure things out, to be honest. At first, it's not clear what is actually going on with Olivia or the house. I didn't feel like things are brought to life until close to the end, which was a source of frustration for me as I read the book. I am not a big fan of stories that drag out unnecessarily. There was a bit of that dynamic with this book. I feel like the pacing could have been better and things could have moved along more quickly. Despite that, overall, the ending what somewhat satisfying but sad in some ways.

It's a decent book, but it was problematic for me in the pacing, so this one sits at a three star for me for that reason.

The Legend of Sleep Hollow by Washington Irving

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

My Review on Goodreads

Reread (Listened on audio): here.

This story seems to stick with me, and I tend to want to reread it this time of year. I was glad to find an audiobook version on Youtube paired with some lovely paintings. It's a nice short listen, but full of atmosphere. Irving describes the scenery so well. It's pretty creepy to put oneself in the shoes of poor Ichabod Crane trying to get home on a dark night, traveling through a dark forest. For a book that is about 200 years old, this reads very smoothly. The language is a little more flowery and formal but it's not archaic and confusing to a contemporary reader, in my opinion.

As far as the characters, my sympathies did lay with Ichabod. I feel like Brom and Katrina deserve each other and Ichabod can do better than her. Yes, he's being materialistic in his pursuit of Katrina in part, which isn't great. However, Brom is a jerk, and Katrina is a very spoiled and immature person. If indeed Brom was playing a joke on Ichabod, it was very mean spirited, even cruel.

I confess I prefer the movie version of Katrina, played by Christina Ricci. (and yes, Ichabod is my favorite character that Johnny Depp has played). Plot-wise and story development wise, I did like how Burton's movie fleshes out the story. He takes some creative liberties, but honestly, I liked most of them.

But I digress. This is a very short read, so even if your schedule is busy, I recommend taking the better part of an hour to read or listen to this story.

Check out my review on Goodreads!