Midwestern Gothic – Scott Thomas

Kill Creek was one of my favourite reads of 2017 so I was keen to revisit Blantonville, Kansas. These four novellas were the perfect excuse.

The Door in the Field

Written by Ted Hollister, AKA Sebastian Cole, The Door in the Field describes an apparently indescribable creature on the other side of a … (you gusssed it) door in a field.

This story is told by 26 year old April Staudt. It’s about her father, Ray, whose anger gets him in more trouble than he anticipated.

My father was once two people. This is the story of how he became a third.

Wear Your Secret Like a Stone

Tara chose a T.C. Moore book as her contribution to her workplace’s Halloween display.

“I like my horror as dark as my coffee, and it doesn’t get much darker than T.C. Moore’s Puncture. It will disturb you in all the right ways!”

Her search for the woman who complained about this book choice leads Tara down a rabbit hole.

The Boy in the Woods

Summer camp may be officially over but it’s not for ten year old Eddie. He’s got one more night there and, boy, is he going to wish his parents had picked him up on time.

He knew from campfire stories and fairy tales that the darkness welcomed things like him.

It was a place of monsters.

One Half of a Child’s Face

Things have been weird in that apartment building since the painting arrived. Sienna should know. Her ex lives there and she people watches its residents from her home a couple of blocks away. What? That’s not creepy…

“Remember what you lost. But never forget what you still have.”

When I first heard about this book, the novella I was most looking forward to reading was The Boy in the Woods. My favourite read was Wear Your Secret Like a Stone.

While the authors who visited Finch House are all mentioned in these novellas, you don’t have to have read Kill Creek first. It’s such a fun read, though, so I’d definitely recommend it.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Inkshares for the opportunity to read these novellas.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

From Kill Creek’s Kansas — four gothic novellas.

In The Door in the Field, a construction worker’s bad day becomes a far worse night when drinks at an off-the-books bar send him down an unforeseeably bloody path.

In The Boy in the Woods, something evil has infected the counsellors at a summer camp, and a young boy will have to do anything he can to survive the night.

In One Half of a Child’s Face, a woman spying on her daughter and ex-husband notices an odd painting hanging in an empty apartment … one that seems to call to the building’s children.

In Wear Your Secret Like a Stone, a big-box clerk discovers that her book pick for a Halloween display echoes a dark secret hidden beneath the idyllic facade of her hometown.

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Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody – Patrick Ness

Illustrations – Tim Miller

Zeke and Daniel have just become Hall Monitors but Principal Wombat assures them it’s not because they’re monitor lizards. Alicia, their monitor lizard friend, is also a Hall Monitor.

“Coincidence”

Being cold blooded and from a less affluent area than most of the other students already sets them apart. This new job is likely to make things even worse, especially when the school bully, Pelicarnassus, and his two egret sidekicks (both called Norman) find out.

I’m usually a fan of zany goings-on; my childhood was essentially one big Roald Dahl reread. I love kid’s books but this one didn’t sit right with me.

I was confused.

Pelicarnassus, who sees himself as a supervillain in training, has a mother you definitely don’t want to mess with. Saying that Pelicarnassus’ mother won’t let him do something dastardly when she’s literally a supervillain didn’t make sense. Neither did her response to her son unleashing his evil plan.

Also, Zeke has France on his knee.

My fuddy duddy was on full display. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt so old.

I didn’t think the language used was always appropriate for the target audience (9+). When I was a kid, saying ‘crappy’ or ‘ass’, because I undoubtedly would have repeated them if I’d read them, would have gotten me into trouble.

I also wouldn’t have even considered discussing my Principal’s butt.

I lost count of the amount of times Pelicarnassus called Zeke ‘fat’.

I was pretty literal at that age and wouldn’t have known a black dog can be a symbol for depression.

I liked Miel, the red-tailed hawk, who doesn’t appear to have a volume control. I thought I liked Alicia, especially when I found her relatable.

But she was also kind of happy that she only had two friends in Zeke and Daniel, because any more “would be really tiring”, she once said, “and I think I’m kinda lazy.”

Then she played into my biggest problem with this book.

One swift pinch of an ear, one assertive push behind a knee, and Kevin the yak was down without even entirely realizing that he’d fallen.

Recently I heard someone say that nothing makes it okay to use your body to solve a problem and, while I’ve never thought any differently, I’d never heard it explained like that before and I absolutely loved it.

For a book that claims there’s no excuse for violence, there’s a fair amount of it in its pages. All of the main characters use violence to varying degrees. I’m all for standing up for yourself and your friends but not when it involves punching, pinching and pushing.

There are some glowing reviews for this book so I’d encourage you to read those before deciding if this is the book for you. Plenty of reviewers have found humour where I found red flags. While I was intrigued after reading the blurb, I’m clearly not the audience for this book.

Thank you so much to Walker Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Once Upon a Blurb

Master storyteller Patrick Ness turns to middle grade in a hilarious adventure about a mismatched group of animals attending school together, brought to life by brilliantly funny illustrations.

Zeke and Daniel have just been made hall monitors by Principal Wombat. This has nothing to do with the fact that they are monitor lizards. And never mind the fact Alicia, the only other monitor lizard in the school, is also a hall monitor.

Somehow, the three hall monitors must impose order on arrogant lions, excitable seals and super-relaxed pandas. And worst of all, there is Pelicarnassus! A pompous giant pelican and the son of a major supervillain, who inexplicably has it out for the lizards. Can the hall monitor lizards and their new friend, a blind, fearsome red-tailed hawk, protect their school from all manner of outlandish threats?

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Cerulean Chronicles #2: Somewhere Beyond the Sea – TJ Klune

The best book hug I’ve read in a long time has a sequel and it’s a book hug too!

“I have returned to this place in hopes of making it more than it was.”

When Arthur returned to Marsyas Island after 28 years, he brought memories of an abusive childhood and a dream of creating a home where kids like he once was have a safe, nurturing environment to help them grow into who they are.

He and Linus, the love of Arthur’s life who learned to live in colour in the first book, are raising six eggstraordinary kids. Or six of the worst of the worst who are destined to bring about the end of the world… Depending on who you believe.

Picking off after the events of the first book (please read this first), we’re introduced to David, a yeti who embraces being a monster, much to Arthur’s horror. We don’t use the ‘m’ word at Marsyas.

While it would be lovely to simply watch David learn to trust a bunch of strangers, find safety and belonging in his new home, and enjoy the interactions between him and the other kids, the government just can’t leave a found family that is clearly working, quirks and all, alone.

“I’ll never understand humans”

So we have to deal with yet another investigation, with yet another grey government lackey reporting back to the big wigs that be so this home filled with love and acceptance can be shut down for good. While I want nothing more than for this family to finally get a break, I have to admit I loved watching them rise to this challenge.

“Stab her with kindness!”

We rail against hatred and bigotry and divisiveness, and we band together, proud of who we are, refusing to diminish ourselves when people with loud voices and narrow minds demand it. We feel the fear but we don’t let it control us.

Along the way we learn that socks are feet gloves (they won’t be known by any other name from this day forward) and we make sure everyone is aware that we don’t eat Frank the fish.

We spend time with some of the townsfolk we met in the first book. J-Bone is still “saving the universe through music”, Helen has a larger role in this book (woohoo!) and you might like to warn Merle that I’m going to give him the biggest hug the next time I see him.

“You ever get the feeling you became sentient right in the middle of something?”

I had use for some oh, that’s so beautiful tissues in both books. I get all melty whenever I spend time with the Baker-Parnassus family so may need to ask David if I can hang out in his room for a bit to recover.

These books are hugs, absolutely. They’re also underdogs pulling together against all odds, when those in power want nothing more than to crush their spirit and keep them down. They’re learning to believe in yourself and standing up for what’s right. They’re hope and love and one of the best examples I know of the type of family we all deserved to grow up with, whether that was our reality or not.

If anyone needs me, I’m moving to Marsyas.

I am found because I refuse to be in black and white, or any shade of gray.

I am color. I am fire.

I am the sun, and I will burn away the shadows until only light remains.

And then you will have no choice but to see me.

Thank you so much to Pan Macmillan for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

A magical house. A secret past. A summons that could change everything.

Arthur Parnassus has built a good life on the ashes of a bad one. He’s headmaster at an orphanage for magical children, on a peculiar island, assisted by love-of-his-life Linus Baker. And together, they’ll do anything to protect their extraordinary and powerful charges.

However, when Arthur is forced to make a public statement about his dark past, he finds himself fighting for those under his care. It’s also a fight for the better future that all magical people deserve. Then when a new magical child joins their island home, Arthur knows they’ve reached breaking point. The child finds power in calling himself a monster, a name Arthur has tried so hard to banish to protect his children. Challenged from within and without, their volatile family might grow stronger. Or everything Arthur loves could fall apart.

Somewhere Beyond the Sea is a story of resistance, lovingly told, about the daunting experience of fighting for the life you want to live and doing the work to keep it.

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Graveyards – Alastair Horne

I love fun facts and photography, although sometimes it can be difficult to find enough favourites to include in a review. I had the opposite problem here so, even though I’ve tried to restrain myself, I’ve included more than I usually would.

Because Back to the Future is never too far from my mind, I need to tell you that the Cave Hill Cemetery clock tower in Louisville, Kentucky has been struck by lightning a number of times.

At Boston’s Granary Burying Ground in 2009 “an abandoned entrance to an unmarked crypt was rediscovered when the ground gave way beneath a visitor, plunging her into a hidden stairwell.”

One of my favourite photos was of Kilmacduagh Monastery in Galway, Ireland.

Kilmacduagh Monastery
Image credit: Jon Ingall

A partly ruined ninth-century building at Mizdarkhan in Karakalpakstan, Uzbekistan is known as the Apocalypse Clock. It is believed that “when the final brick falls, it will herald the end of the world.”

I love graves that showcase the personality or interests of the person buried there, so absolutely adore the piano in London’s Highgate Cemetery.

Highgate Cemetery
Image credit: Flavia Paoletti

Off the coast of Madagascar, pirates are buried at Île Sainte Marie. Naturally their gravestones are marked with skulls and crossbones.

The Kankanaey people of Sagada suspend the coffins of their most distinguished elders from the cliffs. Traditionally, the elderly make their own coffins and paint their names on the side; the bodies are placed in a foetal position, mimicking their entry into life.

The Hanging Coffins of Sagada
Image credit: Florian Blümm

There was a focus on cemeteries in Europe and the Americas. Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific combined had under 50 pages dedicated to them, whereas Europe and the Americas had 170. There were less photos that looked like a haunting had been interrupted than I had hoped but the abundance of memorable fun facts made up for it.

NB: Images are taken from the eARC so the colours may not be an accurate representation of the photos in the book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Amber Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Graveyards, burial sites and cemeteries are as old as human civilisation itself, resting places, and memorial sites for loved ones, the great, and sometimes the infamous.

Graveyards reveals both the universality of death, and the diversity of how we commemorate or memorialise those who have passed, from the hanging coffins of Sagada, Philippines, to the Old Jewish Cemetery in Prague, testament to the huge Jewish community that lived in the Czechoslovak capital before the Holocaust.

With detailed captions explaining their history and often ghostly past, Graveyards is a vivid pictorial exploration of the best-known, most-haunted, and quirkiest burial places in the world today.

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Repeat After Me – Jessica Warman

Welcome to Xavier Academy’s senior class trip: tropical island edition.

Emma can’t say she wasn’t warned.

“Can you hear me? It’s me. Don’t go, Gizmo.”

But it’s senior trip and tonight is the night she’s losing her virginity. It’s all planned. And did I mention the tropical island?

“Nothing bad ever happens at the beach,” he declared, which anybody who’s ever seen Jaws knows is not true.

Emma is surrounded by the usual clichés.

There’s rich kid Bradd. Yeah, two d’s. He’s flexible and I wanted to hate him but he grew on me.

I am crushing life. Absolutely crushing it. I am a winner.

Brad’s girlfriend Alison, who used to be Emma’s best friend, is a self confessed sugar addict. Auggie, Emma’s boyfriend, isn’t a fan of Louis, her best friend. Shelby has a reputation. There’s the new girl and the exchange students.

Then there’s an octopus named Sibyl. If it wasn’t for Sibyl, then none of this would have been possible.

“It’s a long story. It has to do with cocaine and a sentient, immortal octopus.”

Now Emma is stuck in a time loop and she still hasn’t lost her virginity!

It had occurred to me, all of a sudden — I don’t know what took so long — that I could do whatever I wanted. Nothing mattered!

But at the same time … nothing mattered.

I thought this book was so much fun but apparently it’s quite divisive. It seems to be one of those love it or hate it books.

It’s like Groundhog Day but with teenagers. It’s funny and over the top and a little ridiculous if we’re being honest, but that’s half the fun. Maybe don’t think too hard about how this all works and just go with it.

It’s about life choices, extraordinary feats of flexibility (I’m trying not to look at you here, Bradd) and figuring out whether being able to do whatever you want with no consequences is a blessing or curse.

I’m keen for a reread.

“Time buddies!”

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Entangled Teen, an imprint of Entangled Publishing, for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

She’s about to have a serious temporal tantrum.

In retrospect, I probably should have passed on the ceviche.

It was already a weird Friday. My class is stuck on an eerily remote island for our senior trip, I’m pretty sure Mr. D (“call me Max”) is hiding something from us, my ex–best friend turned nemesis keeps stealing my candy, and tonight’s plan for my boyfriend and me to finally lose our virginity to each other is going hellishly.

I mean, ceviche is delicious, don’t get me wrong. But a dish made from a supposedly immortal octopus should really come with a warning label.

Caution: consuming a telepathic sea creature of unknown origin may result in immortality, no consequences to any actions, and getting stuck in a time loop for all of eternity.

Now every morning I wake up, and it’s the same Friday all over again. Same annoying classmates. Same island suspended in time by an evil oyster farmer with a God complex. Same outrageous candy theft. The only person I can count on to keep me from losing my grip on this new reality is Louis, my best friend who knows me better than anyone else in this world.

This should be a cephalopod-induced nightmare but somehow — in some ridiculous way — I feel like I’m experiencing the extraordinary, the gift of endless opportunities to get things right. But when I wake up every morning and it’s Friday again, sometimes it feels more like a never-ending prison sentence.

They say some things are worse than death…

…guess I’m about to find out.

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Cerulean Chronicles #1: The House in the Cerulean Sea – TJ Klune

Change often starts with the smallest of whispers. Like-minded people building it up to a roar.

This is the best book hug I’ve had in a long time. There’s power in found family: home can be a place of refuge, with kindred spirits who accept for who you are in your entirety. Even your weirdness. Especially your weirdness. You have room to grow and become more you. You are wanted and loved and chosen. This is what awaits you at Marsyas Island.

Arthur cares for six orphans, categorised by a government department as the worst of the worst. Linus, a representative of said government department, has been sent to the island with the mandate to report on the goings on.

Linus, who has existed in a world of grey, enters a world of colour. The rules and regulations that govern his life aren’t easily applied here.

I love every single inhabitant of the island. I love Helen and J-Bone. I’ve also got a soft spot for grumpy Merle. I want to live on Marsyas Island.

Books like this scare me, but not for any reason you’re probably imagining. I preordered both a signed copy of this book and the Kindle. They’ve both been sitting there unread for four years. Four years! That was before I read the first The Extraordinaries book. What other books have been waiting for me to fall in love with them and what if I never read them? That, my friends, is what terror is made of.

If you need a breath of fresh air and the following quote feels like it was written with you in mind, this is the book for you.

He couldn’t believe it was only Wednesday. And it was made worse when he realised it was actually Tuesday.

If you need some colour in your life, this is the book for you.

If you need a bookish hug is, this is it.

This is what hope looks like.

Don’t you wish you were here?

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

A magical island. A dangerous task. A burning secret.

Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.

When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he’s given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days.

But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn. 

An enchanting story, masterfully told, The House in the Cerulean Sea is about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place — and realising that family is yours.

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Fears – Ellen Datlow (editor)

Anthologies tend to be a mixed bag. Sometimes you get more stories that suit your taste, sometimes you don’t. Because there’s a chance I’m going to find a new favourite author amongst them, I tend to read more anthologies than I plan to. There’s always a draw card, the author who sucks me into the experience when my TBR pile is shouting at me to look away. Here, that was Stephen Graham Jones.

They’re about serial killers, hunters of murderers and the blowback this can cause in the hunter, about cruel traditions, horrific appetites, toxic friendships, dysfunctional intimate relationships, revenge for real and imagined slights.

Although I love most sub-genres of horror, psychological horror is one of my favourites because, let’s face it, humans are the real horror story. While there were quite a few stories here that I could take or leave, there were also some standouts.

A Sunny Disposition by Josh Malerman

Grandpa Ray wanted to see the world like Grandma Meryl did.

“You ever feel haunted, Benji?”

Singing My Sister Down by Margo Lanagan

Today is Ik’s day.

“I’m stuck now”

Souvenirs by Sharon Gosling

Reg only wants to take one thing with him to Wisteria Lodge.

“Your daughter’s told us all about you – we’re all excited to hear your stories about travelling.”

Teeth by Stephen Graham Jones

Naturally. This story was the reason I was here.

“And then, one day, one day you … you see it.”

All of the stories included were reprints, originally published between 1964 and 2022.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Tachyon Publications for the opportunity to read this anthology.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Your grandfather confesses his heinous crime to you alone. You try to save a young girl from sexual assault, but she’s not really a victim. Your child is sacrificed in compensation for your social misstep. You compete in a sick game to save your loved ones. Your mum is insane, your dad is dying, your brother is not your brother, and you’re stuck in the same house until one or all of you are dead.

Far below the unlikeliness of the supernatural lives something worse: the depths of human depravity. We live in fear of the cruelties of respected leaders and of the despicable crimes of neighbours who seem normal. We live with anxiety about our innermost desires and the unforgivable things we might do in a moment of passion. Or, if we fail to curb our urges, we live with the terrible secrets of our unfettered resentments.

In this uniquely unsettling anthology, editor Ellen Datlow has unearthed twenty-one exemplary tales of what humanity fears most: People.

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Guillotine – Delilah S. Dawson

If you’ve ever worked in the service industry, been abused or have a burning desire to rail against the unfairness of the world, this is the book for you. It’s like The Menu without the restaurant. It’s Saw when John Kramer wasn’t actively involved in the implementation phase of the traps. It’s the stupid money you saw in Ready or Not. It’s Miss Inch from the original The Parent Trap declaring ‘Let the punishment fit the crime.’

Dez knows how hard it is to get a foot in the door in the fashion industry. Unlike many in its ranks, Dez wasn’t born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Luckily, the school of hard knocks builds resilience and resourcefulness.

If she can’t get a job in high fashion in the traditional way, she has to move sideways. That’s what you do when you grew up poor: You think outside the box.

After a chance meeting with “Patrick Ruskin Yucky Yucky Ick Ick Ick”, son of the editor-in-chief of one of the most prestigious fashion magazines, Dez finds her in. Willing to suffer through some short term compromises to make the connection of a lifetime, she’s tickled pink when she secures an invitation to the Ruskin family island. Oh, sorry, Island.

You participate in Island life at your own risk.

Her timing isn’t as fortuitous as she had hoped, though, because she’s not the only one looking to make a connection this Easter. The army of pink, AKA the servants, are individually and collectively hoping to connect the Ruskins with what they deserve. Like a scalpel to expose their squishy underbelly and other creative dispatches. Roses will never smell the same.

I adored this murder book. It’s revenge fantasy in all its glory. It’s levelling the playing field between the haves and the have-nots. It’s the victimised resisting those who have oppressed and abused them in spectacular form.

I only wish this book had been longer and that there were more Ruskins who needed to learn the error of their ways. If this is ever made into a movie, I will be buying a copy so I can watch it repeatedly. I definitely need to read more books by this author.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this novella.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Thrift fashionista Dez Lane doesn’t want to date Patrick Ruskin; she just wants to meet his mother, the editor-in-chief of Nouveau magazine. When he invites her to his family’s big Easter reunion at their ancestral home, she’s certain she can put up with his arrogance and fend off his advances long enough to ask Marie Caulfield-Ruskin for an internship someone with her pedigree could never nab through the regular submission route.

When they arrive at the enormous island mansion, Dez is floored — she’s never witnessed how the 1% lives before in all their ridiculous, unnecessary luxury. But once all the family members are on the island and the ferry has departed, things take a dark turn. For decades, the Ruskins have made their servants sign contracts that are basically indentured servitude, and with nothing to lose, the servants have decided their only route to freedom is to get rid of the Ruskins for good…

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Before Dementia – Dr Kate Gregorevic

When you’re caring for someone, that puts you in the role of advocate and I’ve found that the best way to understand the options for the person you’re caring for is to educate yourself.

You can’t rely on a neuropsychiatrist who disregards everything in a patient’s history that could explain some or all of their symptoms and relies on intimidation tactics to enforce compliance in a testing process they haven’t explained in a way that ensures the patient understands the task, then promptly diagnoses Alzheimer’s and sends you on your way with no explanation or follow up… But I digress.

As a carer, you’re entrusted to make the best decisions for the person you’re caring for, decisions that align with their values and are made alongside them; decisions that are made with and/or for them, not at them. You need to know what questions to ask and when, and you need to be able to weigh up the costs and benefits of treatments, and you need to somehow find a way to look after yourself in the process.

I’ve read a bunch of books about dementia but this is the first one I’ve wanted to talk about. It actually answered questions I’ve had that other books skirt around but ultimately raise more questions.

This book explains dementia in a way that’s easy to understand. This is the first time I’ve had someone explain why there isn’t medication that can reverse or at least stop the progression of dementia and it made sense. I particularly liked the way the symptoms are explained.

Dementia occurs when a disease or progressive processes cause damage, and brain function is impaired enough to impact everyday life. The symptoms of dementia are the result of a brain that is no longer able to correctly take in information, interpret it, and act on it. Dementia is a “syndrome,” or a collection of symptoms, and it can be caused by many different diseases.

Having something like this to hold onto when symptoms lead to frustration provides much needed perspective.

I learned a lot of useful information, things that should be explained by doctors but aren’t. For example, I didn’t realise that mild cognitive impairment (MCI) doesn’t automatically mean someone will progress to dementia. In fact, most don’t. It’s also made clear that memory loss doesn’t automatically equal dementia; other factors that may contribute to this are “lack of sleep, medications someone is taking, or anxiety, which can be fixed.”

One of my favourite things about this book is that it highlights that dementia risk isn’t equal. Racism, poverty, stress and whether you have access to education and preventative healthcare all have a bearing on your risk, despite the lifestyle strategies you may be employing. It’s clear that systems have a role to play in prevention.

Understanding health through an equality lens means considering gender, race, and disability, and how they intersect. It means integrating poverty, discrimination, and healthcare access as central when developing models of healthcare.

I’m not sure if this was a test or not but the list of ten brain healthy foods only had eight bullet points, which could be stretched to nine foods if “fish, poultry” are counted as two.

If your future health planning looks pretty lazy overall with a dash of it ain’t broke yet, I have good news for you. Many of the tips, especially around lifestyle decisions, in this book that could help prevent dementia are also good for a bunch of other conditions so a single good choice is a protective measure for many.

This book is intended to be read before someone you love is diagnosed with dementia. Given the prevalence and, let’s face it, how busy you are, it’s likely you won’t even look for this book until after you meet someone living with dementia. This has a lot of good information and it does cover some of what to expect after a diagnosis but I and I’m sure many others would benefit from a sequel, After Dementia.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HCI Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Structured around 20 questions you need to ask to help prevent, prepare, and cope, this book is a friendly, authoritative guide for anyone facing dementia and those who care for them. Exploring why disease is a social construct just as much as a biological construct, it helps us understand what it means to live with or care for someone with dementia.

How do I know if I have dementia, and how will I live with it if I do? Can people with dementia consent to sex? Can they choose euthanasia for their future selves? And can we prevent or push back its onset?

Chances are you know someone with dementia, but how well do you really understand the condition? Dementia is a complex interplay of biological, social, and psychological factors, and understanding it means understanding more about society and ourselves.

Approaching the topic through 20 insightful questions, geriatrician Dr. Kate Gregorevic explains the physical state of dementia, how to relate the diagnosis to real life, what questions to ask your doctor, strategies for preventing the condition, and how we can make our homes and society better for people with dementia.

While this book tackles some uncomfortable questions, its purpose is to help—to prevent, to prepare, to cope and to understand—and provide you with strategies for moving forward.

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A Sorceress Comes to Call – T. Kingfisher

It’s never taken me three weeks to read a five star book before. That’s how good this book is. I know. That doesn’t make any sense. Here’s some context…

I started reading this book after attending a conference about coercive control. The day after. It wasn’t the proximity to the conference that affected me, though. It was the fact that I had listened to a series of experts discussing coercive control for two days, yet not one speaker was able to get inside the experience of coercive control in the way that this book does.

I felt the control Cordelia’s mother had over her and because her experience was so authentic (magic aside), I was only able to tolerate small amounts at a time. It got to the point where I would notice my body tense whenever Evangeline walked into a room and that, more than anything else, told me the author had well and truly done their job.

Cordelia’s mother makes her obedient, using her power as a sorceress to control her every action. When she’s obedient, Cordelia is a marionette in her mother’s hands.

Her body is not her own.

No one noticed that Cordelia moved in unison with her mother.

No one ever did.

Her voice is not her own.

Her tongue did not belong to her.

She fears her mother can hear her thoughts.

Cordelia is constantly on guard, monitoring her mother’s moods, her tone of voice, every word she says – searching for clues about her safety – later that day, that hour, the next moment.

Cordelia resists her mother’s violence in small and big ways. She makes herself inconspicuous. Her careful study of her mother has taught her the behaviours she needs to avoid to increase her safety.

Closing the door when she was home alone was as much rebellion as she dared.

Despite having been abused all of her life, Cordelia has strengths her mother has failed to stamp out. Cordelia can identify her mother’s attempts at gaslighting, even though she doesn’t know the terminology, and has been able to hold onto her sense of self in a way that most adults who experience coercive control are unable to.

Evangeline, like many abusers, keeps her daughter isolated, but that’s going to change. They’re about to meet Hester, a fifty one year old woman with bad knees, who’s going to seriously mess with the status quo.

“You can’t save everyone, you know.”

“I’m not trying to. But if someone who needs help falls in your lap, you help them. It’s what you do.”

We all need a Hester in our corner.

This book is about the insidious nature of abuse but it’s also about the seen and unseen ways that people who experience abuse resist. It’s about courage and resilience and hope.

It’s also about the responsibility we have as individuals to remove domestic and family violence from our too hard basket and respond safely if someone shares with you that they are experiencing abuse. If you’d like to explore this more, I can’t recommend Insight Exchange highly enough.

New fear unlocked: white horses. Thanks for that, Ursula. 😊

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Once Upon a Blurb

Cordelia knows her mother is unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms — there are no secrets in this house! Cordelia isn’t allowed to have a single friend. The only time she feels truly free is on her daily rides with her mother’s beautiful white horse, Falada.

But more than a few quirks set her mother apart. Other parents can’t force their​ daughters to be silent and motionless — obedient — for hours or days on end. Other mothers aren’t … sorcerers. After a suspicious death in their small town, Cordelia’s mother insists they leave in the middle of the night, leaving behind all Cordelia has ever known. They arrive at the remote country manor of a wealthy older man, the Squire, and his unwed sister, Hester. Cordelia’s mother intends to lure the Squire into marriage. Cordelia knows this can only be bad news for the bumbling gentleman and his kind, intelligent sister.

Hester sees the way Cordelia shrinks away from her mother. How the young girl sits eerily still at dinner every night. She knows that to save her brother from bewitchment and to rescue the terrified Cordelia, she will have to face down a wicked witch of the worst kind.

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