Category Archives: Horror

#Review – XXX by Rayne Havok


Xavier: “I escaped from prison, hauling ass in a stolen car, putting space between me and that barbed wire fence- when the damn thing runs out of gas.Luckily, I come across an old farmhouse that looks empty, even luckier, it is not.The threats about daddy coming home don’t scare me… maybe they should have.”

First off, this book deals with sexual assault and is quite detailed, so if you have triggers, please do not read this. This is extreme and short but packs a punch.

This book starts off with Xavier or X is released from jail and is on a mission. He ends up finding a house in the middle of nowhere that he thought was abandoned but learns that it is not. He meets a family and does unspeakable things to the mom and her two daughters living there. I’ve read a lot of extreme horror but these scenes definitely made me wince. 

Then we meet the dad. I don’t want to give too much else away but let’s just say, X gets what’s coming to him and I enjoyed every second of it.

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/4jVqPTd

#Audio #DarkRomance #Horror – Scythe & Sparrow by Brynne Weaver

From the #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of the genre-breaking international TikTok sensation Butcher & Blackbird and Leather & Lark comes the final book in the Ruinous Love Trilogy—a friends-with-benefits dark romantic comedy packed with murder, mayhem, and spice.

Doctor Fionn Kane is running from a broken heart, one he hopes to mend in small-town Nebraska, far away from his almost-fiancé and his derailed surgical career. It’s a simpler life: head down, hard work, and absolutely no romantic relationships. He wants none of the circus he left behind in Boston.

But then the real circus finds him.

Motorcycle performer Rose Evans has spent a decade on the road with the Silveria Circus, and it suits her just fine, especially when she has the urge to indulge in a little murder when she’s not in the spotlight. But when a kill goes awry and she ends up with an injured leg, Rose finds herself stuck in Nebraska, at the home of the adorably nerdy town doctor.

The problem is, not every broken heart can be sewn back together.

. . . And the longer you stay in one place, the more likely your ghosts are to catch up.

Goodreads

Amazon

Review by Twinsie Angie

I purchased this audio book.

I loved Sloan and Rowen’s book.  I enjoyed Lark and Lachlain’s book.  Rose and Fionn I was so looking forward to reading.  We have seen these 2 dance around each other in the last 2 books .  When we hear Rose declare she loves Fionn in book 2 before saving Lark….I was a gasp!!  I needed to know what happened.

This book takes us back to when Rose and Fionn meet and how they fall.  The story and the slow burn to their love store is soooo freaking good.  I think they are right up there with Sloan and Rowen for my favorite story line.

Fionn has always wanted to be the “good” brother and not like his siblings.  But he isn’t happy until some Mayhem AKA Rose enters his life and asks for help.  These 2 are perfectly imperfect for each other.  They are both so scared but want so much more…MY GOD did I scream so many times at them to just tell the other the truth.

This book was soooo good.  Barbara was a great serious break when needed.  I mean a rabid raccoon is a great way to break the serious right?  Matt coming for Rose and Fionn making sure his girl is safe is what makes us love the hero right??

I just cannot say enough about this book.  The slow burn is what made it.  The suture sisters made me laugh and what they helped Rose and Fionn build is classic!!

But I am so excited for what seems to be coming per the epilogues!!!

Brynne is a fan of velociraptors, the Alien movies (well, most of them), red wine, and wild adventures. She can relate nearly anything you say to a line from the movie Hot Fuzz. She has been trying unsuccessfully for years to convince her husband that they should acquire a pet mink to add to their menagerie of animals (what could possibly go wrong with that plan?!). When not busy writing, Brynne can be found with her husband and son on their family farm in NS, Canada, or enjoying her other passions which include riding horses, reading, motorcycling, and spending time with family and friends around a raclette and a bottle of wine.

#Review – Test Town by Leigh Kenny

Welcome to Test Town.
Population: Zero

When Savannah and her friends decide on a sightseeing pit stop at a long-abandoned nuclear testing facility, something feels off from the outset.
Dilapidated houses. Quiet, dusty streets. And mannequins.
So many mannequins.

With a growing sense of unease, the group soon learns that even in an abandoned town in the middle of nowhere, you’re never truly alone.

Oh this was a fun and super creepy little read. There’s just something about dolls and mannequins that give me the heebie jeebies. 

Savannahs, her brother and his friends, are driving through the dessert and decide to stop at Test Town. There’s no human life and only mannequins. So not unsettling in the least right? Unfortunately for the group, things take a turn for the worse.

Although this was a super short story, I really enjoyed it! Now I need to find more books about creepy dolls and mannequins.

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/3PJdmQJ

#Review – Writer’s Block: How a desperate search for inspiration went terribly wrong by Geoff A. Wilson

A psychological short story by the author of ‘Depravity’, ‘The dream’, ‘Meltdown’, ‘The machine’ and ‘(Un)happy Christmas’.

Ross Stubbard is a failed, angry, and depressed writer who struggles to find inspiration for his next book. One night a strange apparition stands by his bedside – an apparition that embodies Ross’s ghostly alter ego. The apparition urges Ross to write a short story. At first, working with the apparition helps Ross to rediscover his lost writing skills, get him out of his writer’s block, and to develop a gripping story. But then what his alter ego suggests takes on a much darker hue and urges Ross to write a tale of darkness and despair based on himself and his own failed life.

The apparition unlocks a Pandora’s box of Ross’s suppressed emotions and memories where accounts of his deep depression intermix with his fear of alcoholism, where the abuse he has metered out on his wife and kids bleeds into narratives about his darkest suicidal thoughts, and where memories of wanting to hurt people and his readers, who have so selfishly abandoned him, intertwine with his darkest visions of extreme violence and murder.

Too late, Ross realises that his alter ego has become his puppet master, guiding him down a path of self-destruction. The apparition has made him slip further into the abyss, forcing him to lose his grip on reality, urging him to re-enact the horrors he has written, to make the story a reality. The failed, angry, and depressed author, has himself become the embodiment of the darkness he has conjured up in his own, final, story. He, who has sought solace in the cold embrace of his alter ego’s story writing, has unwittingly become the protagonist of his own macabre masterpiece, a story of a man consumed by his own demons, and a cautionary tale of the perilous path that lies at the intersection of creativity and madness.

Oh this one is creepy and disturbing. Especially since I’m an author as well. 

We meet Ross who is a failed author and tries so desperately to find his words again. He looks to an unknown source for inspiration and while it helps him get the words down, he slowly slips into insanity as a result. 

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/40jGXX2

#Review – The Zed Conspiracy by Meera Masen

Previously published under S.M. Phoenix
Based on a writing prompt.


These short stories will have you second guessing how much control the government has over its citizens and whether zombies can be created in a science lab.

PART ONE
On trial for murder, Jonathan Bigwell must prove his innocence after killing what he thought was a zombie. But how innocent is the judge?

PART TWO
Successfully creating a genetic mutation isn’t easy, but scientist Tonya Farris did it. What will her new gene do and why does the government want it?

PART THREE
The government elite must now tie up loose ends and figure out their next move. Will they successfully launch Project Zed?

This was a fun short little zombie read. The government has a gene created that can turn people into zombies. Nothing could go wrong with thay right? Clearly these people have never watched a zombie movie in their life. The story shows the gene being created, the zombies being formed and an attack from some zombies. Cause again, creating zombies is alwahs a good idea. Insert eye roll here. The story also shows a court hearing and how one guy gets convicted of murdering a zombie. While this is just a story, it makes me wonder if it could actually happen. Good thing I’ve watched a lot of zombie movies. You know…for research purposes and all. 

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/40hErjG

#Review – Sewer Rat by Meera Masen

Ben Jansen has been bullied relentlessly since the third grade by his ex-best friend, Jimmy Norton, after he spills an important secret that destroys not only each of their families but also their friendship.

In an odd twist of fate, Ben finds friendship and comfort in a new and unlikely ally under the city streets. His new friend, Henry encourages Ben to stand up for himself.

Armed with newfound confidence, Ben seeks revenge on Jimmy and his Goon Squad, one by one.

This is an extreme psychological horror story. If you are not familiar with the genre, please note that this is extremely dark and twisted.

I really liked this one. I knew something was off, especially when the author said that she hopes the ending makes the reader mad. But I wasn’t sure how it was going to play out.

Ben had been bullied by the Goons for years for reasons that he truly honestly believed happened. But did they?

He ends up meeting a rat, Henry, and this rat and his family help Ben. Not sure it ends exactly how Ben expected though.

I read this one in a single sitting and while it was short, it didn’t feel like it. I think it packed the perfect punch for the length it was. I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/4a21odW

#Review – Gaping Wound by Meera Masen

Caden always knew that he was different and now he would stop at nothing to match who he is on the outside with who he is on the inside. With a mother who doesn’t share his ideologies, Caden begins research on the deep dark web, looking up do-it-yourself gender reassignment surgeries.

This is a splatterpunk/extreme horror story. If you are not familiar with the genre, please note that this is extremely dark and twisted.

This story instantly hurt my heart. To not have the support from your parent where you have to take things upon yourself in the most drastic way. I know this is just a book but I also know that so many people in the world, feel exactly like this character does. I also wonder just how many people do these kinds of things on their own. This was my first book from this author and I can’t wait to read more. This story is extreme and has several triggers. It made me wince and take deep breaths at times. Which is saying something, given the books I’ve read in the past year. Most of all, I loved that Delilah is finally happy. But oy, what a way to find that happiness. Makes me sad that she had to go through all of that.

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/3ZQziOk

#Review – Mary by Kelvin V.A. Allison

Mary just wants to live…

This book was super short but great for those times when you want to get a quick read in.

This is my first story by this author. Girls were sold into slavery and it details what happened to two of them. By the end, it switches to a POV of one of the captors. It reveals his thoughts and how he basically didn’t want to do what he did. 

There are a few possible triggers in this, so please read with caution. 

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/40iBoIo

#Review – Tapewyrmin’: An Extreme Horror Short by Judith Sonnet

Clyde thinks he’s in luck when the hottest babe on campus starts asking after him . . .
Until he’s confronted by her ex. A jock, who claims that Amira isn’t all she seems to be. And that getting her into bed . . . might not be a great idea.
Ignoring his warnings, Clyde meets up with Amira, hoping to have some fun.
But he quickly learns that something unnatural is going on inside Amira’s body.
Something . . . inhuman.

WARNING: This is an extreme horror short. If you don’t like crude content or gore . . . don’t read this story.

This book was gross in the best of ways. I just love the way Judith always comes up with something utterly disturbing in her stories and makes it awesome.

So we meet Clyde who is nothing super special. He’s not popular and only okay looking. He can’t get the ladies either.

After an unexpected encounter with a popular and beautiful girl, his world takes a turn for…the better? I guess it depends on how you look at it. 

This book is a short and super quick read and doesn’t disappoint in the odd department. 

Can be read in KU – https://amzn.to/3PfX4yn

#Review – 100% Match by Patrick C. Harrison III

“What The One Minute Manager was to business, 100% Match is to relationships.” -PC3 Books

Bart is thirty. He is bald. He is overweight. He wears glasses. He is a fry cook. He hates cats. And kids. Bart occasionally does very bad things. He is looking for his perfect match. He has done his research.

“Depraved, deranged, and blackly hilarious. PC3 does what he does best here, and doesn’t hold back. I suspect 89.3% of you will love this story. The other 10.7% are humorless prudes.” -Chris Miller, author of Dust and Dub-Town Blues

“Vile, repulsive, and smart, with a kick-in-the-ass ending. You know, all the stuff we’ve come to love about PC3” -Rayne Havok, author of Necrosis

“Get ready to squirm, cringe, and maybe even laugh! Patrick C. Harrison III’s prose is as slick as it is sick, and 100% Match is one you won’t want to miss. Especially if you’re deranged and looking for love.” -Judith Sonnet, author of No One Rides for Free

“If you like your fiction sick and twisted, this one will be a 100% match for you. PC3 gives us a glimpse into the mind of the truly depraved, and despite the nature of spending time in such a nasty headspace, the story is entertaining as hell. Just don’t read it on a full stomach.” -Robert Essig, author of The Circus Oasis and Tweaker Creatures

Ok this book was so much fun and so random at times, that I couldn’t stop laughing and thinking “WTF am I reading?”

We meet Bart who is trying to find his perfect lady and 100% match. We find out his daily routine and how he lives his life. The things he does, are vile and disgusting at times. The scenes aren’t in the greatest detail but the way the author wrote them, it almost makes it seem worse. It’s like he wrote it in a way that you’re forced to use your imagination and if yours is anything like mine, that’s not a good thing.

I really enjoyed this book and it’s the first I read by this author, so I’ll definitely be picking up more from him. I also absolutely loved the twist at the end.

This book was so entertaining and one I won’t stop thinking about. Oh and I’m never eating a fast food place again.

Can be read in Kindle Unlimited: https://amzn.to/3BtuK8j