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Monday, October 26, 2015

Wicked Reads: Mini Review of Slasher Girls & Monster Boys + Halloween Must-Reads & Twitter Sweepstakes



We've finally reached the week of Halloween! I know all of you are looking for spooky reads to get you in the mood and I've got some suggestions here for you!

4/5 Stars
Details of the Book
Hardcover, 385 pages
Published by Dial Books, 
an imprint of Penguin Group
Publication Date: August 18, 2015

Synopsis: A host of the smartest young adult authors come together in this collection of scary stories and psychological thrillers curated by Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea’s April Genevieve Tucholke.

Each story draws from a classic tale or two—sometimes of the horror genre, sometimes not—to inspire something new and fresh and terrifying. There are no superficial scares here; these are stories that will make you think even as they keep you on the edge of your seat. From bloody horror to supernatural creatures to unsettling, all-too-possible realism, this collection has something for any reader looking for a thrill.

Fans of TV’s The Walking Dead, True Blood, and American Horror Story will tear through tales by these talented authors:

Stefan Bachmann, Leigh Bardugo, Kendare Blake, A. G. Howard, Jay Kristoff, Marie Lu, Jonathan Maberry, Danielle Paige, Carrie Ryan, Megan Shepherd, Nova Ren Suma, McCormick Templeman, April Genevieve Tucholke, and Cat Winters

Mini Review: I don't usually reach for Horror stories, but my co-bloggers and I really enjoyed reading these stories to one another. Though since none of us are very knowledgeable about the Horror genre, we definitely felt like we misunderstood a few of the stories. Nova Ren Suma's The Birds of Azalea Street and McCormick Templeman's A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow in particular. There was definitely some missing piece we needed to fully understand these. Our favorite stories are what I could call Revenge Stories or stories of Divine Intervention lol. It was a lot of fun reading this book and it's perfect to get you in the Halloween spirit. 

Our Favorite Stories:

Fat Girl with a Knife by Jonathan Maberry. We never realized that horror could be this funny.

The Girl Without a Face by Marie Lu. A super creepy read with an oddly satisfying conclusion.

Sleepless by Jay Kristoff. This was awesome! This is the kind of horror I can read over and over again with an extremely satisfying and revengeful ending.

Other Spooky Reads suggestions:

Synopsis: Romeo and Juliet meets Children of the Corn in this one-of-a-kind romantic horror.
“When you fall in love, you will carve out your heart and throw it into the deepest ocean. You will be all in—blood and salt.”

These are the last words Ash Larkin hears before her mother returns to the spiritual commune she escaped long ago. But when Ash follows her to Quivira, Kansas, something sinister and ancient waits among the rustling cornstalks of this village lost to time.

Ash is plagued by memories of her ancestor, Katia, which harken back to the town’s history of unrequited love and murder, alchemy and immortality. Charming traditions soon give way to a string of gruesome deaths, and Ash feels drawn to Dane, a forbidden boy with secrets of his own.

As the community prepares for a ceremony five hundred years in the making, Ash must fight not only to save her mother, but herself—and discover the truth about Quivira before it’s too late. Before she’s all in—blood and salt.

Brittany's Full Review of Blood & Salt


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Synopsis: It's the accident season, the same time every year. Bones break, skin tears, bruises bloom.

The accident season has been part of seventeen-year-old Cara's life for as long as she can remember. Towards the end of October, foreshadowed by the deaths of many relatives before them, Cara's family becomes inexplicably accident-prone. They banish knives to locked drawers, cover sharp table edges with padding, switch off electrical items - but injuries follow wherever they go, and the accident season becomes an ever-growing obsession and fear.

But why are they so cursed? And how can they break free? 

Brittany's Full Review of The Accident Season

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Synopsis: The dark will bring your worst nightmares to light, in this gripping and eerie survival story, perfect for fans of James Dashner and Neil Gaiman.

On Marin’s island, sunrise doesn’t come every twenty-four hours—it comes every twenty-eight years. Now the sun is just a sliver of light on the horizon. The weather is turning cold and the shadows are growing long.

Because sunset triggers the tide to roll out hundreds of miles, the islanders are frantically preparing to sail south, where they will wait out the long Night.

Marin and her twin brother, Kana, help their anxious parents ready the house for departure. Locks must be taken off doors. Furniture must be arranged. Tables must be set. The rituals are puzzling—bizarre, even—but none of the adults in town will discuss why it has to be done this way.

Just as the ships are about to sail, a teenage boy goes missing—the twins’ friend Line. Marin and  Kana are the only ones who know the truth about where Line’s gone, and the only way to rescue him is by doing it themselves. But Night is falling. Their island is changing.

And it may already be too late.

Nikki's Review to come soon!


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TWITTER SWEEPSTAKES!

Penguin Teen is hosting a sweepstakes called #TwitterGhostStory which is a week long event starting today (Oct 26th) that ends on Halloween, Oct 31st, where you write a spooky story in 140 characters or less using the #TwitterGhostStory hashtag. There will even be a lot of Penguin authors participating, so be sure to check out the hashtag and enter your own story for a chance to win a prize pack of the Wicked Reads featured titles!

8 comments:

  1. i'm so happy you enjoyed this, britt! <333 i definitely need to get my hands on a copy real soon the devour it heh. cant wait to read your post on your trip quebec :)

    all the love,
    isha | two sisters bloggin'

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    1. I hope you like it! If you read it, we'll have to talk about it =)

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  2. That book of stories sounds bomb, I need to pick it up before halloween, great post!

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  3. Whattttt you actually loved some of the titles? Oh yes, I NEED THIS LIKE NOW! After reading Illuminae, Jay can do nooo wrong in my eyes, so I'm definitely excited for his story. I didn't realize there were so many great authors featured in Slashers. Yep, yep, I need this in my life!

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    1. Yeah and I was scared but it was awesome lol but the amount I can handle. You need to read this so we can fangirl some more!

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  4. I've been seeing this book so much on the bookstagram community lately and I am really debating on picking it up myself. I really love horror/thriller stories, and I'm hoping it won't disappoint! So happy to see you enjoyed it though! :) I also just picked up Blood and Salt, and the minute I finish up reading the books on my read-now list, I'll be starting it! :) Awesome post, girl!

    Talina @ Sassy & Dangerous

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    1. I think a lot of people were reading it for Halloween. There are a lot of great stories, a few I didn't quite understand but that's probably because horror and magical realism isn't really my thing.

      I'm curious about what you'll think if Blood and Salt. It wasn't really for me, so you'll have to let me know what you think!

      Thanks for stopping by!

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