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The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

The Sunday Post #341

On The Blog Recently

• Recent Additions To My Book Wish List
• My Book Buying Ban: One Year Later
• Nature Books I Want To Read
• Best Books Set On Islands
• September Book Releases

In My Reading Life

Is it spooky season yet? I think I'm going to declare it spooky season because I want to read all the horror stuff.

I read Heartbreaker: Stories by Maryse Meijer. This might be the most disturbing short story collection I've ever read. I think my reaction to every story was, "Oh, that's nasty."

The characters in this collection are all using each other. They either don't understand or don't care that they're being used. I guess it's a commentary on loneliness? People are so desperate for love that they'll put up with abuse.

In this collection, there's an arsonist who falls in love with a forest fire, a feral child who commits crimes while her adopted father praises her, a murderer who brings his victims back to life so he can torment them again, and a teenage bully who gives porn to her mentally disabled classmate to find out what will happen. It's all very unsettling.

I both love and hate this book, which was probably the author's intention. It's fascinating to see how far the characters will push the boundaries of acceptable behavior. How much abuse can a person take? On the other hand, some of the stories left me confused and slightly nauseous. These stories are gross! The author has to be a brilliant writer to create such vivid scenes.

Read this book if you have a strong stomach and really like stories about villains. There are no good guys in here.

Then I read The Death Of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling. This horror novel was awesome . . . for a while. It's set in an alternate version of post-WWII England. Jane doesn't want to be a burden to her foster family anymore, so she agrees to a marriage of convenience with the town's doctor. At first, everything is pretty cool. Jane loves the doctor and enjoys helping in his surgery. Then she starts uncovering odd information about her new husband. He has a family mansion that she's forbidden to visit, and maybe he was married before?

This book was super intriguing at first. Jane and the doctor quickly captured my attention. I enjoyed the mysteries of the creepy house and the doctor's odd friends. Then paranormal stuff started happening, and the plot turned weird. I got confused. Then I got more confused. Then I got bored and started wondering why I was spending my time on a book I didn't understand.

I guess I'm disappointed? I liked the beginning so, so much! Maybe you'll have more patience for this book if you love paranormal stuff.

Speaking of paranormal stuff, I read a graphic novel called Thornhill by Pam Smy. It's excellent! Very atmospheric. It's about a teenage girl named Ella who moves into a new house. She starts to notice odd things happening in the overgrown garden of the abandoned house behind hers. The house has been empty for 30 years, but it was once an institute for mentally unstable orphan girls.

This book is massive, but don't let that scare you. The story is told half in ghostly illustrations and half in diary entries from a girl who lived in the institute. It's a quick book to read, even though it's 500+ pages.

I love this book because it perfectly captures an insidious style of bullying that I experienced as a kid. The bullies do small things that disrupt your life and get on your nerves, but they're so small that complaining about them seems petty and pointless. The small things add up until you feel like you're going insane. That's what happens in this book. It's a weirdly relatable horror story.

Like most horror books, this one has plot twists. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending. It caught me off guard, so I guess it's a successful twist, but I'm not sure if I understood all the characters' motivations.

If you're a fan of horror graphic novels, check this one out. I enjoyed it.

Okay, one more. Of course, it's horror. I read Gallant by V.E. Schwab and thoroughly enjoyed it! The illustrations are beautiful, and I can't resist a portal fantasy. This one is about Olivia, a teenager who gets invited to her family's mansion. While exploring the garden, she discovers a stone wall and a doorway to another version of the mansion. This one is full of ghouls and monsters who won't let her leave without a fight.

If you like stories that are all about the magical vibes, then this book is for you. The plot is pretty simple: a kid explores her new home. It reminds me of a young adult version of Coraline. The plot isn't what you remember. The creepy imagery will stick with you for a long time.

Also, that ending? I think it took a lot of courage to end the book that way. It's dark!

This novel is a bit light on plot and character development for my tastes, but I still had fun with it. If you read The Secret Garden and wished it was creepy, then read Gallant.

In The Rest Of My Life

Five things that made me happy last week:

1. Labor Day weekend is over! I'm relieved and exhausted. Labor Day is (usually) the final chaotic day of the year at work. I'm still working a ton of overtime, but hopefully it'll be calmer overtime now. I can tell I need a break because stuff that should stay in my head is starting to come out of my mouth. On Labor Day, I was directing traffic in 100-degree heat, and a lady got pissed about the park's entry fee. She pulled up to me and snapped, "It's Labor Day. Why isn't there free entry?" I said, "Because I'm out here laboring?" The death glare she gave me! 💀 OMG. I shouldn't have said that.
2. Has anyone watched Alone? It's a wilderness survival show. I watched the first few seasons, and then forgot the show existed. Now I'm watching/rewatching it. I'd probably die on that show, but it's fun to watch people suffer.
3. I was actually cold this morning! I'm extremely done with summer. I don't want to be hot anymore. I was thrilled to wake up freezing.
4. I'm loving horror books right now. I just want to eat candy and read horror in bed. That sounds like a perfect day.
5. Wildflowers. There are so many yellow flowers blooming in the roadside ditches. I like seeing happy flowers everywhere.

More Things I Shouldn't Have Said:

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Take care of yourselves and be kind to each other. See you around the blogosphere!