Read: Hex on the Beach (#03-2022)

Hex on the Beach by Kelley Armstrong, Jeaniene Frost, Melissa Marr

(anthology of short stories - all supernatural-themed)

Goddess of Summer Love - Kelley Armstrong

Daiquiris and Daggers - Melissa Marr

A Grave Girls Getaway - Jeaniene Frost

I Read: The Complete Sookie Stackhouse Stories

The Complete Sookie Stackhouse Stories by Charlaine Harris

I enjoyed this because it was like revisiting an old friend. I read the Sookie Stackhouse novels years ago, when True Blood was the popular thing to watch on HBO. So coming back to Bon Temps and seeing a few more glimpses into Sookie's world (with a few guest appearances from other series as well) was welcome. 

This is an anthology of short stories/novellas that had previously been included in other anthologies but are now collected under the Sookie banner.  With an introduction to the entire collection by Charlaine Harris, and then small explanations for each story and where it fits into the grander Sookie Stackhouse universe preceding each story. 

It makes me want to revisit the entire series, and include these stories in the order where they fit.  But with my current TBR pile seeming to multiply on its own overnight I don't think I can fit in a reread currently. 

If you're someone who enjoyed True Blood, or has read the Sookie Stackhouse novels, you'd do well to read this. It's just a nice quiet trip back to Bon Temps. 

#43-2021

I Read: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and six more

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and six more by Roald Dahl

I remember Roald Dahl from when I was in school. And of course, he's the genius behind Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I've always been amused by the way his mind works. 

My mom found this book as a set of three book recommendations from Trevor Noah on Goodreads. We both respect and admire Trevor Noah and so we decided to pick up the books. This one was the most surprising of the recommendations so of course, I read it first. I kind of always assumed that Dahl was a white, North American flavour, rather than being globally known. I still don't know any different - Trevor could have found the book once he was already in the US. But I still found it an interesting choice. 

I read: Hex Life

Hex Life: Wicked New Tales of Witchery by Christopher Golden, Rachel Autumn Deering, Kelley Armstrong, Theodora Goss, Rachel Caine, Sherrilyn Kenyon +

Another great anthology, including of course, Kelley Armstrong. This particular collection centres around witches, which is a new theme as most of the collections I've read so far have tended toward other supernatural elements. It was really interesting to see how many different ways to describe and personify witches there are.

I read: Life Is Short and Then You Die

Mystery Writers of America Presents Life Is Short and Then You Die: First Encounters with Murder -  edited by Kelley Armstrong with stories by Kelley Armstrong, R.L. Stine, Y.S. Lee, Melissa Marr, Amanda Witt, Rachel Vincent, Jeff Somers, Eileen Rendahl, David Bart, Jeff Soloway, Julie Tollefson, Joseph S. Walker, Anthony Franze and Barry Lancet, Emmy Laybourne, Jonathan Mayberry, Stephen Ross, Caleb Roehring, and Barry Lyga.


Obviously, I picked this one up because of the Kelley Armstrong connection. I will read anything that she writes because she has been so consistent. Because I trust her writing, I also trust that she wouldn't be involved in anything that doesn't live up to her standard, so I never shy away from reading anthologies that she's involved with. I do, in fact, read everything included in the anthology. And this one is no different.

I read: The End and Other Beginnings

The End and Other Beginnings: Stories from the Future by Veronica Roth

This was a lovely collection of short stories or novellas.  The six stories were a collection of different characters, some of whom we'd met before in other of Roth's work and some new. 

I felt comfortable in these stories, not because I recognized some of the characters but because the writing was familiar and easy to follow.