ScreamAthon - Wrap Up & Mini Reviews

Happy Halloween and Saturday everyone! Today I'm sharing my wrap up and mini reviews for ScreamAthon, a readathon that ran the entire month of October and was hosted by @lifeWHITme (the creator of the PopCulture Readathon),@readingparent (a cohost of the PopCulture Readathon), @JBreatheNBooks, and @LaFlorDeJalisco.  I managed to read all but one of the 25 books I was originally hoping to get to.  You can see my original TBR here.  Keep reading to see my thoughts for the books I completed for this readathon: 

Wrong Number: Number In The Title

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I'm so glad I finally decided to pick up Three Parts Dead (Craft Sequence #1) by Max Gladstone a chance. It had been sitting on my shelf for far too long. I particularly enjoyed Gladstone's world-building of this series opener as it's quite unique.  It's always nice to find a fantasy series where the setting feels so vivid. I can't wait to visit more of this series in book two, <i>Two Serpents Rise</i>.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Gale Weathers:  Unlikeable Characters

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I had no idea what to expect with Johannes Cabal the Necromancer (Johannes Cabal #1) by Jonathan L. Howard  but I ended up loving it.  I love the blend of historical fantasy and horror.  Plus, the dark sense of humor is absolutely delightful and right up my alley.  I can't wait to catch up on this series.  Johannes Cabal the Detective here I come!

My review is also on Goodreaeds.

Stab: A Book Within A Book

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I'm always on the look out for bookish books with bookish characters.  Luckily for me, Magpie Murders (Susan Ryeland #1) by Anthony Horowitz ticked almost all of the right boxes for me.  Aside from being delightful in that respect, it's also a great mystery thriller as well.  I have a feeling this would have been great on audiobook.  When the sequel Moonflower Murders is released I'm going to have to try it in that format.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Rules of the Sequel: Book With Gore

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DNF'd @ p. 141

I read book one of the Never Let Me: Never Let Me Sleep, Never Let Me Leave, Never Let Me Die (Melissa Allen Trilogy #1-3) by Jennifer Brozek collection, Never Let Me Sleep, and have no interest in completing the trilogy. I didn't care enough about the characters and their situation to drag myself through another 342 pages.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Maureen Prescot: Paranormal Book

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I'm just not having the best luck with some of these older mass market paperback horror novels, I guess. It takes way too long for Superstition by David Ambrose to get going. I zoned out during a good chunk of this. I like a good slowburn story that has a good pay off, but I wouldn't even call this slowburn just poorly paced. I will say that the final act is decent although I wouldn't call it worth sticking with for 400 plus pages.

My review is also on Godreads.

Making Popcorn: Food On The Cover

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Many Bloody Returns: Tales of Birthdays With Bite edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner is a fun anthology of vampire stories that in some way or another involve birthdays.  I'd had already read a couple of them before from other collections.  For example, "Dracula Night" by Charlaine Harris was in The Complete Sookie Stackhouse Short Stories that I actually just finished.  My favorite of all thirteen stories included hands down was "It's My Birthday, Too" by Jim Butcher.  That was not a surprise though because it's a Dresden Files story and it features Harry, Molly, and Thomas and was just plain fun.  I also really enjoyed the stories from P.N. Elrod, Rachel Caine, and Tanya Huff.  I really need to start the Vampire Files series, The Morganville Vampires, and catch up on the Vicki Nelson series.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Deputy Dewey: Mystery With A Clueless Character

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It's always good to see Sam Vimes and Thud! (Discworld #34) by Terry Pratchett is no exception.  I'm so glad I finally picked this up after letting it sit on my shelf for so long.  These novels can really brighten up a day.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Mrs. Loomis: Good Old Fashioned Revenge - Revenge Plot

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You're Next by Kylie Schachte is a solid YA mystery thriller that sets a fast pace and keeps you on your toes until the very end.  However, I wasn't a fan of the lead character and there isn't much of a reason for the novel to be a whopping 449 pages long.  I usually like it when books drop you right into the action, but in this case I felt like I was missing something right from the beginning and that never let up.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Joel The Camera Man: Contemporary 

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Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power is a solid sophomore outing from the author of Wilder Girls.  It didn't quite captivate me in the same way as her debut YA novel, but it kept me intrigued throughout.  However, I never really connected with our lead and by the time I got to the big reveal I found myself a little underwhelmed.  Even though the novel comes in at 352 pages, it could have been trimmed down for the better.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Woodsboro: Small Town Setting 

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I wasn't sure what to expect from The Complete Sookie Stackhouse Stories by Charlaine Harris , especially considering that wasn't a fan of how the novel series ended.  The last few books just weren't great in comparison to the earlier ones, but it was fun to be back especially in the stories that are set early on.  I almost forgot how much fun it used to be actually.  It was good to see some of my favorite characters again like Pam, Sam, and Bubba even.  The biggest surprise here, though, is the final story called "In the Blue Hereafter".  It is set a little while after the series has concluded and instead of being from Sookie's perspective it's actually from Manfred Bernardo's as he has a not so chance meeting with Sookie.  That was a pleasant surprise to see him again.  I liked the Midnight, Texas series and enjoyed its tv adaptation as well as what I've read of the Harper Connelly books so far.  He has quite a different tone compared to Sookie and it was cool to see them have the chance to interact with each other.  I'm glad it reminded me to catch up on Harper Connelly series one of these days.

My review is also on Goodreads.

I Wanna Play A Game: Features A Game 

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The Gameshouse (The Gameshouse #1-3) by Claire North is a collection of three novellas from Claire North that are all brilliantly interconnected. I adored the first story called The Serpent set in 16th century Venice. The voice of the narrator is pretty fantastic through all three stories, but the second and third called The Thief set in 1930s Thailand and The Master set in our present day world just didn't quite hit in the same way. Overall, though I highly recommend that you read the entire collection because as I mentioned before the interconnectedness of the three is something special.

My review is alsoon Goodreads.

Randy - Rules to Abide By: Classic Horror Novel

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When it came to Necroscope (Necroscope #1) by Brian Lumley all I had to see was that cover and vampires and Soviet spies when I decided to give this a try.  I had pretty much zero expectations for the novel, but it was actually kind of cool.  I will admit though that some of it is a little corny and I laughed out loud at a few scenes.  I probably looked like a bit of a maniac at work reading at work on my breaks, holding it right up in front of my face chuckling.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Free Space!

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DNF'd @ pg. 30

The Tower by Simon Clark just wasn't for me.  At all.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Head Shot, Just In Case: Book Featuring The Undead

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I loved every second of Death Warmed Over (Dan Shamble, Zombie PI #1) by Kevin J. Anderson. I can never resist noir and urban fantasy and this series opener hit all the right notes for me. Plus, the dark sense of humor is to die for. It's so much fun. I can't wait to continue the series.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Jill - World-Wide Sensation: Hyped Book

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Fellside by M.R. Carey is a solid horror fantasy that I'm glad I finally decided to pick up.  it had been sitting on my shelf for a while.  It never quite managed to reel me in like The Girl With All the Gifts or The Book of Koli but still definitely worth picking up for Carey's style if you enjoyed those two novels.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Would You Settle For PG-13: YA Book

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Steeplejack (Steeplejack #1) by A.J. Hartley hooked me right from the beginning.  I really enjoyed the author's brand of fantasy with a dash of steampunk and murder mystery.  I don't know about you, but this series opener deserves much more attention.  I'm looking forward to continuing this series in the future.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Don't Blame The Movies: Book To Movie Adaptation 

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DNF'd @ pg. 20

A Manhattan Ghost Story (Manhattan Ghost Story #1) by T.M. Wright is just a no from me. Ugh!

My review is also on Goodreads.

Mickey - Our Little Secret: Book With Mental Health Focus

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I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson has been on my tbr for a very long time.  It has some fantastic reviews and it's been recommended to me more times than I can count.  As it turns out, though, I'm in the minority on this.  It just wasn't for me.  The writing style didn't bug me at first, but the longer the novel went on the more it really began to grate on my nerves.  Flowery, extremely descriptive, and heavy on the metaphor are usually perfectly fine by me, but for some reason here it wasn't working.  Plus, I couldn't stand Noah so that definitely didn't help at all.  Also not a whole lot actually happens in all 371 pages so I found myself pretty bored on top of all that.  I don't know.  This novel just wasn't for me.

My review is also on Goodreads.

The Rules Don't Apply: Standalone Within A Series 

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I'm not at all familiar with the game that this is based on or the other books it led to, but I really enjoyed Boneyard (Deadlands #3) by Seanan McGuire. Seanan McGuire has quickly become one of my favorites and I love her style of western fantasy horror. I need more of that genre combination in my life.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Stab-A-Thon: Reader's Choice

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Ghost Road Blues (Pine Deep #1) by Jonathan Maberry wasn't quite what I was hoping for but still solid read and great for the spooky season.  One of my favorite aspects of the story, though, was the small town setting and just how Stephen King this felt.  I'm glad this reminded me that I need to catch up on Maberry's Rot & Ruin series and his Joe Ledger series.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Sidney Prescott - The Final Girl: Slasher Novel

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I didn't realize going into The Merciless III: Origins of Evil (The Merciless #3) by Danielle Vega was a prequel to the first novel in the series.  That said I really enjoyed this installment.  It's a quick, brutal, and horrific.  In other words, it's good entertainment for Halloween. I'm looking forward to the fourth installment in the series.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Sober Sister: College Setting

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I love the Discworld series so much and I think Unseen Academicals (Discworld #37 ) by Terry Pratchett  is a new favorite!  And I'm not even a sports person!

My review is also on Goodreads.

Stab 3 - Movie Magic: Book With A Magical Element

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DNF'd @ p. 50

Awhile back I just happened to pick this up from a Friends of the Library book sale. I had never heard of it or the author before, but I figured I'd give it a try. They were doing one of those fill up a bag as full as you can for $5 sales and I thought why not. As it turns out, Boneman by Lisa W. Cantrell was pretty actively awful. I should have just left this one behind and picked up a completely different book to stuff in my bag.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Scream - The TV Series: Read A Spinoff Book/ Series

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When it comes to these Supernatural tie in novels, the most important thing I look for in everyone is that Sam and Dean sound like themselves.  After that I focus on the story, the case, and the monster.  Luckily, Witch's Canyon (Supernatural #2) by Jeff Mariotte  which is set in the second season does a very good job on all fronts.  It's not the best of the tie in novels, but it's still a must read for fans of the series. 

My review is also on Goodreads.

Did you take part in this readathon?  Have you read any of these books?  As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!