ARC Mini Reviews: The Three Locks, Litany of Dreams, & Malice

 

Happy Saturday everyone!  Today, I'm sharing three ARC mini reviews - The Three Locks (A Sherlock Holmes Adventures #4) by Bonnie MacBird (available April 1, 2021), Litany of Dreams (Arkham Horror #19) by Ari Marmell (available April 13, 2021), and Malice by Heather Walter (available April 13, 2021).  I received these ARCs from NetGalley in exchange for honest reviews.  Read on to see my thoughts:

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The Three Locks (A Sherlock Holmes Adventure #4) by Bonnie MacBird hit all the right notes for me and may be (along with the second and third installments of this series) one of my favorite reads of 2021 so far.  Bonnie MacBird does a marvelous job of bringing Holmes, Watson, and their world to life.  Her style feels quite authentic to Arthur Conan Doyle's original characters while still keeping her take fresh.  This series just keeps getting better and better. I'm so happy to see that there's going to be a fifth installment called The Serpent Under. I can't wait to get my hands on it.  If you're a fan of Jeremy Brett and Robert Downey Jr. as Holmes and David Burke and Jude Law as Watson with just a dash of Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, I have a feeling you'll get a kick out of this series.

My review is also on Goodreads.

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Litany of Dreams (Arkham Horror #19) by Ari Marmell was quite the pleasant surprise.  I've never played the Arkham Horror board game these novels and novellas are based on and I've never read any of those other stories either, but I absolutely loved this.  I think it might make the cut to be on my best of 2021 list actually.  It hooked my attention right off the bat and I enjoyed everything about it from the cast of characters, the dark historical fantasy 1920s setting, the core mystery, and the chilling horror.  I have no idea how this compares to the games and other books set in this world, but I certainly want to find out.

My review is also on Goodreads.

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Malice by Heather Walter is a good YA fantasy LGBT+ retelling of Sleeping Beauty.  That said I don't think I've ever read another Sleeping Beauty retelling so I don't have a point of reference for others, but nevertheless this is great debut novel.  I particularly enjoyed that the story focuses on the character of Alyce who is the Maleficent of this retelling.  I also appreciated that the story clearly shows the gray area between good and evil.  I have a feeling you'll enjoy this retelling if you appreciate the darkness of the Brothers Grimm and Regina from Once Upon a Time.  I'm looking forward to seeing what this Heather Walter will do in the future.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Are you planning on reading any of these books?  What are you reading?  As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!