strange and random happenstance

All year I feel like I've been off. Like I've been continually missing a step on the stairs. Which trickled down into every aspect of my life. Work didn't get done unless I really pushed myself. Everything was accomplished at a slower pace. Which means I'm actually really behind on this blog, but hopefully I will get more on track this coming year. I read several really bad books that put me in a reading funk. Which thankfully really amazing books pulled me out of. I also rediscovered my love of dragons. Seriously. Dragons are just so awesome and we don't talk about them enough. So. If you're new or just need a refresher, my year in review here is to see how much I actually remember of everything I've read. I set a goal of 190 books and yes, me right now typing this is thinking, why the hell did I decide to read that much as I frantically finish two books to complete my goal. But anyway, here it is, and a warning in advance, I tend to be a little more honest than in my reviews... Or should I say blunt? Because I always try to write my reviews fairly because my opinion won't be yours, but here? Well here I let go a little. It's the end of weird ass year and I just barely finished my absurd goal of 190 books. Enjoy!

1) Auld Acquaintance by Sofia Slater: I really liked this book. It's not the most original, as it's really just a more Gothic retelling of And Then There Were None. But it's so deliciously Gothic and on a remote Scottish island and set in New Year's Eve and having it be my first book of the New Year, it was perfectly timed fun. And yes, I view murder mysteries as fun.

2) Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson: This book is kind of a bait and switch, because it's dealing with how you can "kill" someone without actually being a murderer. And here I was hoping for a family of serial killers... But I have to give it credit where credit is due, the lead writes "how to" books on Golden Age mysteries AND the book abides by them. The problem was it wanted to be The Spellman Files. And. Well. No one writes like Lisa Lutz. Definitely not Benjamin Stevenson. 

3) The Winter Spirits: Ghostly Tales for Frosty Nights by Bridget Collins, Susan Stokes-Chapman, Imogen Hermes Gowar, Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Andrew Michael Hurley, Jess Kidd, Elizabeth Macneal, Natasha Pulley, Laura Purcell, Laura Shepherd-Robinson, Stuart Turton, and Catriona Ward: Is it bad that I really don't remember any of these stories? I remember feeling let down by some of my favorite authors. But then again, just because you write a good book doesn't mean you write a good short story. It's its own art form. I vaguely remember something in a house and people eavesdropping... OK, that SO isn't helping anyone at all.

4) Homecoming by Kate Morton: The thing about Kate Morton is you don't read her books for the mysteries, you read them for the mood. The mood in this one was lovely. A stifling summer day, dead bodies piling up for Christmas. But I will say that in this instance, she really nailed to mystery AND the mood. I mean, you couldn't really solve it until she gave you the final two clues, but still, I was left guessing and that's something that is really rare in her books. I'm also SO GLAD she's back on form after the abysmal The Clockmaker's Daughter. Damn I disliked that book.

5) The Great Deceiver by Elly Griffiths: OK, as readers of this blog will know, Elly Griffiths's Brighton set murder mysteries are one of my all time favorite series. Well, they were until the time jump which totally destroyed the female characters. Now I don't know if it's because she's finally learning to balance the characters in their new time period OR if I just missed the characters so much that I was fine with how they were now less than... But I really enjoyed this mystery. I mean, there's just something magical about Max. Also, it's fun when the murders NEED Max's knowledge. Mmm, Max. 

6) Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer #5 by Casey Gilly: OK, now we're into comics, so there's no way I'm going to remember individual issues... I was happy to see an older Buffy back, but this lacked the bite of the previous arc. Here it's just Tara and Willow's daughter lashing out against the council and shit going down at an amusement park. Nothing very earth-shattering...  

7) The Deviant #2 by James Tynion IV: This series is about a supposed serial killer and a young man who interviews him to make a graphic novel. Things spiral out of control and the young man is now imprisoned for apparently doing copycat killings. As I type this I'm still waiting for the final issue and the solution. Because until I know the end I'm not sure how I'll feel about the series. It deals a lot with what it is to be gay and what makes you feel connected to serial killers. In other words, very unsettling, but in the hands of James Tynion IV, kind of unputdownable.  

8) Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #39 by Alyssa Wong: I have not liked Alyssa Wong's run of Doctor Aphra. I feel like she just doesn't understand the character. 

9) Star Wars: Revelations #1 by Alyssa Wong: Ditto.

10) The Deviant #3 by James Tynion IV: See above.

11) Universal Monsters: Dracula #3 by James Tynion IV: Now, the thing about this Dracula adaptation isn't that it's amazingly written, it basically follows the beats of the movie. What's amazing is the art. The watercolor, the collage, I mean, damn, the integration of lace is amazing.

12) Universal Monsters: Dracula #4 by James Tynion IV: See above.

13) Firefly: The Fall Guys #4 by Sam Humphries: Easily the worst arc of Firefly EVER. They end up trapped on a planet with someone Zoe really wants dead and are therefore the perfect patsies for when that person is killed. The assassination doesn't go to plan. Everyone is trapped. But each issue they have to reintroduce the characters for no reason I can see, and it's just too nudge nudge wink wink fuck the fans. God. I don't know if I've ever hated a comic more. Oh, they were also heavily referencing seventies westerns for no reason I can explain.

14) Fables #161 by Bill Willingham: I really don't know why Bill Willingham brought Fables back. All it's been is Bigby and Snow White being white saviors and Peter Pan being a psychopath. That is literally all it is.

15) What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher: A reimagining of "The Fall of the House of Usher" with really creepy mushrooms. Seriously creepy. Good setup for further stories in this world.

16) Scattered All Over the Earth by Yōko Tawada: Possibly the worst book I have ever read. It made me depressed and never want to read anything ever again. And I mean serious depression. I ended up playing Farmville for three months to try to recover. It can't be that bad you say? Well it's racist, it misgenders one of the leads, and I just hate it with ever fiber in my being for ever and ever until the universe dies.

17) The Lover by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: A weird little short story about a woman who uses a werewolf to exact her revenge on her lover who is also her sister's husband. That's if I'm remembering it right... Had a nice Brothers Grimm vibe.

18) Something is Killing the Children Vol. 7 by James Tynion IV: Damn. This was just. Damn. This series pulls no punches. So, this arc was down in the Southwest and ends with the young girl who has helped Erica all along dying. God. Sometimes I don't know why I real these stories because they are so depressing. But it shows the resiliency of the human spirit and that we should never stop fighting. Ever. 

19) Things to Look Forward To: 52 Large and Small Joys for Today and Every Day by Sophie Blackall: Horrible book, clever idea. I really like the idea of having things to spark joy in your life, it's just that Sophie Blackall was weird and oddly specific and in this very short book I grew to hate her as an author profoundly. Which I have to say is a feat for such a short book. And I REALLY hate her.

20) Book of Butcher #1 by James Tynion IV: The second spinoff from Something is Killing the Children which I always forget about. I think there's a new volume soon. This is more like an occasional release once or twice a year. Might be why I forget what it's about and even forget about it so much...

21) Fresh Romance Volume 2 by Maytal Gilboa, Julia Hutchinson, Suzana Harcum, Irene Koh, Sarah Winifred Searle, Sally Jane Thompson, Owen White, and Cecil Castellucci: I was still trying to purge the book I shall never mention from above from my system by trying to bombard it with images and stories that would spark some joy in me. This is the second volume of Fresh Romance, the first volume being near and dear to my heart for bringing Ruined into the world. This volume was OK. I guess. There was a girl who loved nature, and a story that went nowhere, literally, it was a cliffhanger, and then a beautiful love story about two people finding each other again in their later years. But overall forgettable. 

22) Home Time, Vol. 1: Under the River by Campbell Whyte: OK, so I picked this first book up years ago because it almost made my top ten the first time I read it. It's about a group of kids who fall through the water and end up in this weird upside down world. It's inventive and beautifully illustrated and nostalgic all at the same time.

23) Home Time, Vol. 2: Beyond the Weaving by Campbell Whyte: This second volume though is weird because the most vocal character is MIA having been injured, and then there's looming war, and one of their friends finally shows up but older, but then they make it home and everything resets. It was confusing but I still loved it.

24) A Bride's Story, Vol. 1 by Kaoru Mori: I love A Bride's Story and Kaoru Mori SO MUCH. The detail on each page while she captures world of the silk road. This first volume introduces us to Amir and how she's marrying basically a young boy. The idea is that they will form a bond over time as Amir adjusts to her new family and her new life. It's historical fiction as you've never seen it. Seriously, read this series. And don't be too icked out by her young husband. I thought it might be creepy at first, but it's sweet. She's like his big sister who he just happens to be married to. 

25) A Bride's Story, Vol. 2 by Kaoru Mori: This second book still focuses on Amir, but soon we get to see even more characters. Yes. This was a reread. Or a partial reread as it's only the most recent volumes I haven't read yet and I wanted to refamiliarize myself with the world.

26) Death at the Dress Rehearsal by Stuart Douglas: My friend Stuart wrote an awesome retro mystery. If Elly Griffiths's Brighton mysteries were on the set of Dad's Army, that is the vibe here. Lowe and Le Breton are two aging actors who stumble on a corpse and decide that in their downtime between filming, why not solve a crime? The second volume will be out this year.

27) A Bride's Story, Vol. 3 by Kaoru Mori: This one is about a young bride Talas and Mr. Smith, who is basically the chronicler of these tales. He so has found love but is unwilling to admit it.

28) A Bride's Story, Vol. 4 by Kaoru Mori: This one is about two really really annoying twin sisters. They are so annoying I'm surprised their husbands to be haven't drowned them. They could easily make the bodies disappear, as they're fishermen... 

29) A Bride's Story, Vol. 5 by Kaoru Mori: This volume is about the annoying twins's wedding. It's better because they are trying to control their annoying ways. Also, it's fun to see the wedding. Such intricate detail!

30) A Bride's Story, Vol. 6 by Kaoru Mori: Amir's family is in a bind and the only way they see of fixing this is by taking Amir back and marrying her off to someone else. She and her new family do not believe this is the answer. Chaos ensues. 

31) A Bride's Story, Vol. 7 by Kaoru Mori: This one is basically, how naked and how lesbian can Kaoru Mori make this volume? The answer is a lot. Though that's not my problem. My problem is that she changes up the art style and it just doesn't work combined with the characters being rather one dimensional, which is rare for her. Oddly enough this is as far as I've gotten on my reread... Sometimes a lesser than volume can really impede the momentum. 

32) Hokuloa Road by Elizabeth Hand: I love Elizabeth Hand. I detest this book. Hate isn't strong enough for my feelings. Average white boy goes to Hawaii to be a caretaker to an enigmatic boss during Covid. Everyone behaves like there's not a pandemic or an endemic of women going missing. There's a bunch of mystical shit which feels too much like a white woman telling the stories of people she shouldn't. But then again this book is nothing more than white savior complex turned up to eleven, so, it is what it is. A book I detest.

33) Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree: Oh, Travis Baldree is here to save me! With coziness aplenty! Viv is a young battle hungry orc who has an injury. She spends her time reading books and eating pastries and thwarting the very necromancer she was fighting when she was injured in a seaside town. This is a wonderful prequel/sequel, as we get to see how Viv became the orc we know and love AND we get a hint at her happily ever after. Also there's a bookshop!

34) Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #40 by Alyssa Wong: Don't like Alyssa Wong's take on Aphra.

35) Firefly: The Fall Guys #5 by Sam Humphries: See above, worst Firefly EVER. Also such a waste of Francesco Francavilla as a cover artist!

36) Blue Book: 1947 #1 by James Tynion IV: I wasn't sure if I'd like the new arc about the "Summer of Saucers" because the first arc was so meh. But this is far more promising, because it's an event that everyone knows more about. Though they have to get rid of the second storyline. There's no point. Stick to James Tynion IV and only James Tynion IV.

37) The Deviant #4 by James Tynion IV: See above.

38) Mortal Terror #2 by Christopher Golden: I love Christopher Golden so to say I'm loving his inversion of Dracula with the vampires being the "good guys" and the humans being the dangerous threat, well, it's fun. Occasionally confusing, but fun.

39) Damn Them All #7 by Simon Spurrier: OK, so this series is about Ellie and her Uncle. Her Uncle kind of screwed everyone by releasing some, or, all of the demons, and then some corporate asshats get ahold of them. So Ellie's trying to put that all right with the help of the very few friends she has left. Oh, and I think her ex is a total asshole who tries to gain the system. Things do not end well for the asshole.

40) Damn Them All #8 by Simon Spurrier: See above.

41) Damn Them All #9 by Simon Spurrier: See above.

42) Damn Them All #10 by Simon Spurrier: See above.

43) Turtle Bread by Kim-Joy: Kim-Joy from the GBBO wrote this cute comic about found family and making connections through baking. It's sweet, it's sad, it will hopefully help you realize that you matter, even in the smallest of ways.

44) Nostalgia by Scott Hoffman: I think this was about a musician who cloned himself... Maybe. I seriously don't remember.

45) Penance by Peter J. Tomasi: This was about the Winchester Mystery House and the burden the heir felt and why she kept building. Can't remember much about it.

46) The Witch Elm by Tana French: I've had this on my shelf for years and finally got around to reading it. This rather smarmy golden boy gets his ass handed to him and ends up disabled. He moves in with his Uncle who is dying of Cancer. A body is found in a tree on his Uncle's property and it turns out golden boy's two cousins killed the school bully years ago and he never had any clue. In some sort of mistaken attempt to be "one of them" he beats a cop to death because he thinks he's being "harassed." I really really enjoyed this until I didn't.

47) K is for Knifeball: An Alphabet of Terrible Advice by Avery Monsen: No memory.

48) Star Wars: C-3PO Does NOT Like Sand!: A Droid Tales Book by Caitlin Kennedy: No memory, but my rating would indicate that I hated it.

49) The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde: This book is weird. Mainly because I had just reread Shades of Grey for the millionth time and it has the exact same building blocks as this book. Something happened, the world changed overnight, and instead of people being only able to see certain colors here we have rabbits. Rabbits everywhere. I got the feeling I would have found it funnier if I was more in the loop on British politics. In the end it was just a sad story about a man losing all that he loves to rabbits.

50) Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson: The next three books here are what I call the books that got my groove back after the aforementioned and never spoken aloud again shit show of above. I know people were sad that this wasn't a Truly Devious novel, but what if I told you it was better? It has everything you love about Stevie and co, dual timeline mysteries, dark histories, except that instead of the crime not being solved in one volume, it is! You get all the answers and a happy ending in one volume. And lots of salad dressing jokes!

51) What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust by Alan Bradley: I never liked how the Flavia de Luce books ended. It seemed more like her adventures were just getting started. Thankfully, because of the film being made with the woefully miscast Martin Freeman, we're getting two new books! And THIS BOOK, this book is what I would expect of a finale to a well beloved series. Flavia breaks from her family AND the mystery behind her father inexplicably dying of pneumonia, which never sat right with me, is finally answered! There's also the death of a hangman who just happened to keep creepy little souvenirs of the people he executed. Perfection! And we still have another volume to go! 

52) Death by Misadventure by Tasha Alexander: This is Lady Emily at her most Agatha Christie. Trapped at a house that is more like an art museum than a home in the Bavarian Alps she watches as multiple attempts are made on the life of her host's son-in-law. But when a person is actually murdered, he is not the victim, his wife is! A locked room mystery with such atmosphere and such snow! Damn, I love this series so much. MORE!

53) Damn Them All #11 by Simon Spurrier: See above.

54) Damn Them All #12 by Simon Spurrier: See above.

55) Flung Out of Space by Grace Ellis: This is a graphic novel about Patricia Highsmith which I picked up because I'm more than a little obsessed with Andrew Scott and Ripley. Well, this is about her years working on comics and hoping therapists will "cure her" so she no longer desires women without her really wanting to change. There's no sugarcoating of this rather brash woman, and I think that makes it more relatable. Or at least more real.

56) House of Slaughter #16 by James Tynion IV: I believe this is the arc where the young boy with no arms is sent into a foster care situation to see how a monster has been created but he ends up wanting to help the kids when he's been trained to kill them. Bleak shit. But then again. The House of Slaughter arcs are always bleaker than any of Erica's stories.

57) House of Slaughter #17 by James Tynion IV: That.

58) House of Slaughter #18 by James Tynion IV: Arc.

59) House of Slaughter #19 by James Tynion IV: Ends.

60) House of Slaughter #20 by James Tynion IV: Here.

61) House of Slaughter #21 by James Tynion IV: And I believe this is the beginning of the end of Jace's story... I think. It's been awhile. I tend to forget House of Slaughter...

62) Under York #1 by Sylvain Runberg: Magic lady, I think a witch, lives in the "real world" but does paintings of the magical world she left behind. So when the magical people she is trying to avoid show up I can't help but think, you asked for this. I've read it twice now, it's totally forgettable. I think her little brother killed her parents and is now possessed by a demon. Could be wrong. Don't really care if I am.

63) Jim Henson's Labyrinth Archive Edition #1 by Sid Jacobson: Labyrinth has been literally everywhere this year. And I'm not sure why because it's not like it's an anniversary year. Anyway, this was cool in that for no reason I can see they reissued the original three volume comic arc that was released when the film came out in 1986. What's weird though is without the songs and with just the generic drawing style of the day it's just nostalgic fun nothing too spectacular.

64) Helen of Wyndhorn #1 by Tom King: OK, this will serve as a whole blanket statement for all of Helen of Wyndhorn, AKA, my new favorite comic. This series is amazing. Helen is a young girl, very Lolita-esque, who travels around the United States with her father, who writes pulp fiction, but of the more Tarzan style. He kills himself and Helen is forced to go back to the ancestral home where she learns that her father's stories were all real because there's a gateway to the magical realm he wrote about on the property. Helen has a new purpose in life, which doesn't involve the bottom of a bottle, and her grandfather is proud of her and takes he under his wing until she is badly injured. And that is where I've left it because I haven't read the finale yet because I seriously don't want it to end. Also, the artist, damn, Bilquis Evely, remember that name, she will be renowned. 

65) Helen of Wyndhorn #2 by Tom King: See above.

66) Babel, or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution by R. F. Kuang: OK, by all parameters, I should have loved this book. It's heralded as the next Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. I have news for you. It isn't. It's so so bad. I mean, seriously, why do people like this? This is basically a dissertation on how colonialism is bad and how they use magic as just an extension of colonialism. It's so long and boring and I didn't care about a single character. I'm glad they almost all died.  

67) The Black God's Drums by P. Djèlí Clark: Oh, and here's the irony reading this novella after Babel. In just a few pages there's more worldbuilding here than in the entirety of that bad book. Here we have a young girl who must save New Orleans from a massive storm that the gods and their enemies plan to bring down on them. I need P. Djèlí Clark to write more stories in this world where magic and the supernatural have warped the history of America and the outcome of the Civil War. MORE!  

68) Threadneedle by Cari Thomas: I bought this book on a whim because the title made me think it involved the art of embroidery and knots, kind of what Diana Bishop studied in the second All Souls book. I was completely wrong but I loved it because this is a British version of The Craft. In fact I loved it so much I had to order the second book right away because I couldn't wait an extra month for it to be published in the US. Also, it's really dark and twisted involving a family curse and love.  

69) Fables #162 by Bill Willingham: See above. Stupid white saviors. 

70) Jim Henson's Labyrinth Archive Edition #2 by Sid Jacobson: See above.

71) The Worlds of James Tynion IV by James Tynion IV: OK, this was fine. It was a Free Comic Book Day release and I thought it would have something new, but it's just little bits of all his stories so far. So while enjoyable, I'd read it all before...

72) The Deviant #5 by James Tynion IV: See above.

73) Spectregraph #1 by James Tynion IV: This will serve for all the issues, but as I type this the fourth issue is coming out tomorrow, so it's not like there've been many. Man is head of cult looking into living forever and what exactly are ghosts. He builds this huge house in California and after his death the cult, which he split from, decides to send someone in to see what's going on. So a realtor and an acolyte enter the house. And get trapped. Ghosts and specters haunt and chase them. They don't know what they are or how to get out, but then they find him... And that's where I've been left waiting. It took awhile to really get into the story because the realtor is annoying and she left her small child at home unattended to try to make the sale. But it's grotesque and gorgeous and it's oversized but not overlong so it feels like a real luxurious comic. Can't wait to see how it ends!

74) Firefly: The Fall Guys #6 by Sam Humphries: My hell is over.

75) Free Comic Book Day 2024: Star Wars #1 by Charles Soule: No idea what happened, but my rating indicates that I liked it.

76) Blue Book: 1947 #2 by James Tynion IV: See above.

77) Blue Book: 1947 #3 by James Tynion IV: See above.

78) Doctor Who: Free Comic Book Day 2024 by Dan Watters: No memory. At all. 

79) Dying Inside by Peter Wentz: Preview of the full comic in which an angsty girl tries to kill herself only to curse herself with immortality. I really want to read the full comic but my library never bought it and now my library no longer has Hoopla because apparently buying a Deplorian (AKA cybertruck) was a better use of the city's funds.

80) Mortal Terror #3 by Christopher Golden: See above.

81) Hellboy: The Fortune Teller / Stranger Things: Deliver Me From Evil by Mike Mignola: I literally remember nothing of this but my rating says I loved it. I will say though every Free Comic Book Day they bring out what you think will be a crossover, like The Witcher and The Umbrella Academy last year, or Resident Alien and Stranger Things the year before, but it never is.

82) Marvel and Fantagraphics Presents Stories From The Atlas Comics Library FCBD 2024 by Joe Maneely: Apparently really liked it and I remember nothing.

83) Archie Horror Presents The Cursed Library Prelude FCBD #0 by Jamie Lee Rotante: I have apparently removed this from my memory for a good reason...

84) The Hedge Witch: A Threadneedle Novella by Cari Thomas: Rowan goes to visit her Aunt, a kooky hedge witch who lives out in the country. She falls in with the local group of teens and finds out that they are doing all these hijinx and endangering the magical community. It's cute. I expected something a little more because Rowan is the character I relate to most in the series. But it was fine.

85) House of Slaughter #22 by James Tynion IV: This is the arc where Jace dies. Making everything else that came before kind of pointless. I think I'm giving up on this adjacent series...

86) House of Slaughter #23 by James Tynion IV: Ugh.

87) Rivers of London Volume 12: Stray Cat Blues #1 by Ben Aaronovitch: OK, I seriously don't know why I keep reading the Rivers of London comics because I HATE THEM. All the characters look wrong, the clothes don't resemble anything that cloths are, and the plots are pointless. Here I was thinking we'd get an Abigail and the foxes story, instead that loser Hoodette is back and so is Reynard, who somehow works in the books but not in the comics. God. Someone take these comics away from me. I don't care anymore if they have information I "need to know" for the books. It's too bloody painful.

88) Ayoade on Ayoade by Richard Ayoade: This might be the weirdest book you will ever read. Remember those books that were everywhere in the nineties, Lynch on Lynch and Burton on Burton. Filmic books where auteurs took on their oeuvre. Well, this is a parody of that written by Richard Ayoade. The book could be overlooked as complete wankery if there weren't just random bits of genius scattered about, like his opinions on Roman Polanski and the television show Columbo. A quick read which you shouldn't expect too much from.  

89) The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovitch: This was touted as a Thomas Nightingale novella, and while yes, he's in it, and oddly in it in drag, this is really just Ben Aaronovitch proving he can write just like P.G. Wodehouse. It's fun. Augustus is a character I would love to hear from again as we both totally agree on how sexy Thomas is...

90) Shadowstitch by Cari Thomas: THE book I had to order from overseas because I couldn't wait. The British version of The Craft is getting darker. The evil aunt is dead, the sisters now know they're sisters, they both love the same man, and they take a little trip to the underworld! Dark and delightful.

91) Winter Lost by Patricia Briggs: OK, I'm so going to bitch that for once I didn't get an ARC of Patricia Briggs's newest book until after it was released by which time I had already read it... I like, no I LOVE, to be a few months ahead of everyone else. It is what it is and I always buy a copy. But anyway, Mercy's brother Gary needs her help because their father Coyote is up to something out in the wilderness. There's a ritual marriage that needs to take place otherwise the world ends. It's Ragnarok time! What I particularly liked in this volume was there was very much a Stephen King's The Shining vibe...

92) The St. Ambrose School for Girls by Jessica Ward: This is an interesting book about how a mentally unstable girl handles the murder of one of her classmates who was having an affair with a teacher. It really ups the unreliable narrator angle but makes you really connect to the character and her struggles. Also, the ending is perfection. 

93) Ghostlore Vol. 1 by Cullen Bunn: This volume actually contains the first four issues which I have already read once before but the final six issues finally dropped on Hoopla so I had to "jog" my memory. And even having read these twice I still barely remember the story. A family gets in a car accident and the daughter and father survive but the son and mother are killed, though the survivors don't realize that at first because they can now see ghosts. And how the preacher father and his self-harming daughter deal with the ghosts are very different. He gets angry, she tries to help. Every issue there's the story of a ghost and how it died. Eventually there's an antagonist. Lots of people die. It almost looks like the end of the world but it somehow isn't because the daughter dies... And seriously, I don't care. I hated this series. The story was not all there but the worst part was the art by Leomacs. If you go look up the series you'll see that after the first four issues they got another artist to do the cover because OMG, the art by Leomacs is just so so so ugly. It doesn't do this series any favors.

94) Ghostlore #5 by Cullen Bunn: See above rant.

95) Ghostlore #6 by Cullen Bunn: See above rant.

96) Ghostlore #7 by Cullen Bunn: See above rant.

97) Ghostlore #8 by Cullen Bunn: See above rant.

98) Ghostlore #9 by Cullen Bunn: See above rant.

99) Ghostlore #10 by Cullen Bunn: See above rant.

100) The Deviant #6 by James Tynion IV: See above. And it's not a rant.

101) Something is Killing the Children #36 by James Tynion IV: These issues start the Erica Slaughter oneshots. Traumatic little stories to tide the readers over until the next arc. I can't remember them all but one of them dealt with her seeing a therapist and it just blew me away. How can this main series be so amazing and the spinoffs be so meh? 

102) Something is Killing the Children #37 by James Tynion IV: See directly above.

103) Something is Killing the Children #38 by James Tynion IV: See directly above.

104) Spectregraph #2 by James Tynion IV: See above.

105) Middle of the Night by Riley Sager: Another great nostalgia driven thriller by Riley Sager. This time a guy moves back into his family home. When he was a kid his best friend disappeared from a sleepover they were having in his backyard. Now that he's home, weird things are starting to happen. Has his friend returned, in some form? Will he learn the truth? Yes to all of that! 

106) Jim Henson's Labyrinth Archive Edition #3 by Sid Jacobson: See above.

107) Helen of Wyndhorn #3 by Tom King: See above.

108) The Last Days of New Paris by China Miéville: Dammit. I really hate this book. I was rereading it to review it and my problem is it just doesn't work. So Paris in WWII is hit by a "surrealism" bomb making elegant corpses walk among the streets of Paris. The allied forces and the Nazis both want to use them to some extent to win. Only it's implied that this is an alternative world that does somehow connect to ours. Oh, and China Miéville does NOTHING to explain the artists of the Surrealist movement so even though I took five art history courses AND have an art degree I couldn't have followed this had I not recently watched Transatlantic on Netflix. Also he writes himself into the book and is way too self-impressed. And the final nail in the coffin, it's somehow the fifties and the war hasn't ended?

109) The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed: This is a very interesting tale about a woman who is forced to go into an otherworldly forest to rescue the children of the local ruler. It's very dreamlike and nonspecific. It's like a fairy tale that could have happened at anytime. You can really see how other stories, especially George MacDonald's Phantastes influenced it. I have a feeling there might be a sequel. Just a feeling.

110) The Author's Guide to Murder by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White: A lot people were confused at first by this book because it's not the typical Team W book, AKA historical fiction in different eras. The Author's Guide to Murder is all set in the present in Scotland. I counter with the confused that it's the most Team W book ever, because it's the three of them on the page tromping about Scotland plotting revenge and solving murders. It's a lot of fun and you can really tell that they're friends because the way they each write a "version" of each other is fabulous. And oh so funny. Also I was totally right about the real killer! And no. It wasn't sheep. Or was it?

111) Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros: I usually avoid "popular" books because for some reason I don't get the appeal. Which is why I waited a year to get this from the library. And, well...I loved it. A dragonrider academy which makes the death toll on Game of Thrones look like child's play!?! It was so so wonderful and snarky and dramatic and heartwarming and sexy. I immediately ordered the sequel and was sad I had to do other things than read because I needed more Violet Sorrengail! I mean, deep down, ever since I was little I was obsessed with dragons. I thought perhaps as I aged that went away. Apparently not.

112) House of Slaughter #24 by James Tynion IV: See above.

113) Totem by Laura Pérez: OK, I don't remember much of this, there's a weird spiritual journey into the desert and I think there's a cat... I was mainly here for the art because Laura Pérez is a genius and you've probably seen her work and not known it. The opening credits for Only Murders in the Building is her. So yeah. Genius.

114) Secrets of the Witch by Elsa Whyte, Julie Légère, and Laura Pérez: Because I loved Laura Pérez's art so much I checked to see if my library had any other books by her and this history of witchcraft was one of them. It's a fine primer for witchcraft and the history of witch hunts, particularly in France and Germany. Once again though, I was here for the art. It's just beautiful. Plus she did a drawing of Willow Rosenberg and that made my geeky heart happy.

115) The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas by Machado de Assis: This is a book you'll either love or hate. It's a bombastic self-impressed narrator whose life was basically womanizing and contributing nothing to society until at the end he had an idea, but he died without it being brought to fruition. And although he narrates his life from the other side he doesn't bother to explain his idea, which is rather annoying. What's best about this book is this new translation, where the words are poetry. The way he describes his family, I will live on that for quite awhile.

116) The Deviant #7 by James Tynion IV: See above.

117) The Nice House by the Sea #1 by James Tynion IV: We're finally getting a sequel to The Nice House by the Lake! This is a whole different group of people chosen by an alien to live in their little sphere set aside from the apocalypse. And this alien looks to have actually followed the rules to find the best of the best instead of just peopling the house with their friends... We shall see what happens next!

118) Something is Killing the Children #39 by James Tynion IV: See above.

119) Hello Darkness #1 by Garth Ennis: So this is an anthology series I kind of feel I was tricked into buying because there's a new Something is Killing the Children story that is going to be in it, but the rest of the stories are so bad, like the group of friends facing the apocalypse. And I want to like it as the editor in explaining the series has a solid concept and the cover art is fabulous. The contents though leave something to be desired...

120) House of Slaughter #25 by James Tynion IV: RIP Jace.

121) Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros: Fabulous follow up to Fourth Wing. Here we get to see more of the surrounding country AND Violet and her cohorts set up a "secret" school in the south where all those who believe their country is lying to and endangering their lives, which they are, can help to save the world. The best part is they all flee and the first thing they do is start up classes again? I mean. You're fighting for your lives so lets have some fake ass history that was made up to hide that fact that we might be the bad guys... But at least they're trying, right? I can't wait for the third book this month!

122) Ghostlore #11 by Cullen Bunn: See above.

123) Ghostlore #12 by Cullen Bunn: And it's done. God it was bad.

124) Arkham Horror: The Terror at the End of Time #1 by Cullen Bunn: And here's the thing. How can Cullen Bunn write such a bad story like Ghostlore and then write this Arkham series which is fun. Early twentieth century Lovecraftian mysticism, yeah! Though I do wish I had know this was tied into a RPG before I started reading it. So that's your FYI of the day.

125) The Magicians by Lev Grossman: This was my third reading of The Magicians. See the thing is I adore the show but at first I hated the book. Then I liked the book. Now I love the book. Sometimes it's all about the right book at the right time. Because sometimes it's the right book at the wrong time. This reading I really connected to Quentin Coldwater and his search for fulfillment in life and being disillusioned that magic can't fix everything. Yeah. I really connected to his disillusionment. 

126) The Magician King by Lev Grossman: Reading The Magician King after having watched the television show was interesting, because Julia's story runs parallel to Quentin's in the show and here it's flashbacks to how she had to illicitly attain her magic and then how she became part of a found family who were then literally killed by a trickster god. All with a creepy rape scene which I think wasn't that well handled because she mentions having to tamp down pleasure. Just, no. But the "current" story is how Julia and Quentin get accidentally thrown back into the real world because of a key and have to find their way back to Fillory and find a set of magical keys so that magic can remain and the gods won't reclaim it. In the end Quentin succeeds but is banished from Fillory. As his fate seems to always be Quentin never getting what he wants. 

127) The Magician's Land by Lev Grossman: The final book in this series, which is now a favorite of mine, sees Quentin tyring to live a life without Fillory. Which means he returns to the only other place he's thought of as home, Brakebills. But things go awry and he's forced out along with a student, Poppy, who happens to be a descendent of one of the Chatwins. Desperate for money the two of them join a heist. The object of the heist turns out to be a blade capable of killing a god and Rupert Chatwin's memoir. The memoir is important because it hints at how to stop the end of Fillory. This book as a wonderful Neverending Story vibe and the return of Alice. Loved it. Will definitely be on my top ten of the year list. 

128) Hunt for the Skinwalker by Zac Thompson: This is about Skinwalker Ranch and all the extraterrestrial activity there. But instead of sticking to "facts" they make up an entirely fake story and it's just so damn stupid. 

129) Rivers of London Volume 12: Stay Cat Blues #2 by Ben Aaronovitch: I hate these comics so much. See above.

130) Rivers of London Volume 12: Stay Cat Blues #3 by Ben Aaronovitch: See above.

131) Rivers of London Volume 12: Stay Cat Blues #4 by Ben Aaronovitch: Above, if you care. 

132) Mortal Terror #4 by Christopher Golden: See above.

133) Firefly: 'Verses #1 by Ryan Parrott: I believe this is a weird "what if" story, and the what if is about the Browncoats winning. And it was painfully stupid and I hated it. The Firefly franchise in general needs some new blood or to be put out of its misery.

134) Blue Book: 1947 #4 by James Tynion IV: See above.

135) Blue Book: 1947 #5 by James Tynion IV: See above.

136) Under York #1 by Sylvain Runberg: I had to reread this to remember anything about it. Anything I remembered is above.

137) Under York #2 by Sylvain Runberg: Again, almost totally forgettable, but I recall me thinking, two issues in a year and you expect people to care!?! Also I recall the magical "classes" seemed too divided along racial lines. Which left a bad taste in my mouth.

138) The Girl from Greenwich Street by Lauren Willig: Lauren Willig doing historical fiction based on true crime? Yes please! She's done a wonderful job bringing to life the first recorded murder trial in the United States which just happened to have Hamilton and Burr working "together" in the defense of Levi Weeks. Lauren brings these people to life and it roots the story in New York's history perfectly and has a vibe reminiscent of The Alienist. I can't wait until everyone else gets to read it this year! It's also one of the reasons I'm doing something special on the blog starting next month... 

139) The Nice House by the Sea #2 by James Tynion IV: Oh, we're back with the gang from The Nice House on the Lake. So these are obviously going to connect right? Also, that dog is totally Walter bringing himself back into the mix without totally resurrecting himself and freaking them out right?

140) Something is Killing the Children #40 by James Tynion IV: See above.

141) Hello Darkness #2 by Garth Ennis: See above.

142) Helen of Wyndhorn #4 by Tom King: See above.

143) Firefly: Malcolm Reynolds Year One #1 by Sam Humphries: My rating indicates it wasn't all bad. But I don't think it was all good because then I might remember something...

144) The Autumn Kingdom #1 by Cullen Bunn: A family of four move into the Scandinavian countryside so the dad can work on his book as he's a rather successful writer. The first night they are attacked by mythical creatures that seem like they are straight out of his writing. The parents are dragged off into the woods and the two kids must rescue their parents while fighting creatures and the scariest of all, humans who worship the creatures. Yes, there's a similarity to Helen of Wyndhorn with the writing being real. But has such a different feel. I can't wait for more.

145) Arkham Horror: The Terror at the End of Time #2 by Cullen Bunn: See above.

146) Putting the Chic in Psychic by Diana Pharaoh Francis: This series is weird. It like wants to be cozy like Gilmore Girls but also the lead character has severe psychological trauma from being raised by her aunt who claimed to be her mother and tortured her. Here we have a scary possession and a woman held hostage by her evil husband. Very girl power and #MeToo but still, such a weird dynamic.

147) Jim Henson's Labyrinth #1 by Kyla Vanderklugt: Now THIS comic version of Labyrinth is a new version using the original novelization which had a lot of details that are not in the movie OR the original comic. Still.... Why read this when you could watch the movie because Jareth doesn't look like David Bowie and I miss the songs.

148) Helen of Wyndhorn #5 by Tom King: See above.

149) Hello Darkness #3 by Garth Ennis: See above.

150) Spectregraph #3 by James Tynion IV: See above.

151) Meeting the Other Crowd: The Fairy Stories of Hidden Ireland by Eddie Lenihan: This is an interesting book. Eddie Lenihan went around the west and southwest of Ireland recording oral histories of people's encounters with fairies. So, the stories are just as good as the storyteller, therefore the book is uneven. But it's interesting in that belief in them is unwavering AND I think if someone had opened up a business helping people figure out where to build their houses so they weren't offending the fairies they would have made a killing.

152) Brian Kesinger's Broomsticks and Brushwork by Brian Kesinger: Brian Kesinger's lovely book about witches. If I recall before he Kickstarted the book this was an Inktober project he set himself one year. My number one rule in life is back all Brian Kesinger Kickstarters because they are fabulous. This is just a look at all the kinds of witches there are in Brian's imagination. 

153) The Cloisters by Katy Hay: This is an interesting book because it's a bait and switch. I thought it was going to be magical and about tarot, but the tarot is a red herring and it's really about a small group of academics who work at The Cloisters in New York City and how their lives become entangled while they research these mysterious tarot cards. Of course it ends in murder. And maybe not just one. It was enjoyable but not at all what I was expecting.

154) The Witches of New York by Ami McKay: This book like Diana Pharaoh Francis's book above is a book that is bipolar. There's a cozy tea shop run by two witches who help out all who come, including a stray girl who believes working there is her destiny. Then there's the fact that Satan walks amongst us and is using a preacher to prey on witches and torture and kill them in his basement. I wish there was some middle ground. I want to love it, but it felt out of balance. Though I adored all the history which connected to The Alienist and The Gilded Age. Oh, and Cleopatra's Needle! That history was fascinating. But the story did give me whiplash many times.

155) Houses of the Unholy by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips: Brubaker and Phillips are hit or miss, and this story about the Satanic Panic was a big swing and a miss.

156) Night Fever by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips: As was this one. Though it wasn't about the Satanic Panic, this was about a guy on vacation that is drawn into a dangerous underbelly world and then just goes home.

157) The Deviant #8 by James Tynion IV: See above.

158) The Nice House by the Sea #3 by James Tynion IV: They are connected! And the really ripped guy from the first issue of this new arc turns out to be a friend to all the people at the lake house and knew all about Walter's plan!?! Oh, the story deepens. I'm glad it's bringing in something new instead of just repeating the same story with different characters in a far nicer setting.

159) The Autumn Kingdom #2 by Cullen Bunn: See above.

160) Where the Body Was by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips: And this here. This is Brubaker and Phillips pure perfection! A small neighborhood where a series of break ins and then a disappearing body unit them all. Think The 'burbs but with less of, ironically, Houses of the Unholy.

161) Batman: The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale: I've had this book forever and never gotten around to it, which, damn, why didn't I read this sooner? It's gritty Batman but instead of the superhero angle it's more about the mafia in Gotham and how the desire to take down the reigning crime families drives Harvey Dent to madness.

162) Batman: Haunted Knight by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale: This actually can before Batman: The Long Halloween and is three short arcs that inspired DC to give the go ahead for Loeb and Sale's magnum opus. The best is the way they retell A Christmas Carol with Batman. 

163) Batman: The Long Halloween - The Sequel: Dark Victory by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale: This is the sequel to Batman: The Long Halloween showing how Gotham is now taken over by the "freaks" and the mafia has lost their foothold. While technically it's probably more satisfying and well written I still favor Batman: The Long Halloween because I felt like it really broke new ground and this was just tying up loose ends.

164) Batman: The Long Halloween - Catwoman: When in Rome by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale: This isn't technically part of Batman: The Long Halloween, unless you take into account that Selina went away for awhile during Batman: The Long Halloween - The Sequel: Dark Victory, and this shows what she was up to. What she was up to was trying to prove that she is the daughter of the late not lamented Carmine Falcone, though never really saying it outloud. But really she's just tooling around Italy with the Riddler making it Gotham overseas. So why even set it in Italy then? Though, once again, fabulous art by Tim Sale, especially the covers!

165) Affinity by Sarah Waters: I've been wanting to read Affinity for a long time. Mainly because spiritualism. Anything to do with spiritualism is catnip to me. I must read it. I've actually been thinking of doing like a "Medium Month" or some such theme month. Here we have the story of a woman who became suicidal after the death of her father and her lover marrying her brother. To "help" her it is suggested that she become a visitor to Millbank prison to show the women what they might aspire to. There she becomes obsessed with a medium who was involved in the death of her patroness. Obsession, passion, spiritualism, and just a stunning long con. I adored this book. And unlike her book Fingersmith, Sarah Waters leaves you wanting more. 

166) House of Slaughter #26 by James Tynion IV: This is the new arc. I have no clue what's happening. At all. None. I think it deals with that one guy whose power was in a brush or pencil or something lame like that. But I thought he died. Whatever. I'm over this series. Especially as my library no longer has Hoopla I will not be paying good money to read this.

167) The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science by Kate McKinnon: Have you missed A Series of Unfortunate Events? Well then you're in luck because Kate McKinnon has written her own version with three orphaned girls training to be mad scientists. There are madcap adventures, many bichon frises, and worms. But like BIG worms. The only downside is that this is obviously meant to be a series so there really isn't any resolution to be had here. But much like A Series of Unfortunate Events a lot of money was poured into the production of this book. It's so pretty with it's green foil embossed on the covers under the dustjacket. I'll be interested to see where it goes. 

168) What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher: The second book in T. Kingfisher's Sworn Soldier series is so much more solid than the first. I don't know if it's because it's totally its own thing and not based on Poe or just because the worldbuilding has already been set in motion by the first book and this was just a delightfully Gothic continuation. This was all about a haunting at a family hunting lodge in "Ruritania." OK, I looked up the name in the book, it's in Gallacia. It would have bothered me if I had used the umbrella term. But it's lot of crusty old women who work begrudgingly and are the holders of all the knowledge. It's just a delicious Gothic story and this one made me want a whole heck of a lot more in this series.

169) Seance in the Asylum #1 by Clay McLeod Chapman: You know what's probably not a good idea? Bringing a medium into an asylum. You can see from a medical point of view that if you can't see the demons that beset your patients perhaps bringing in someone who sees the unseen is a good idea. But anyone who has read any Gothic fiction or ghost stories knows this will not end well. At all. Excited for the second issue which I have but haven't gotten around to yet. 

170) Hello Darkness #4 by Garth Ennis: See above.

171) Batman: The Long Halloween: The Last Halloween #0 by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale: So, the reason I started reading the whole "Long Halloween" oeuvre was because it was continuing. I didn't know at the time that it was continuing without Sale. Yes, I knew he had tragically died. I just thought maybe he had finished this before that. Well he had finished this little prequel and then they cobelled together some covers and that is the extent of his work. I haven't yet started the new arc... But I have hopes. This was fine from what I remember...

172) Jim Henson's Labyrinth #2 by Kyla Vanderklugt: See above, though we're up to the door riddle if you're wondering about pacing...

173) The House of Last Resort by Christopher Golden: OK, I need to first say that I love Christopher Golden. He is an amazing author and an amazing person. I met him the first time at a Buffy convention back in 2003 an him in person is just as awesome as you'd think from his online presence. I really wanted to like this book. It's a wonderful concept, everyone has heard of those Italian towns where houses are $1 and thinks, that right there is a horror book waiting to be written. I just don't think Christopher Golden was the right one to write it. The leads are annoying and two-dimensional. The story is just stupid. The writing was meh. I literally hated this book. Which seeing as I went in so wanting to love it is something of an achievement. Still love Christopher Golden. This book was just not for me.  

174) Bad Machinery Vol. 7: The Case of the Forked Road by John Allison: With my library ending their partnership with Hoopla I made a goal of finishing all the Bad Machinery books before I'd have to buy them. This one was very meh. Time travel messing up the present. Whatever. 

175) The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake: This is nothing more than fanfic of The Magicians. Six people chosen for their powers to have access to the Library of Alexandria. The catch, they have to kill one of their own. Oh, and they might end the world. Is it bad that I liked the artwork better than the book?

176) The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake: This book was painful to read. I am 100% convinced that Olivie Blake was told by Tor that they were only buying trilogies not duologies and she made a placeholder book where NOTHING HAPPENS! NOTHING! OK, maybe some philosophical ruminations making it magical Sophie's World. But other than that? NOTHING HAPPENED! 

177) Bad Machinery Vol. 8: The Case of the Modern Men by John Allison: This might be my favorite, all it was was a fun tale of mods versus rockers. Cute. Oddly enough I find the ones that are less way out there supernatural to be better. I don't mind the supernatural, it's just that John Allison doesn't really know all the time when it's too much.

178) Bad Machinery Vol. 9: The Case of the Missing Piece by John Allison: As I type this I literally read this less than a month ago and I have no idea what happened.

179) Bad Machinery Vol. 10: The Case of the Severed Alliance by John Allison: This one was weird. All the kids are like working at the newspaper and one of the girls who is fifteen I might add is "dating" one of her coworkers. It's all about one guy's vendetta against the town but it was boring or gross.

180) The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: OK, I will say that I at this point I actually started The Atlas Complex and I just couldn't with it at the moment so I picked up the newest Inheritance Games book, or Inheritance Games spinoff I guess is more accurate. It's interesting because Jennifer Lynn Barnes chose to set this during the second year of Avery's Grandest Games, so we're already not where we expected. Then the entire adventure is on the island where all the family mysteries came to a head in a fire all those years ago. This one is very personal and takes place over a single night. It feels drawn out and at the same time way too short. We're left wanting more but also if you haven't read all the other books in the series recently, you will be a little confused until you find your ground. Overall it was fun and most importantly, NOT The Atlas Complex.

181) Joe Hill's Rain by Joe Hill: I hated this. It's The Stand but with a heavy "bury your gays" plot. Oh, and lots of Trump. Too much Trump. I hated it.

182) The Atlas Complex by Olivie Blake: Hey look. I finished the book it took me over a month to read because it was boring and horrible and oh my God I hate it. Or should I say oh my Atlas I hate it? The six don't end the world because they stop. Not that we are ever told what the end of the world would look like. Oh, and two characters die unnecessarily. I was generous when I said this could have been a duology. It could have been one single book.

183) A Christmas Ghost Story by Kim Newman: Warning, unless you have watched every single episode of A Ghost Story for Christmas everything in this book will go over your head. If you've watched every episode, it's an interesting meta tale about a "forgotten" episode and how a woman and her son living near the most haunted village in England accidentally wind up living that lost episode. It's spooky and has a lot of fun modern paranormal research. But most importantly I really liked the message that sometimes the holidays are just too much. Tradition shouldn't steamroll over selfcare.

184) The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke: I adore Susanna Clarke. And a new story set in the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell? Who could resist. It's about a girl who is more at home in the woods with animals then at home with humans so she moves to the woods and raises a bear cub as her child. It's fine. Nothing amazing. The afterward is all about Kate Bush. Seriously, Susanna Clarke LOVES Kate Bush. But who doesn't?

185) Helen of Wyndhorn #6 by Tom King: The ending of this wonderful series was kind of flat. Helen's adventures continue but does she disappear because she never comes back? Or is there another story to tell? I NEED TO KNOW! Though her trip to the underwater realms to visit the tomb of her mother was lovely. But it just made me want more. And more. Seriously, I need more.

186) Spectregraph #4 by James Tynion IV: Oh my. Now this is how you write a finale! The ghost machine really worked and someone we've been reading about all along was made into one! A ghost of a living human. The question is, is that why it worked? But this is actually a story that I don't need that answered. It's melancholy and bittersweet. If there's more I'm happy, if this is it, I'm happy too.

187) The Nice House by the Sea #4 by James Tynion IV: Oh twist. We finally have an explanation about Max and Walter both being aliens and befriending this group we've come to know with Max being Norah's ex and Walter's obsession, Oliver, being in the sea house. Which means that Walter has another goal for his friends.... They have to rescue Oliver. Meaning that Walter is breaking the rules yet again. Not that he cares. Oh, I love it when I actually know what's going on. And yes. Sometimes I just don't.

188) Something is Killing the Children #0 by James Tynion IV: This is a prequel but a sequel. This is before Erica goes to Archer's Peak but also shows some shady people from the grand house over in Europe have a plan for her. And trials. Oh, I can't wait until the next arc starts!

189) The Wintringham Mystery by Anthony Berkeley: I've been really excited to read this book for years since it's reissue because supposedly Agatha Christie couldn't solve it AND I've quite enjoyed Anthony Berkeley's writing in the past, particularly Roger Sheringham and the Vane Mystery. First off, my ONE quibble, they claim this is a "classic winter mystery." When did winter start in September? Other than that, an interesting cast of characters, Lady Susan, the hostess, being the most interesting because despite a disappearance, a theft, and then a murder, she's really against calling the cops. And, like Agatha, I can't claim to have solved it. I did figure out the who, but the why was wrong.

190) Half Spent Was the Night by Ami McKay: This was just a delightful tale for the dead days between Christmas and New Years. I also felt that this delivered more of what I wanted from The Witches of New York. We get time spent around a fire talking about folklore and divination and hopes for the coming year. We get a masked ball and dark fates delivered to those with darkness in their hearts. I still haven't figured out who Perdu is... Though I'm told it's quite obvious.