Between Writing Reading

  Jackaby by William Ritter “Miss Rook, I am not an occultist,” Jackaby said. “I have a gift that allows me to see truth where others see the illusion--and there are many illusions. All the world’s a stage, as they say, and I seem to have the only seat in the house with a view behind the curtain.” Newly arrived in New Fiddleham, New England, 1892, and in need of a job, Abigail Rook meets R. F. Jackaby, an investigator of the unexplained with a keen eye for the extraordinary--including the ability to see supernatural beings. Abigail has a gift for noticing ordinary but important details, which makes her perfect for the position of Jackaby’s assistant. On her first day, Abigail finds herself in the midst of a thrilling case: A serial killer is on the loose. The police are convinced it’s an ordinary villain, but Jackaby is certain it’s a nonhuman creature, whose existence the police--with the exception of a handsome young detective named Charlie Cane--deny.   Docto...

School Spirits by Rachel Hawkins Fifteen-year-old Izzy Brannick was trained to fight monsters. For centuries, her family has hunted magical creatures. But when Izzy’s older sister vanishes without a trace while on a job, Izzy's mom decides they need to take a break. Izzy and her mom move to a new town, but they soon discover it’s not as normal as it appears. A series of hauntings has been plaguing the local high school, and Izzy is determined to prove her worth and investigate. But assuming the guise of an average teenager is easier said than done. For a tough girl who's always been on her own, it’s strange to suddenly make friends and maybe even have a crush. Can Izzy trust her new friends to help find the secret behind the hauntings before more people get hurt? -Plot summary borrowed from Goodreads I really liked the Hex Hall series, and I wasn't sure that this spinoff was going to stack up. Younger character? Different setting? Eh... But actually, I think I lik...

Any regular or even occasional reader of this blog could probably come up with some of my favorite shows ( Buffy the Vampire Slayer , Veronica Mars , Community ), but aside from the odd name drop or reference, I've never reviewed a show on here. Until now. *dramatic music* Why now, you ask? Because now there is a little show called Sleepy Hollow and it is INSANE and I can't stop talking about it. Here are some reasons why. The Plot Well, ok, actually the plot is the thing that made me initially want to stay far, far away from Sleepy Hollow . Time-travelling Ichabod Crane solving crimes in the 21st century? Puh-lease. Actually though, it's shaping up to be a pretty great supernatural series, with some "freak of the week" monsters, as well as season/series long arcs. The horror parts are actually kind of terrifying, and even the ridiculous elements are so fun you'll probably just enjoy the ride. The Setting Small historic city with loads of colonial buildings, ...

Somewhere Beneath Those Waves by Sarah Monette The first non-themed collection of critically acclaimed author Sarah Monette''s best short fiction. To paraphrase Hugo-award winner Elizabeth Bear's introduction: '"onette's prose is lapidary, her ideas are fantastical and chilling. She has studied the craft of fantastic fiction from the pens of masters and mistresses of the genre. She is a poet of the awkward and the uncertain, exalter of the outcast, the outre, and the downright weird. There is nothing else quite like Sarah Monette's fiction." -Plot summary borrowed from Goodreads Ok, so this isn't YA. I was getting desperate for another post, and I know there are people who may read this blog occasionally who would love this one. Before this one I had read The Bone Key , her collection of short stories about Kyle Murchison Booth, a sort of supernatural detective. She really captured the feel of Lovecraft's horror in some of those stories...

The Archived by Victoria Schwab Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books. Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive. Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often—violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive. Being a Keeper isn’t just dangerous—it’s a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da’s death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberate...

The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson After her near-fatal run-in with the Jack the Ripper copycat, Rory Devereaux has been living in Bristol under the close watch of her parents. So when her therapist suddenly suggests she return to Wexford, Rory jumps at the chance. But Rory's brush with the Ripper touched her more than she thought possible: she's become a human terminus, with the power to eliminate ghosts on contact. She soon finds out that the Shades—the city's secret ghost-fighting police—are responsible for her return. The Ripper may be gone, but now there is a string of new inexplicable deaths threatening London. Rory has evidence that the deaths are no coincidence. Something much more sinister is going on, and now she must convince the squad to listen to her before it's too late . -Plot summary borrowed from Goodreads Unusually for many series installments, our protagonist, Rory, has rather a lot of consequences to wade through- not the least of ...