​The Family Plot by Cherie Priest
​Basia rates it: 4/5 stars

The Family Plot​ is the story of Music City Salvage, a family-run business granted salvage rights to an old property. The man who runs the salvage company sends his daughter as the head of the project, and she and their crack team--featuring her cousin, with whom she does not get along; her nephew, a little green but eager to help; and Brad, the only non-family member and who means well but is largely clueless when it comes to manual labor--set out to tackle the extensive property and hope to pull in enough money with the haul to save the dying Music City Salvage.

​You know the story, the classic line: they are not alone. ​Unsurprisingly, the estate is haunted. But there are several other twists and turns that this novel provides: a cemetery on the property they are assured is a leftover Halloween decoration--until they uncover some old bones that are decidedly real​; a room with a door that opens and closes seemingly of its own free will; something lurking in the bathroom, waiting to strike the moment you close your eyes; and a family with a plethora of deep, dark secrets and--pun intended--more than a few skeletons in its closet.

I'm a big ghost story​ buff. For as long as I can remember, I've sought out tales of the spooky (I was going to use another word here--it begins with p​--but then I realized that's now the title of a published book and I don't need to be sued). I watch ghost hunting shows, shows where people talk about their ghostly experiences, all sorts of horror movies. I devour scary stories like it's my job. So when I heard that Cherie Priest, a favorite author of mine since I first picked up ​Boneshaker​ as a sophomore in high school, was writing a ghost story, I knew had to get my hands on it.

​​That being said, it takes a lot to scare me.

​The Family Plot​, I want to be clear, did not​ scare me, although I think I might be in the minority. I frequently saw readers on Twitter and Instagram saying that the book frightened them if they read it too late at night or if they were home alone, that this wasn't a book to be read in the dark. But just because this didn't instill that same fear in me doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy this book immensely. It is everything a good ghost story should be: haunting and atmospheric, enigmatic and strange, poignant and, perhaps most importantly, a little sad. This is a ghost story for the modern age, and it is a novel that relies on the intelligence of its reader. This is not a narrative for those interested merely in jump scares but is a novel for those of you who, like me, love getting to the heart of a ghost story: all of the ins and outs, uncovering the dark secrets their keepers thought long buried. It remembers that its readers are smart, and I appreciate it all the more for that.

​The one point that threw me was that the characters are so ​accepting​ of finding ghosts in the house--they almost expect them. It's a surprising but refreshing change from the usual tale, where half the narrative is consumed with the protagonist(s) staunchly denying any supernatural goings-on, even while mirrors show their reflections with bleeding eyes and spirits carve warning messages on the ceiling. Doing away with that nonsense allows Priest to get right to the center of the story, plunging you in headfirst. From the first moment you learn about the Withrow mansion, you need no convincing: here, there be ghosts​.

​Ghostly Echoes​ by William Ritter
Basia rates it: 5/5 stars
​Connor rates it: 5/5 stars

The Spiritglass Charade and The Chess Queen Enigma
Stoker & Holmes, Books 2 and 3
​by Colleen Gleason

The Spiritglass Charade
Basia rates it 4/5
Connor rates it 4/5

The Chess Queen Enigma
Basia rates it 4/5
​Connor rates it 4/5

Slasher Girls & Monster Boys, by April Genevieve Tucholke (ed.)
Basia rates it: 3.75(-ish?)/5
 
When a book has a title like Slasher Girls & Monster Boys, it's a book you know I'll be picking up. This isn't a novel; it's an anthology of short stories featuring, well, slasher girls and monster boys, to be concise. I was intrigued by this concept, and it struck me as something I might enjoy for the same reason I enjoy Brenna Yovanoff stories: she has a habit of including dangerous boys pitted against even more dangerous girls, and I am all about a good story with an ambitious and/or dangerous woman. 

Like any anthology, some of these stories fell a little flat for me; I kept waiting for something more, some big aha, that never came, whereas others had me fist-pumping in my seat on the plane. It's a trial-and-error sort of book, as most anthologies are, but if you're interested in stories featuring leading ladies, strange circumstances, and dark overtones, I'd suggest picking it up and giving at least one of the stories a try. I'm almost positive there's something for you in it.

We, as you might have already gathered from Basia's W(REC)'D post about Sinner, are big fans of Maggie Stiefvater. We were therefore eagerly awaiting the release of the fourth and final installment in The Raven Cycle, and are happy to present our reviews of The Raven King for today's #throwback.

NIne Women, One Dress by Jane L. Rosen
Basia rates it: 2/5

​Places No One Knows by Brenna Yovanoff
​Basia rates it: 4.5/5

Maggie Stiefvater said she wasn't sure if this book was "a dream wrapped in razor wire or razor wire wrapped in dream." The beautiful thing about this book is that it's both​. It is a book about people who feel too much and people who feel too little, how to navigate feelings or unfeeling in a world where we're constantly fed expectations of our emotional responses to situations.

All of Brenna's books have a dreamy sort of quality to them, but this one especially. It creates an interesting juxtaposition of dream versus reality--when the thing you're "dreaming" feels like the more tangible, more real space and your reality is the waking dream. This isn't a book for everyone (Brenna's books seldom are), but for those it speaks to, it will practically shout​. It's a story of expectation versus reality, of self-identity, of the difference between the self that you project and the one that you are on the inside. This book is raw and strange, but it is so powerfully honest​​​. There's something here for everyone to connect to, whether you're a Marshall, a Waverly, or someone somewhere in between.

A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch
Connor rates it: 3.5/5

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a lady in possession of a fondness for mystery novels must always be in search of another series. 

Or at least, that's the truth I've discovered after fifteen or so years in pursuit of, to turn a phrase, novel mysteries. Agatha Christie became one of my favorite authors after my brilliant book club leader decided the group of seventh grade girls she was leading should read Death on the Nile. (I owe a lot to that book club--my love of Jane Austen and The Lord of the Rings included--but I will always be especially grateful to our leader for deciding we needed to appreciate Hercule Poirot.)

The thing is, a girl in her early teens with a mind bent on reading Agatha Christie can accomplish that quite quickly. There are, after all, several Agatha Christie novels and detectives to enjoy, and obtaining them is not particularly difficult: the title of "best selling novelist" isn't an honorary one. But there comes a time in every mystery lover's life when she must turn away from the Queen of Crime and pick up the works of other mystery novelists. This was the point where my mother introduced me to what quickly became my next downfall: historical mysteries.

And that is how, after discovering Ellis Peters, Dorothy Sayers, Victoria Thompson, Elizabeth Peters, Peter Tremayne, and, most recently, Charles Todd--it came to pass that I needed a new mystery series.

Or, you know, nine. Ten, even. But at least two or three, and quite probably more.

I did what I always do in moments of literary trouble: I looked my problem dead in the eye, and I tackled it with all the force of a twenty-four year old bookworm with access to the internet. It wavered. It dissolved. It split at the seams. It tumbled into oblivion. It fell down upon the mountainside in ruins. It faded into nothingness. It trembled. It crashed. In short, it crumbled beneath the combined weight of Goodreads, the Free Library of Philadelphia, and my own curiosity, and I emerged with a list of not one, not two, but twelve mystery series to investigate. 

One of the books that emerged from this was A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch. While not the most technically deft mystery I've ever read, I nevertheless enjoyed it quite a bit. The book cover described the novel as something of a combination of Sherlock Holmes, Gosford Park, and P. G. Wodehouse. For once, this was a surprisingly accurate description. I would argue that the Sherlockian tidbits were unnecessary and felt a bit forced, but on the whole the novel does have a Wodehouse/Gosford Park vibe to it.

Which is to say: the prose has an airy, refreshing lightness despite the pages' content, and the mystery seems less important than the characters involved.

The breezy writing is well anchored in Finch's main character, Charles Lenox. It is Lenox's cheery outlook (and occasionally his dour moods) that keep the story moving along, and it is Lenox's relationships that interested me most: that with his best friend, his brother, and his butler. The butler is Lenox's most dependable compatriot in any investigation, from ferreting out information to providing background knowledge and an extra set of hands. Lenox's brother has a much quieter brilliance than Lenox himself, but their clear affection for each other and willingness to help with the other's difficulties or career is admirable. His best friend, though, is a woman he has known since childhood, the widow Lady Jane Grey.

I have often found that novels professing "life long friendships" leave me wondering how on earth the author expected me to believe these characters were lifelong friends--they never understand each other and, in fact, scarcely seem to care for each other at all. Finch is a pleasant exception to my experience, and A Beautiful Blue Death showcases a quiet, mutual affection between Lady Jane and Lenox that is both believable and lovely to read. 

These three relationships--butler, brother, friend--keep Finch's prose from veering too far into the lightheartedness of Wodehouse while also providing enough counterweight to keep Lenox from veering into despair as he works to solve the case. The murder itself proves a curious one, with enough twists to keep me guessing and a resolution that managed to live up to them, and I look forward to reading Charles Lenox's next case. 

​The Assistants
by Camille Perri
Basia rates it: 4/5

​The Waking Fire by Anthony Ryan
​Basia rates it: 4 out of 5

​Jane Steele​ by Lindsay Faye
​Basia rates it: 4.5/5

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Pink #1
by Brenden Fletcher & Kelly Thompson
​

I was really excited to learn about the Pink Ranger comic run several months ago. Like most kids born in the '90s, I watched ​Mighty Morphin Power Rangers​ with a fervor bordering on reverence. Unfortunately, because I was a girl who didn't (and who still doesn't, really) like the color pink, I never fully appreciated Kimberly until several years ago, when I realized I hadn't given her a chance just because she was the Pink Ranger. Which is, ultimately, a shame, because she's pretty great and badass in a time when there weren't a whole lot of kickass women on shows, especially not shows for kids, and considering most female characters I would have wanted to be for Halloween didn't have brown hair and wigs made me itch.

​I'm no stranger to Brenden Fletcher; I will tell anyone who will sit still long enough to listen that I ​love​ the new Batgirl​ run over at DC, and I also really enjoy Gotham Academy, so I was excited to see what he would bring to the table for the Pink Ranger. I haven't read any of the ​Mighty Morphin Power Rangers​ comics (yet), but right before doing this writeup, I went onto Comixology and purchased all of the issues that are out so far. (As you can see in the photo, I do most of my comic-reading on my iPad; comic books take up a lot of space, which I frankly don't have, and my boyfriend and I share the Marvel and Comixology accounts, which means we don't need to buy two copies of everything. Thank you, digital comics!)

When we catch up with ​Kimberly, who is rocking some great straight-across bangs the likes of which I sported until high school, she's at a gymnastics tournament. Her mother and step-father have failed to show up, which is unusual, so she hops on her motorcycle and goes to the little French village where they're now living, only to find it totally deserted. I don't want to do a recap of the whole issue--that's not what this is for. This is just to tell you that I think you should start reading along with me. But already, I'm with her. Something is weird, and she's throwing on a great leather jacket and going to find out what it is.

​Reading this issue was like a mystery novel meets a superhero comic. It's a limited run, so there's a very clear trajectory and storyline that we're following. I sometimes feel comics suffer from a haziness of direction for the first few issues, but I didn't feel that way here. There's something super weird going on, and Kimberly's going to get to the bottom of it, and if she dons the Pink Ranger suit along the way, even better. I'd honestly read this comic even if she didn't turn into the Pink Ranger. She's compelling: she's fierce and funny and kickass but not without kindness and soft-heartedness. This isn't the campy but fun '90s cartoon. This is a ​Power Rangers--a Kimberly Hart​--for the twenty-first century, and I can't wait to see more of her.

A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro
​Connor rates it: 4/5

In short: this book is a delight. 

Imagine, if you will, your favorite crime solving/crime fighting dynamic duo. It could be Sherlock and Holmes, as we have here in a different light; it could be Mulder and Scully, or maybe early-seasons-Booth and Bones; Batman and Robin, perhaps; Carter and Jarvis, or maybe Clark Kent and Lois Lane. Whichever they are, Charlotte Holmes and Jamie Watson are sure to join your list of favorites. They are bright and clever, with curious talents and pursuits just enough their own to make them unique, but also just enough in line with their illustrious ancestors to make them absurdly fun to read.

A Study in Charlotte doesn't just subvert various Holmes/Watson tropes; it finagles its way around them, over them, through them. There are mysteries, subplots, intrigue, secretive chemistry experiments, a Stradivarius--and, of course, the sort of mutual devotion one expects from a Holmes and a Watson. 

If you're worried this won't live up to your expectations of a teenage Sherlock Holmes: you've got the wrong book. This isn't a book about Sherlock Holmes. It's a book related to Sherlock Holmes. It's about legacy and character, history and the modern age, true friendship and loyalty in an age of loneliness and mystery--and it shines.

I will happily admit that it is not perfect. I will also admit that there were moments where I winced, and there were topics that were not handled quite so delicately or deftly as I might have liked. 

But I will also admit, wholeheartedly, that this book was more than I had hoped, and I am decidedly looking forward to the next installment of the trilogy. The delicate movement of Charlotte and Jamie from strangers to friends and partners is carefully chronicled here. It's not an easy road--there is, as mentioned, murder and mystery, and also intrigue! forgery! secret tunnels! a literal explosion!--but then, it wouldn't be Holmes and Watson if it were.

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street​ by Natasha Pulley
​Basia rates it: 3.75/5
​
I did a write-up for Filigree​ (as Connor and I have been referring to it when talking about posts) while I was still reading it, but I thought I would circle back around now that I've finished and give a more comprehensive review.

This was a strange book, and I came out of reading it much the same way that I did the movie ​Krampus​​: it definitely wasn't bad, and I would also say that it was good​, but it also exists in a weird tenuous space between the two.

​My struggle with Filigree is that I kept forgetting​ to read it. Normally, when I'm reading a book, even if it's a book I don't feel compelled to devour, I have the urge to finish, because I hate leaving things undone. I'll make time to curl up in my favorite armchair with the book on my knees for at least a few minutes, just enough to get in a chapter or two while I have my tea. But I found I wasn't doing that with Filigree​.

It is, as I said before, a quiet sort of book, but while that was part of its charm, I feel like it also might have worked against it in some ways. I'd think about reading, would have to think​ about what I was currently reading, and then I would remember ​Filigree​ and that I had yet to finish it. Sometimes I would pick it up, and other times I wouldn't. I always had to make a conscious effort to remember to read it.

​Another reason I think the overall tone might have worked against the book was I was finally at the book's climax, but I felt no urgency. I am sure I was meant to--the events unfolding were crazy and tumultuous--but I couldn't muster the appropriate feelings. This is not to say that I didn't care about the characters, because I did. But I also found I cared more about the secondary characters than the three protagonists; in some ways, I felt that they had a bit more substance to them, like I knew their personalities better.

I didn't feel relief when I was finished with the book, because the overall story was an interesting one and I truly did​ want to know what happened, but I also didn't experience any of the usual things I feel when I finish a book. It was simply over, and I could finally move on to something else.

Filigree​ was a good book, but a strange one. I am glad I read it, but I can't see myself ever picking it up for a reread. It is certainly not a book for everyone. But if you're willing to give it a try, I hope that you, like myself, are at least charmed by the little clockwork octopus that has a penchant for stealing socks and hiding in drawers.

​To be honest, the title says it all.

There's not much we can say about this that hasn't been said already by those wiser and more articulate than we (e.g. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie herself), but to put it briefly: we should all be feminists. This isn't about wanting money (although equal pay is important--and let's not gloss over the fact that the disparity is greater for women of color than it is for white women. That's important). It's not about wanting more women in politics, or in science, or nominated for Oscars, or running corporations. 

At least, it's not entirely about that.

This is about opportunity. This is about attitude. It's about working together to re-shape society into a place that welcomes and encourages and supports those of us who aren't white men. It's about creating an environment in which a woman who wants to stay at home with their kids and a woman who wants to work full time are both given dignity and respect for their choices: a space where expectations are not defined by gender. 

It is, as Adichie says, a reminder that culture does not make people. People make culture. And we must--we can, we should, we must--do better.

As fans of the unusual and unexpected, we picked up Wink Poppy Midnight on a friend's recommendation with very, very little idea of what to expect.

Wink Poppy Midnight, by April Genevieve Tucholke
Basia rates it: 3.5/5
Connor rates it: 3.5/5

The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry, by Gabrielle Zevin
Connor rates it: 4.5/5

I found The Watchmaker of Filigree Street​ by Natasha Pulley totally by accident, lurking in the mystery section of my local library. I was browsing the stacks, mostly checking what Agatha Christie they had (the selection was pitiful), when I spotted a book tucked into a strange corner between bookshelves. There was a bright green octopus on the spine. Never one to ignore a cephalopod, I squeezed my arm into the space and pulled it out. I’m not sure if this book was meant to be in the mystery section or if it was placed there by another patron. I don’t even know how long it had been sitting there; if I was the only one who had happened to peer into the space between the shelves, it could have been there, undetected, for ages. So I read the back cover, decided it looked interesting, tucked it under my arm, and went to check out.

I let it sit around for a bit but finally got to starting it just recently, and I’m fascinated. Unexpectedly, the book has magic, although I suppose that the use of the adjective “magical” on the back synopsis should have clued me in, but I assumed it was just one of those buzzwords back-jacket writers like to throw around to make the work sound sweeping and grand. But no! There is, in fact, actual magic, which sells me on almost anything. There is also a male protagonist who is charming in his social awkwardness, a female protagonist whom I realized I loved immediately because she reminded me of Lila from V. E. Schwab’s Shades of Magic series, a Japanese watchmaker who is perplexing and intriguing and very lovely, and, because it must be said, a clockwork octopus.

I’m only about halfway through, and I’m unwilling to give away too much about a book, particularly one I haven’t yet finished, but I’m really enjoying it so far. It’s a skinny book, by my usual standards, but it’s not a book that I’ve found myself speeding through. Usually this might spell disaster, as a book I find I am unable to read quickly is usually a book that is boring or obtuse, but that’s not the case here. I simply get caught up in all of it--Grace’s scientific experiments, even though I am not very scientifically inclined; Thaniel’s poor attempts at espionage; Keita Mori’s quiet but powerful presence; and Katsu, the clockwork octopus with a personality all his own. I want to know what happens, but in a quiet way. This is a mystery novel, in a sense, but it is not the pulse-pounding, what happens next what happens next I have to know sort of mystery that I’ve grown used to reading. This is a quieter mystery, where the plot takes a backseat to the characters. So if you love character-driven narratives with a little magic, a little mystery, and a little absurdity, this would be a book worth picking up.