M J Mallon YA Author and Poet

My Kyrosmagica Review of Dark Room by Tom Becker

Goodreads Synopsis:

When Darla and her feckless dad, Hopper, move to Saffron Hills, Darla hopes it’ll be a new start for the both of them. But she stands no chance of fitting in with the image-obsessed in-crowd at her new school. Then one of her classmates is brutally killed when taking a photo of herself. A murder Darla herself predicted in a bloody vision. When more teens die in a similar fashion it appears that a serial killer is on the loose – the ‘Selfie Slayer’. Darla alone is convinced that the murderer might not be flesh and blood.

I’ve been participating in the #redeyereadalong on Goodreads, and this is the last book in the series, read during the week 26th October 2015 – 31st October 2015.

I joined in the readalong with mixed feelings as I am a bit of a novice horror reader – I tend to be a trifle scared of reading frightening stories – but astonishingly I have found it really fun and totally enthralling throughout. I whipped through those pages reading five books in super quick, heartbeat time! There have been moments when certain passages I’ve read have turned my stomach, or left me hugging my duvet for comfort but it has been such a positive experience overall. So thank you so much to Chelley who blogs at Tales of Yesterday and Heather from Heather Reviews for including me in this readalong.

My overall favourites are without a doubt, Frozen Charlotte from week 1 and this final book Dark Room from Week 5! So the best were first and last as far as I was concerned!

My review:

Dark Room certainly started off dark and sinister and that’s a fact. The Prologue tells the tale of Walter West, a rich young chap, but don’t be fooled this, he is no sweet boy next door! If you are friends with Walter West and you’re young and pretty, don’t pop over to visit, well not unless you want to be viciously murdered.

In Chapter 1 we are introduced to the main protagonist a sixteen year old girl called Darla whose life has been hard, with a capital H, she certainly hasn’t had a fairy-tale existence. Her dad hopper is a drunken, hopeless fellow who runs from one unhappy experience to another. Her mother Sidney killed herself. Darla runs away from yet another bout of trouble with her dad Hopper to Saffron Hills. She finds that Saffron Hills has its fair share of beautiful people, is obsessed with looking good, and is home to the Miss Saffron beauty pageant. Not exactly a place to make Darla feel at home as she is a fairly plain looking girl.

There are a bunch of mysteries to solve in this book so at times it came across more like a murder mystery than a horror story. Though there are elements of horror in Dark Room, the visions that Darla experiences are certainly horrible, and this sense of terror is amplified by Darla having no control over these frightening and disturbing visions. As the story unfolds she starts to try to take control of these visions, but more about that later…

Darla meets with her artistic neighbour Annie, who befriends Darla and Hopper. Annie is a fascinating character too with a hidden aspect to her personality that is revealed later in the novel.

When more beautiful kids are killed Darla’s personality changes, she becomes this courageous kid investigating, trying to stop another murder from being committed. That’s when I really started to love Darla, undoubtedly she is the best character in the book, the one that you can’t help but root for.

Photography is used in a creative way as a device in this book, to reveal the next murder, but is also used to suggest the nastiness of the beautiful crowd. In one particular scene TJ takes a selfie with Darla to ridicule her and other plain girls like her. Natalie, Gabrielle, Ryan, TJ, Carmen are beautiful on the outside, but inside they are mean, unlikable, thoughtless bullies. That is not a criticism of the book, the beautiful kids are meant to be portrayed this way, a message is intended to come across. Beauty is more than outward appearance it is what you hold in your heart. The cruel message finally gets through to one of the beautiful kids, who eventually turns over a new leaf.

Darla’s friend Sasha is an interesting but flawed character. She is pretty but in a non-conformist, punk style of way. She is also quite unlikable, and comes across as pretty uncaring, and glib, until one of the kids who she is secretly fond of in the beautiful clique gets murdered. Frank appears to be Sasha’s errand boy, but even Frank has a side of him that is kept a mystery.

So a very intriguing story, full of mysteries, secrets, it kept me wondering, guessing… I guessed the murderer then I changed my mind, then I guessed again… Lots of excitement.

The ending was good but perhaps a bit far fetched so instead of a 5 star read I’ve reduced it by half a star!

Would I recommend reading this?

Absolutely, if you can stomach it! The murders are visually gruesome, made me flinch in parts but nevertheless I found Dark Room very absorbing. So go out and get a copy… Just don’t do any selfies for a while…

Warning: Not For Younger Readers.

My rating:

4.5 stars

DISCLAIMER: “As of 13th September 2017 we are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.”

My opinions are my own and any reviews on this site have not been swayed or altered in any way by monetary compensation, or by the offer of a free book in exchange for a review.

Buying Links:

Amazon UK Kindle: http://amzn.to/2xfFm5r

Amazon UK Paperback: http://amzn.to/2w5vRUV

Links:

http://talesofyesterday.co.uk/2015/09/tales-post-red-eye-read-along-october-2015/

http://talesofyesterday.co.uk/2015/09/tales-qa-with-tom-becker/

http://www.welcometodarkside.co.uk/index.tao?PageId=Biography

Bye for now.

Do comment I’d love to hear your opinions. Have you read Dark Room or any of the other books in the #redeye series?

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Hugh’s Photo Challenge – Week 3 – What Lurks in The Shadows

Hugh had me well and truly stumped with this week’s photography challenge. I was on the verge of giving up when I had an idea to focus on an eerie shadow of myself amongst the autumn leaves. Yes, I’m now as creepy as it gets!!

Here’s the link if you’d like to join in: http://hughsviewsandnews.com/2015/10/24/hughs-photo-challenge-week-3-what-lurks-in-the-shadows/

What’s creepy about my shadow you might ask? The falling leaves of autumn and the stretching shadows that accompany some autumn days, are by their very nature quite melancholic. Yesterday I went for a walk through the village and I noticed a few hints of change. At the front pathway the red vibrant leaves of a neighbour’s plant that had crept through the fence into our garden now lay fallen, its once beautiful leaves dying. As well as this there were burnt edges of leaves still clinging to the trees, but many more had now given up there hold and were scattered by my feet, trampled on by passers by.

I photographed the leaves and the shadows that accompanied them. Here they are:

I’m fading away, my shadow that is, a bit like autumn itself!! Winter will soon be on its way, my least favourite season, the clocks have gone back so that’s a sign, the last hint of sunshine is being gobbled up by the shadow of autumn’s death which is fast on its way!

Hope you liked my photography for this week’s challenge.

Do pop over to my Instagram account to see what I’ve been up to: https://instagram.com/kyrosmagica
Bye for now. Only a few more days to Halloween, so ……

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

The 5th Annual Halloweensie Writing Contest

I’m joining in Susanna Leonard Hill’s Halloweensie Writing Contest as this looked a bit of fun, what with my blog theme this month being Halloween stuff and nonsense!! The word limit is just 100 words, excluding the title, so given that I decided to write a poem, which is a bit of a challenge for me as apart from writing haikus I don’t normally write poetry.

Here is a link to Susanna’s blog if you’d like to join in with this fun contest (entries have to be in by Friday October 30th by 11:59 PM EDT) : http://susannahill.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/the-5th-annual-halloweensie-writing.html

The Contest: write a 100 word Halloween story appropriate for children (title not included in the 100 words), using the words costume, dark, and haunt. Your story can be scary, funny or anything in between, poetry or prose, but it will only count for the contest if it includes those 3 words and is 100 words (you can go under, but not over!) Get it? Halloweensie – because it’s not very long and it’s for little people 🙂 (And yes, I know 100 words is short but that’s part of the fun and the challenge! We got over 130 fantastic entries last year so I know you can do it!) Also, you may use the words in any form – e.g. haunt, haunts, haunted, darkness, darkening, costumed, whathaveyou 🙂

The Lonely Gatecrashing Ghost.

Time to Go a Trick A Treat,

Don a costume pretty quick,

Sneak out before mum says no,

Grab your lantern, here we go.

Stop! A ghost haunts that dark alley,

He pulls funny faces to be pally,

Everyone turns away,

A game that no one wants to play.

The kids scream in fright,

Scattering in a terrible flight,

Halloween’s for guzzling sweets,

Make believe dress up feats.

Not for ghosts gate-crashing fun,

Stealing sweets by the ton,

Scaring old ladies walking by,

A wicked recipe to die.

Take your nonsense,

And your conscience,

Don’t be a git,

Do a ghostly flit!

Hope you liked my entry. I kind of felt a bit sorry for the poor old ghost being excluded from the fun!

Bye for now.

It’s so dark outside since the clocks went back, just makes me want to sleep!

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

How To Host a Blog Party

Excited for Halloween? Suzie is hosting a Halloween blog party this Saturday you better not be late or who knows what might happen!!

Suzie Speaks

Blog parties are one of my favourite things to do, and in my experience they are an incredibly fun and successful way of boosting traffic to your blog and building a readership.

For those who have never heard of a blog party before, the concept is simple. The host will create a post which states a set of rules. Other bloggers will then share a link to a post from their blog in the comment section and will go and visit other links from the people participating. I love participating in these sorts of events, and have discovered many wonderful blogs and bloggers by doing so.

Hosting a successful party, however, takes a little bit of preparation and time in advance, and requires 100% commitment on the day.

Want to host your own blog party? Here’s my easy step-by-step guide to planning and developing a party that will get the…

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The Book Courtship Book Tag

Thank you to Charley from Books and Bakes 1 for tagging me to join in the Book Courtship Book Tag.

Charley has a lovely blog about books and baking, two of my favourite pastimes! I just love to read and to bake and eat yummy cakes too!

Here’s a link to Charley’s blog post about the tag: https://booksandbakes1.wordpress.com/2015/10/18/the-book-courtship-book-tag/

I’ve been super busy just recently as I’m currently been doing two read-a-thons. The first one is a Halloween themed readalong from Stripes Publishing, the #redeyereadalong and I have been reviewing all the awesome #redeye books on my blog, the current book I am reading this week is Dark Room from Tom Becker. The second readathon I’m taking part in is the Trees of Reverie readathon, and for this I’m currently reading Caroline Peckham’s Creeping Shadow. So I don’t get bored I have been doing some photography, and quote challenges too, as well as joining Instagram.

I’m feeling slightly overwhelmed so:

I will be taking a bit of a blogging break in November, to coincide with Nanowrimo, and possibly December to concentrate on my writing, and getting my manuscript Krystallos ready for publication. More about that soon……

Here’s my responses to the book tag:

Phase 1 – Initial Attraction: A book that you bought because of the cover?

I also bought The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton, (Charley did too!) as I just loved this cover so much. It caught my eye in Waterstons and I just fell in deep book cover love. I loved the book too. My review of the Miniaturist: https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2015/01/12/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-the-miniaturist-by-jessie-burton/

As well as this I loved the cover of The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell.

More about The Bone Clocks on my review: https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/12/08/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-the-bone-clocks-by-david-mitchell/

Phase 2 – First Impressions: A book that you got because of the summary?

The Night Circus By Erin Morgenstern.

The summary is all in capital letters and is so engaging, even though it is simplicity itself:

THE CIRCUS ARRIVES

WITHOUT WARNING

NO ANNOUNCEMENTS

PRECEDE IT …

IT IS SIMPLY THERE, WHEN YESTERDAY IT WAS NOT.

Phase 3 – Sweet Talk: A book with great writing?

There are so many authors that would fit into this “Sweet” category. Stephanie Perkins comes to mind. I loved Stephanie Perkins Anna and The French Kiss, Lola and The Boy Next Door, and Isla and The Happily Ever After. My favourite out of these three was Lola and The Boy Next Door. For some reason that I can’t quite recollect I have only reviewed two out of the three in the series, omitting to do the first which is strange but anyway here they are:

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/06/09/review-of-lola-and-the-boy-next-door-stephanie-perkins/

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/11/16/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-isla-and-the-happily-ever-after-by-stephanie-perkins/

Phase 4 – First Date: A first book of a series which made you want to pick up the rest of the series?

I’m a bit lazy about reading series, on the whole I tend to prefer reading standalone novels but sometimes a series really captures my full attention and then I get hooked. An example of this is undoubtedly the first book in The Old Kingdom Series by Garth Nix, Sabriel. I loved this series, which I read as part of the Hot Key Books readathon.

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/12/15/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-abhorsen-by-garth-nix/

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/09/23/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-garth-nixs-sabriel/

https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-garth-nixs-lirael/

Phase 5 – Late Night Phone Calls: A book that kept you up all night?

Summertime by Vanessa Lafaye would fit into this category because when I did finally get to sleep I dreamt that my bed was filled with hurricane winds! I could feel myself being lifted, and buffeted on a bed of sheets, and thrown up and down in the air. Luckily my dream carried me gently up and down as if I was on a trampoline of buffeting air!

My review of Summertime: https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2015/02/28/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-summertime-by-vanessa-lafaye/

Phase 6 – Always on my mind: A book you could not stop thinking about?

The Book Thief by Marcus Zuzak, which I read a long time ago before I started doing reviews. If you haven’t read this then go out and get a copy of this fantastic book, which is about:

A GIRL

AN ACCORDIONIST

SOME FANATICAL GERMANS

A JEWISH FIST FIGHTER

AND QUITE A LOT OF THIEVERY

and is narrated by a gruesome chap called DEATH!!!

Phase 7 – Getting Physical: A book which you love the way it feels?

The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller, loved this, it’s gold embossed cover is so textured!! Great feels for this one, fantastic read too! Go and get a copy!

My review: https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2015/05/16/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-the-song-of-achilles-by-madeline-miller/

Phase 8 – Meeting the parents: A book which you would recommend to your family and friends?

The Italian Chapel by Philip Paris, just loved this book, and recommended it to my mum and dad, and some friends too! Such a lovely book, so heart warming and inspiring, if you haven’t read it then you must remedy that fast.

My review: https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2014/07/04/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-the-italian-chapel-by-philip-paris/

Phase 9 – Thinking about the future: A book or series you know you will re read many times in the future?

The Brandon Sanderson’s series, these are just so awesome, if I had a lot of spare time I’d love to read and re-read these as they have so much going for them. Brandon Sanderson has a wicked imagination. I’ve read The Final Empire (Mistborn #1) and The Well of Ascension (Mistborn # 2.) I’ve reviewed Mistborn #1 on this blog:

The Final Empire. Mistborn: https://kyrosmagica.wordpress.com/2015/01/31/my-kyrosmagica-review-of-mistborn-by-brandon-sanderson/

Phase 10 – Share the love: Who do you tag?

I would like to tag lots and lots of you lovely book bloggers so here goes:

http://novelreveries.com/

https://ireadnovels.wordpress.com/

http://heenarathorep.com/

http://www.mybookishlife.com/

https://scatterbooker.wordpress.com/

https://heatherreviews.wordpress.com

https://lipsyy.wordpress.com/.com/

https://stephaniesbookreviews.wordpress.com/

http://mylittlebookblog.com/

http://jennyinneverland.com/

http://aloverofbooks.wordpress.com/

http://booksaredelicious.com/

http://theprettybooks.wordpress.com.

http://amandasnoseinabook.wordpress.com/

http://cleopatralovesbooks.wordpress.com

https://bibliomad.wordpress.com/

https://katnisspotterbooklover.wordpress.com/

If I’ve left anyone out don’t be shy join in please do, the more the merrier!

Hope you enjoyed reading my Book Courtship Tag post! Have you read any of the books in my post?

Oh, and by the way I am now on Instagram if you’d like to follow me there too: https://instagram.com/kyrosmagica/

Bye for now,

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Spooktacular 2015: The Gallows at The Caxton Gibbett Inn

I’m joining in the Spooktacular Capturing History Challenge from Ed Mooney.

Here’s a link to Ed’s blog:

https://edmooneyphoto.wordpress.com/2015/10/01/spooktacular-2015/

As I’m blogging this on a Monday, this is my entry for Rachel Thompson’s #MondayBlogs too: https://twitter.com/RachelintheOC. Rachel blogs at Bad Red Head Media. http://badredheadmedia.com/

I really wanted to join in this challenge this month as I am doing a spooky stuff and nonsense theme on my blog leading up to Halloween. By the way, today, Monday the 26th of October is the last day to submit your photos to Ed. So if you want to join in get cracking, and email him, super pronto!!!

I was originally going to take one of those Ghost tours in Cambridge, which I still fancy doing, but then it struck me the perfect idea to post about for this Spooktacular would be the history behind the Caxton Gibbett Inn in Cambridgeshire, particularly as it features briefly in my manuscript! This place is or shall I say was about as creepy, and unlucky, cursed if you ask me, as it gets.

The inn was located between Cambridge and St. Neots. It is no longer standing as it burnt down in mysterious circumstances, in March 2009, when it had been trading as a Chinese restaurant, The Yim Wah House. In fact I had been there a few times for meals, as I have some friends who live out that way so I’m so glad it didn’t burn down when I was in there munching my spring rolls! Apparently fifty firefighters had their job cut out trying to stop the blaze. Anyway the Yim Wah has now relocated, I don’t blame them! Would you want to stay in residence there after that? Shudders. No brainer. The Yim Wah is now situated in the centre of Cambridge, good move!

The legend of the original inn is interesting Halloween fare. Apparently three travellers were murdered by the landlord, (who intended to steal from them.) He disposed of their poor unfortunate bodies down the pub’s well. The original gallows stood on Caxton Common, the replica gibbet was thought to have been made from the timber of a nearby cottage.

Punishment was a very public affair in those days, the murderer was hung alive in an iron gibbet from the gallows and death under these circumstances followed due to starvation, dehydration or exposure. Apparently thereafter the inn was haunted by mysterious footsteps that stopped at the well! Creepy , Ghoulish stuff or what? !! Enough to make you choke on your spring roll! Sounds like that land may be cursed, and it is now the home of fast food restaurants. Well, on the bright side at least with fast food you’re in and out quick, surely nothing too terrible can happen to you in such a short timescale! My advice is don’t hang about and chat too much, get out of their fast!

So not exactly good joss. Perhaps not history as such, maybe more of a legend, but it does seem to me to be an area of Cambridgeshire with a creepy predisposition, and a gallows, so beware!

The story of the inn captured my interest so much that it features briefly in my manuscript Krystallos.

Here’s a short excerpt:

Amelina spoke in a hushed spooky whisper. “Talking of ghost stories did you see that Chinese restaurant that burnt down at Caxton Gibbett? Its burnt out shell creeps me out every time I go pass it, the original inn on that site, also burnt down in the 1920’s.”

“The George Inn, yes, bit of a weird coincidence isn’t it?” said Ilaria her voice rising with excitement.

“The place was cursed. The landlord was hanged and gibbeted for murdering his guests as they slept. The room where they were killed was always intensely cold,” said Amelina, as a cold shiver ran down her spine.

“God that’s creepy, talk about gruesome,” said Joselyn, “Thanks, I’ll not sleep a wink tonight.”

“Me neither. Maybe when we’re wide awake some fit dead guy could return from his eternal slumber for a chat. Hopefully a famous rock or pop star,” joked Ilaria.

“Now that would be cool. You know I had this amazing dream once that all the rock stars came bursting out of my posters and had a party in my house. It was a bit freaky as some of them were dead. They were rocking out until the early hours,” said Amelina as she demonstrated her favourite rock hero pose playing air guitar to the girls.

Ilaria, Joselyn and Jade looked at Amelina with wide eyed astonishment.

“God you’re crazy, Amelina, I can’t believe the things you say or do. The air guitar was awesome,” remarked Jade.

Ilaria and Joselyn laughed.

Hope you enjoyed my Spooktacular post, I enjoyed taking part, I’ve been planning this for ages, this baby has been waiting part finished in my draft folder and I nearly forgot to join in, that’s just typical of me. Scatty, or Loopy depends on how you take me!

Links:

http://www.cprs.co.uk/caxton.html

Bye for now, hope you enjoyed this Spooktacular story.

I’m hiding under the covers tonight just in case!

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Spooktacular 2015

Spooktacular challenge by edmooney last day to email your photography, for this challenge.

Ed Mooney Photography

Today is the first day of October, which marks the countdown to my absolute favourite time of the year, Samhain/Halloween. For the last couple of years, my Ruinhunting activities tend to die off during the month, mainly due to poor weather and access to many of the sites that I visit. But I keep my blog going with an assortment of the otherworld and Halloween Themed posts. The Bram Stoker Festival has featured these past two years along with Irish based tales concerning Gaelic Mythology and Supernatural customs and Traditions such as An Púca, the faerie Ghost, the Bean-sidhe an Irish harbinger of Sorrow , An Dullahan, the real Headless Horseman, Dearg-Due, an ancient Irish Vampire and the Wizard Earl of Kilkea Castle to name but a few.

An Púca

So this year got me thinking, with the success of the Capturing History Challenge, I thought, Why…

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#Redeyereadalong: Dark Room by Tom Becker

As you’ll know if you saw my previous post re: Bad Bones, I’m joining in the #readeyereadalong: The Red Eye series of books from Stripes Publishing, this event runs from September 28th to October 31st and is hosted on Goodreads.

There are five scary titles to get you in the mood for Halloween!

Frozen Charlotte, Sleepless, Flesh and Blood, Bad Bones, and Dark Room.

Dark Room is the next scary book I’ll be reading for the #RedEye readalong from:

26th October 2015 – 31st October 2015

Wait a minute – 26th October, that’s today. Can it really be the final week? How time flies when you’re having fun.

It is the final book in the readalong!!!! Dark Room by Tom Becker.

It’s been a blast such eerie, scary excitement all the way, there’s never been a dull moment.

Here’s the Goodreads Synopsis of Dark Room:

A fellow WordPress blogger Heather is running the goodreads readalong with Michelle Toy from Tales of Yesterday blog. There are lots of fun activities on their blogs so do check them out:

http://talesofyesterday.co.uk/2015/09/tales-post-red-eye-read-along-october-2015/

https://heatherreviews.wordpress.com/

Have you read Dark Room? Do you dare to? Let me know if you have!

Bye for now,

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

Camera Lucida: Metal

It’s #12 Challenge from Julia at My Red Page and this week’s photography challenge is metal.

Here’s a link to Julia’s post : https://myredpage.wordpress.com/2015/10/16/camera-lucida-metal/

I decided to take a photo of one of my favourite metal candle holders in the evening, all lit up, and it was interesting how the shadows around made interesting patterns.

I’ve done some other metal photography in previous posts, here’s a link to these too:

The Kelpies: https://atomic-temporary-67364188.wpcomstaging.com/2015/08/28/edinburgh-festival-the-kelpies-sculptures/

The metal structure in the ceiling of the Grafton Shopping Centre, Cambridge. https://atomic-temporary-67364188.wpcomstaging.com/2015/10/08/instagram-kyrosmagica-style/

Hope you like them. You can see more of my photography on my Instagram account here’s the link:

https://instagram.com/kyrosmagica/

Bye for Now,

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

My Kyrosmagica Review of Bad Bones by Graham Marks

Goodreads Synopsis:

Some things are best left buried. Gabe is feeling the pressure. His family has money troubles, he’s hardly talking to his dad, plus lowlife Benny is on his case. Needing some space to think, he heads off into the hills surrounding LA. And he suddenly stumbles across a secret that will change everything. A shallow grave. Gabe doesn’t think twice about taking the gold bracelet he finds buried there. Even from the clutches of skeletal hands. But he has no idea what he’s awakening…A chilling new story in the Red Eye series.

This is the fourth book I’ve read in the #redeyereadalong, from Stripes Publishing. I have to say they have all been different, and quite engaging in their own way. So what’s my take on them wicked old Bad Bones?

My review:

Bad Bones starts off with Gabe getting himself in deep water by finding a grave and raiding the skeleton taking a very expensive looking gold bracelet. This seems like an answer to his prayers, a way for him to be able to help his family who are in financial difficulty, but instead he finds himself getting deeper and deeper into a nightmare scenario of growing proportions. He starts getting followed around by owls, cayotes and a creepy guy. Soon he realises that his actions have led him and unsuspecting bystanders and friends into grave danger. Excuse the pun! To add to his troubles he tries hard to avoid getting involved with low life Benny, and his dodgy money making schemes, but doesn’t manage to succeed. The only silver lining in this hellish scenario is his developing relationship with Stella, and his pal Anton who obviously cares for him and literally does have his back. I enjoyed his little sister Remy too. The scene in which his sister inadvertently gets involved and Gabe goes into big brother panic mode is one of my favourite parts of the book.

The humour is a bit of a double edged sword in Bad Bones because at times this distracts from the potential scary/creepiness of the storyline. This is particularly true with the character of Rafael who comes across as being a bit over the top, an almost stereotypical baddy. Somehow I just couldn’t take Rafael seriously, at times he just seemed to be verging on ridiculousness.

Of all the characters the main protagonist Gabe is the most well defined, a regular kid who wants to make things better for his family. He tries his best to do what’s right. Stella, the love interest in the novel seems a bit too goodie goodie to be true. What girl would hang around under such circumstances? Does she love to live dangerously or perhaps have some kind of a death wish? As far as Stella is concerned I kept on expecting some kind of plot twist but that never happened. I was really hoping that she was the baddy’s sidekick but no such luck! She’s a bit too good to be true. Anton, Gabe’s best friend appears in various cameo roles predominantly at the beginning of the novel and then at the end. He seems very noble, and worthy of the title best friend, but his part in the story possibly could have been developed more. The other character that deserves a mention is Father Simon, Father Simon is pretty cool, he reminded me of the cool dude that married me!! Kind of has hidden aspects to his character does Father Simon, he even possesses a firearm, now that’s all I’m going to say about him!

So mixed feelings about Bad Bones. Had me giggling, enjoying the M & M moments, imagining tucking into those chocolate peanuts before fighting off evil. But, if you enjoy being scared out of your skin and bones then this one is not that scary compared with the other #redeye books that I’ve read up to now. There are moments of scariness but it is more like a sort of Scooby Doo of the Horror book world, which suited me quite well as I’m a bit of a wimp but probably wouldn’t be as popular with the die hard horror fans. So a good choice for novice horror readers who perhaps want a laugh, some fun, likeable characters and a touch of horror thrown in for good measure.

My rating:

3 stars.

If Rafael had been portrayed as a more scary character this book would have climbed the star levels, but as it is, it stays at around the 3 star level.

Have you read Bad Bones or any of the other books in the #redeye series from Stripes Publishing? If so, please do comment and let me know what you think.

Links:

http://grahammarks.net/

http://talesofyesterday.co.uk/2015/09/tales-post-red-eye-read-along-october-2015/

http://talesofyesterday.co.uk/2015/05/qa-with-graham-marks/

doyareadme.tumblr.com

Bye for now,

Marje @ Kyrosmagica xx

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I will be taking a bit of a blogging break in November, to coincide with Nanowrimo, and possibly December to concentrate on my writing, and getting my manuscript Krystallos ready for publication. More about that soon……

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