Ed Kemper: Conversations with a Killer

Ed Kemper is an interesting lil dude.
And by lil, I mean a massive man nearly 7 feet tall.

I've always been a bit fascinated by Kemper.

It's not a big shock that he's a freaking monster.

But what I find interesting is how instrumental he was while the FBI was starting up their behavioral science division. With an IQ of somewhere between 136-145, Ed Kemper was almost too smart for his own good. He was described as a model prisoner and even began administering psychiatric tests to other inmates. 

While Kemper did play a big part in understanding other serial killers and their mindsets, it doesn't change the fact that he murdered at least 10 people. Known as The Co-Ed Killer, Kemper targeted young college age women who were hitchhiking through California. Most of his murders included necrophilia, decapitation, and dismemberment.

That quick recap of his case is basically what you'll find in this edition of Conversations with a Killer. I was quick to grab this book because I expected it to be written similarly to the Ted Bundy one. Bundy's book was written more has a cut and dry interview process whereas this one was chunks of texts pulled from various interviews. Some areas were hard to follow given the disorganized nature of this book.

Overall, it was okay but it's not the best true crime book I've read.

Looking for other Conversation with a Killer books?

Ted Bundy

Fahrenheit 451

I love this book.

I've always loved it.

So when my friend suggested we re-read it for Banned Books Week, I jumped at the chance.

I haven't read this book since high school, so I went into this just remembering how I felt reading it as a teenager. You guys know the gist of the story right? If not, here's a refresher.

 

Guy Montag is a fireman. But his job isn't to put out fires, it's to set them. Reading and owning books has been outlawed, so when the alarm siren ring the men jump into their truck with firehouses that spray kerosene. When Montag meets the peculiar neighbor girl, he begins to question everything that he had been taking at face value. For years, he's been collecting books from homes he's set ablaze and hiding them in his own home. Technology has taken over and they're constantly interacting with strangers they call relatives.

It blows my mind that this book was originally published in the 1950's while this extreme interconnection is something we witness every single day here in 2023. When I first read this, I didn't even have a smart phone. But now the world has seen rich ass men literally throwing themselves into space.

This book has been challenged and banned all over the world for numerous reasons. What these people are failing to realize it that by banning Fahrenheit 451, they are doing exactly what the firemen did.

Wanna see my original review?

Fahrenheit 451

 

Looking for other books that mention Fahrenheit 451?

Dear Fahrenheit 451

Dead Eleven

This book was so freaking good.

Creepy ass island? Check.

Missing sibling? Check.

Dead kid? Check.

It all starts when Willow goes missing.

After the death of her son, she starts looking for meaning. Anything that might help her cope with the loss of her little boy. After a nightmare from her childhood, she has the overwhelming urge to move the toy box in his room....that's when she sees it.

Clifford Island.

Google hardly recognizes Clifford Island as a real place, but before long she's on a boat to get some answers. But what she finds is even weirder. This island and all its residents seem to be stuck in 1994. The O.J. Simpson Bronco chase plays every single night, there's hardly any modern technology, and there always seems to be something lurking behind the curtains.

This was the perfect book to kick off spooky season.

The secrets, the nostalgia, the dreary weather.

It was just perfectly spooky.

Tangled Vines

I feel like it's safe to say we've all heard of the Murdaugh Family at this point.

I've been following this case since day one. I mean this all happened less than an hour away from where I live. So I have been hardcore invested in this.

 

Tangled Vines does a deep dive into the entire Murdaugh Family. For decades, Murdaugh's ran wild through South Carolina. They literally help create the city and immediately took over the legal system. Every single generation of Murdaugh men have worked within the legal system in some capacity. But for some reason, Alex and his boys decided that meant they ran the city. Buster and Paul could do no wrong. Aside from constantly bailing them out, Alex preyed on families who were already going through some of the worst times of their lives. He saw dollar signs mixing with their tears.

 

I first became invested in this case when I heard about Mallory Beach.

I drive over the bridge where her body was found, regularly for work. Every single time, it reminds me that the Murdaugh's truly got away with everything. Well, almost everything.

 

There's so many conspiracies surrounding this family, that it would be hard to discredit them all. While John Glatt does touch on a handful of theories, he keeps it pretty cut and dry. Overall this was a well written, cohesive book on The Murdaugh Family Murders.

Looking for other books by John Glatt?

The Perfect Father

The Doomsday Mother

The Family Next Door

I Would Leave Me If I Could

I got a little musical bug in my ear the other day and could not stop listening to the album Maniac by Halsey.

I get in the moods where music speaks to me and Halsey's words were like poetry. I listened to the album on repeat for days before deciding I needed to re-read her actually poetry book.

The first time I read I Would Leave Me If I Could, I was in a happy, committed relationship. Since then, I've gotten divorced and experienced the deepest heartbreak I never could have imagined. I knew going into this a second time that I would take away something completely different.

 

It hurt. 

But it felt more like a growing pain.

The anxiety and depression hit me like a ton of bricks but gave me so much hope. It made me realize that heartbreak hits everyone a little differently but we always manage to bounce back. It's okay to be sad. It's okay to ask for help. It's okay to be vulnerable.

Listening to Maniac and reading I Would Love Me If I Could was one of the most therapeutic experiences of my life.

Looking for my original review?

I Would Leave Me If I Could

Sucker

I saw this book and immediately pre-ordered it.

The premise was vague but it sounded a looooooot like Elizabeth Holmes as a vampire. Which hello, that sounds absolutely amazing.

But is that what I got?

I mean.....kind of.

This was the purest form of elitism.

It was set in the Silicon Valley, at a start up company (obviously), with a snotty ass rich kid who opened his own record label with daddy's money. They're barely making ends met, when a woman from Chuck's past shows up to give him the opportunity of a lifetime. Olivia is developing a health and wellness company that could detect all kinds of illnesses with a single drop of blood. And the best part? She wants Charles Grossheart to be her muse.

Olivia Watt's company, Kenosis, is literally just Elizabeth Holmes' Theranos. I'm talking this author put her in the same kind of freaking clothing and everything. It's like this novel wanted to be "Eat the rich!" But just came out more as, I'm an entitled asshole and always will be.

It just really, really did not work for me at all.

Where Are Your Boys Tonight?

Am I a 27 year old emo kid?

God mom, it was never a phase!

If you think for a second that I haven't seen AT LEAST one emo band on tour this year, you'd be dead wrong. I literally saw Fall Out Boy for the 6th time in July. I saw Mayday Parade, Paramore, The Maine.....I'm sure there's more.

But reading this book was insane.

It jumps right into the emo culture of the 90's.

While I didn't really know a lot of those bands, I was excited to learn about the guys who literally paved the way for modern emo culture. To kick it up a notch, I downloaded every single band that was mentioned and found SO MANY that I am now obsessed with. The basics, like Dashboard Confessional, The Used, Brand New were already on my radar. But then bands like Thursday, Something Corporate, and Silent Majority started infiltrating my playlists.

But my heart belongs in 2005.

This era is aptly referred to as the emo boom.

It was the height of Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Panic! at The Disco, Paramore, and countless others. This was when I entered my emo phase and just.....never left.

The connections that all of these guys have and continue to have is absolutely remarkable. I learned new things about bands that I've been listening to for nearly two decades. Seeing how the culture grew and became this absolute craze blows my mind. Hearing how they started bands, learning about the diss tracks, the drama, the love, the absolute friendship that came from this group. They created something that made my little emo heart feel seen. That's what they did for me.

Looking for books written by bands mentioned in this book?

The Boy with the Thorn in His Side

None of This Rocks

My Story

MARILYN DESERVED BETTER.

I love this woman with my entire being.

So yes, I will absolutely be biased in my opinion of her memoir.

Her memoir starts the way most do, with her childhood. The trauma she suffered from people who were supposed to love and care for her breaks my heart. She tells this story with such immense vulnerability. It details her rise to stardom along with all the heartbreak that came along with it. The photos she took to make a little cash, learning to live her life as an absolute sexpot, and living a very public persona while trying to nurture the little girl she once was.

One quote speaks volumes about how she was perceived in the public eye vs how she saw herself.

 

"The truth is I've never fooled anyone. I've let men sometimes fool themselves. Men sometimes didn't bother to find out who and what I was. Instead they would invent a character for me. I wouldn't argue with them. They were obviously loving somebody I wasn't. When they found this out, they would blame me for disillusioning them--and fooling them."

 

What I loved most about this memoir is hearing Marilyn talk about herself in a way that felt real. It felt natural. It felt like she finally wanted the world to see her as she saw herself. While her memoir is unfinished, I managed to snag an illustrated edition that included photos taken by Milton Greene. Dozens upon dozens of iconic Marilyn photos can be found in these pages and I absolutely loved it.

Looking for other books that feature Marilyn Monroe?

Music for Chameleons

Marilyn Monroe: The Last Interview

Blonde

Looking for books that have characters based on Marilyn Monroe?

Valley of the Dolls

Breakfast at Tiffany's

Thrillville, USA

This book was so intense from the start and I freaking loved it.

Thrillville, USA is a collection of daaaaaaark short stories that tie together in a round about way. It's really just stories about self-destruction. There's drug and alcohol abuse, death, infidelity, unemployment, homelessness, and really just the nitty gritty underside of life that no one really seems to want to talk about. It kind of reminded of Devil All the Time. Life was just constantly kicking the shit out of these guys while they were just trying to make the best of it.

Thrillville, USA is actually the dying amusement park where a lot of these stories take place. It's hard to pinpoint what exactly made me love this book as much as I did. It's not thrilling like the title suggests but it is depressing and messy and real.

WarholCapote

It's not a secret that I'm obsessed with all things Truman Capote.

 

But I'm also obsessed with Andy Warhol.

 

So when my sister handed me this book, I immediately jumped right into it and finished it while I was on my weekend trip.

 

Rumor has it, Andy and Truman had been talking about recording their conversations and turning all their drama and gossip into a Broadway show. A show I definitely would have wanted to see. When Rob Roth caught wind that there might actually be tapes recorded between these two icons, he jumped at the chance to find them. The Warhol Foundation confirmed there are almost 3,000 tapes in their possession that can't be shared until 50 years after Andy's death. So yeah, 2037. A handful of these tapes were released to Roth and he decided to re-imagine their conversations into a "play" of sorts, which resulted in this book.

 

These two men are absolutely icon in my eyes.

I will be not so patiently waiting for the next 14 years for those tapes to be released.

 

Looking for other books by or featuring Truman Capote?

In Cold Blood

Other Voices, Other Rooms

The Grass Harp

Breakfast at Tiffany's

The Complete Stories of Truman Capote

Music for Chameleons

Answered Prayers

Marilyn Monroe: The Last Interview

Tru & Nelle

No Saints in Kansas

For You and Only You

This was honestly one of my least favorite books in this series.

It just feels like Joe isn't Joe anymore?

If that makes sense.

Maybe I'm just stuck in a world where I wanted Forty to be alive and for Love to be his endgame. But here we are.

For those of you who watch the show, this book veers kind of off track. Yes, he's at a prestigious school and writing a book. But that's like.....the only similarity. But honestly, I hated the newest season of the show too. It just felt like Joe was losing himself. I know that sounds crazy to say about our favorite fictional serial killer, but that's how it feels.

I don't know, but this book just was not for me.

Looking for the rest of the series?

You (You #1)

Hidden Bodies (You #2)

You Love Me (You #3)

 

The One and Only Ruby

This is honestly one of my favorite series.

I love getting to know the stories of each of these animals. We started with Ivan, the gorilla trapped in a roadside attraction. Then we got to know Bob, the dog who became Ivan's unlikely pal. But Ruby really hit home for me. Ruby is a young elephant who experiences loneliness, growing up, and finding her herd. She takes us back to her life in African and what it was like watching as the poachers descended on her family. How lost she felt until ending up in a sanctuary.

It was heartbreaking. I wasn't expecting her story to resonate so much with me but it really grabbed me and it's not letting me go. It took over a month for me to even find these few words for my review. It's just a great little read and might be my favorite of the series.

Looking for the rest of the series?

The One and Only Ivan

The One and Only Bob

Con/Artist

I love a good true crime story, but I was so unprepared for Con/Artist.

This was amazing.

Tony Tetro wrote Con/Artist about his time as an art forger. His attention to the most minuscule detail is why he's considered the world's greatest art forger. He was passing off hundreds of his paintings as "lost art" for some massive names like Dali, Rembrandt, Chagall, even Rockwell. He even went so far as to forge a Ferrari. Yes, like a real ass Ferrari and he actually did it.

Reading about how and why he got into this life of crime was so interesting because the man has immense talent. But what struck me as the most interesting part is that his first forged art sale he actually sold under the guise of another art forger. He created a piece, signed a known art forger's name to it, and sold it almost as a novelty item.

This was just absolutely insane to read and I loved every second of it.

BadAsstronauts

This book was comedic gold.

BadAsstronauts was originally published under the title, Occupy Space. But last year, Grady Hendrix revamped his first self-published book and re-released this absolute masterpiece.

Grady is known for his quirky, campy, horror books and this is not that at all. This book has all the quirky elements of his horror books, mixed with his firsthand knowledge of the south. That being said, I understand why this book didn't take off the way he wanted it to in 2012. I also know that I am 100% his target audience for this book. So do with that what you will.

This novella is only about 160 pages of pure southern anarchy.

Local boy turned astronaut, Bobby Jr., gets stuck in space. NASA isn't really doing anything to help bring him home. But dammit, his South Carolina family will find a way to bring him home to his Momma. A ragtag team of almost astronauts, community college students, and extreme couponing grandmothers are determined to bring Bobby Jr. home....they just have to figure out how to build a rocket.

This was just so absurdly realistic. The Redneck NASA, the small town police, the acres of ramshackle land for their launch site. It was just hilarious and exactly what I would expect if a group of normal ass people were attempting to shoot one of their own into outer space.

Looking for other books by Grady Hendrix?

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

My Best Friend's Exorcism

Horrorstor

The Final Girl Support Group

We Sold Our Souls

How to Sell a Haunted House

Dear Freedom Writer

I was in grade school when I first learned about The Freedom Writers. Every since then, I've been obsessed with reading published journals and diaries. Every single person has a story to tell, they just need somebody to listen. That's what Erin Gruwell and The Freedom Writers set out to do in Dear Freedom Writer.

 

Dear Freedom Writer features letters from people all over the world. They began writing to The Freedom Writers with their issues, ranging anywhere from sexuality, to covid, to wars going on in their own backyard. The Freedom Writers wrote back to each of these people with their own experiences. They offered advice, forgiveness, and a shoulder to cry on. Many of the letters were written by people who were just kids when Ms. Gruwell started teaching in Room 203, which quickly became a sacred oasis for many.

Some of these stories were hard to read, but all of them needed to be heard.

Looking for other books by The Freedom Writers?

The Freedom Writer's Diary

Kurt Cobain: The Last Interview

I've been obsessed with Kurt for a verrrrrry long time.

I think every kid going through their alternative phase finds Nirvana and it speaks to their twisted, tortured, teen souls.

Kurt Cobain: The Last Interview follows the same formula as every other book in The Last Interview collection. It leads up to his final interview in February 1994, just months before his death. Some of these interviews were absolutely insane to read but two specific ones stuck out to me the most. The July 1993 interview for Guitar World with Jon Savage shows them bantering on gay rights, feminism, and how their music allowed them to raise awareness for things they were genuinely passionate about without being overtly political. I also enjoyed the August 1993 interview for Much Music TV with Erica Ehm. They talked about life, love, and music. It showed a sweeter more relaxed version of Kurt as opposed to the Edgar Klusener interview with the whole band that honestly made me think a little differently of them.

Kurt lived the life he thought he wanted and it just wasn't enough for him. Growing up with next to nothing and being catapulted into stardom would be hard on anyone, let alone someone living with a chronic illness and shaky mental health. Yet somehow, through all that Kurt became the voice of a generation. Someone who said and did what everyone was thinking without any regrets.

Peace, love, and empathy.

Looking for other books in The Last Interview Series?

Anthony Bourdain

Marilyn Monroe

Looking for other books featuring Kurt Cobain?

Heavier than Heaven

27

Life on Planet Rock

Who Killed Kurt Cobain?

Love Letters to the Dead

Paris

I was not ready for all the bombshells Paris Hilton dropped in this book.

 

I'm kind of obsessed with the "It Girls" of the early 2000s. These are the girls I grew up watching in real time, and saw their worlds crumble around them in the media. Paris, Britney, and Lindsay literally went through hell and somehow in 2023 ended up on the other side. And I'm grateful for that.

 

For years we heard about their parting, clubbing, and bad habits. But it's hard to imagine judging them now the way they were judged then. They were in their 20's, doing what literally every single twenty year old woman does....living their best lives.

 

That being said, Paris doesn't really talk about that part of her life in this book. Yes, it's in there but the bulk of her memoir talks about her time in trouble youth camps and schools. You know the one's we all heard about in hushed whispers because no one wanted to admit there might be abuse going on there.....even though there absolutely was.

 

I genuinely don't know how Paris or any of the other kids in these schools survived. Hell, some of them didn't. The Provo school that Paris was forced into has been compared to the likes of the Standford Prison Experiment by Phillip Zimbardo. A study that literally got shut down after a few weeks because of the horrific power dynamics surrounding solitary confinement and breaking people down to their absolute lowest point.

Paris was literally ripped from her bed in her own home and shoved into one of these schools after the other. I could almost hear her voice shaking while reading the words on the page.

I am so happy to see her thriving now, living her truest life, and doing everything in her power to keep this from happening to other kids.

Into the Water

This felt like an overly researched news article that just needed to make their word count.

 

I read true crime books regularly and for some reason I just could not follow this one. Maybe it's because there were so many different factors that Diane Fanning was explaining all at once. With Marc Evonitz never facing a trial for his crimes, it was harder to understand exactly what happened. He went undetected for several years and other men where suspected in his crimes. But other true crime stories were somehow tied into this one as well. It was just so messy.

Looking for other books by Diane Fanning?

Through the Window

 

Kill Joy

I was so excited to get lost in Pip's world again, so I read this entire novella the day it came out.

I've had a few gripes about the series, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. My main issue being the elaborate confessions to freaking high school kids. But in Kill Joy we actually get to see these kids just being kids. It takes place in a single evening, an evening filled with mystery and murder. Well, in their game anyway.

Conner invited everyone over for a murder mystery party, think Clue but in real life. It's 1920's themed and on a private island, oh and everyone must come in their character's costume. Everyone takes their places at the table and the game begins. Reginald Remy is killed on his 74th birthday and now everyone at his party is considered a suspect.

In typical Pip fashion, she quickly starts taking in everything around her. The secrets begin unfolding before their very eyes and accusations begin flying. But Pip thinks she has it figured out. She quite literally has a mic drop moment at the table and everyone is stunned.

It was just such a fun read.

We got to read Pip's character clues and cues and kind of play along with the rest of them.

It starts as a kind of prequel to A Good Girl's Guide to Murder.

Think of it as Pip's first clue into solving Andi Bell's murder.

Looking for the rest of the series?

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder (AGGGTM #1)

Good Girl, Bad Blood (AGGGTM #2)

As Good as Dead (AGGGTM #3)

Such Pretty Flowers

Ugh, the spooky southern vibes!

And by ugh I actually mean I'm obsessed.

Savannah, Georgia, is cloaked in mystery.

The twisting trees, the Spanish moss, the elaborate city squares.

It adds to the illusion that something sinister is always lurking.

K.L. Cerra took that spooky feel and added such pretty flowers to it.

Such Pretty Flowers starts with a grieving family. Holly just lost to brother, Dane. But he sent her an eerie text the night of his apparent suicide.....

 

"So Maura wants to play this weird-ass game with me and I figured I'd let you know in case anything happened." 

 

Something did happen, Dane tried to disembowel himself with a knife.

Holly wants answers for her family. Something about that night just isn't sitting right with her. Sure, Dane had been slowly deteriorating, but no one expected that. So she starts at the source, his girlfriend Maura. Maura seems to be a local botanist, and even supplies her closest friends with tinctures and cures. Holly quickly agrees to move in and do some snooping around Maura and Dane's townhouse. Starting in the bedrooms seems too easy, but eventually she finds her way to the greenhouse....and that's where Holly sees the blood.

 

This was book a slooooooow burn with a very unexpected twist.

I loved every single second of it.

I Know What's Best for You

I was in Atlanta with my sister shortly after Roe v. Wade was overturned.

We stumbled around Ponce City Market and found Posman Books. I wasn't looking for anything in particular but I kept going back to this book. I kept picking it up. I had finished reading You're the Only One I've Told by Dr. Meera Shah just a few weeks earlier. Finally, one of the employees said she was currently reading this book. I told her about Meera's book and finally decided to buy a copy.

I Know What's Best for You was written during the height of the pandemic. Shelly Oria reached out to people all over to hear their reproduction stories...the good, the bad, and the ugly. This book includes 29 different stories of reproductive freedom or lack thereof. No two stories are the same. It has a mix of fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, plays, a comic, and even a photography collection.

I don't have to tell you guys what it means to be a woman in today's society. I have no doubt in my mind that my choices will be different from every single one of you. That's what this book is about. It's about how each of us have a different story to tell. Each of us have different life experiences that may influence our choices. But it's okay.

I would love a follow up collection now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned.

Looking for other books on reproductive freedom?

You're The Only One I've Told

Waco

As of this month, it will have been 30 years since the start of the Waco Siege. A siege that went on for 51 days and resulted in 86 casualties, many of which were children.

 

The events that took place at the Branch Davidian Compound at Mount Carmel were extreme to say the least. Starting with the Davidian beliefs, the stockpiling of weapons, and the polygamy involving girls as young as 14. It seems as though Vernon Howell, better known as David Koresh was leading his followers on their journey to The End Times. The focus was on the Seven Seals. Koresh taught that the Bible was not only referencing Biblical time, but that most of the events could be translated into the modern world as well. David Koresh had such unthinkable control over his followers, all because they truly believed him to be The Lamb of God.

CPS, ATF, and FBI all got involved with cases surrounding the Branch Davidian's around the same time. CPS was called in to investigate after reports of child abuse within the compound, however their case was closed shortly after their initial visits. ATF was alerted that men living at Mount Carmel may be illegally converting semiautomatic firearms to fully automatic firearms without the correct legal documentation to do so. FBI got involved shortly after the initial siege on February 28, 1993.

The tactics used by ATF were infuriating. The PA system, the constant lights, the thinly veiled threats, the tanks, the tear gas.....there's no way they expected that to end peacefully when bringing in such extreme reinforcements. The lack of accountability within the leadership at Waco and at Ruby Ridge blows my mind. Not to mention the trial of the 9 individuals who survived. Did you guys know they were all acquitted of murder charges but the judge decided not to follow the jury's decision and sentenced them to 40 years instead?

There's just so much about the Waco Siege makes me angry.

The siege may have lasted 51 days, but everything went up in flames in a matter of minutes. 

For what?

Looking for other books that mention Waco?

The Federal Siege at Ruby Ridge

Stalling for Time

After the Fire

Really Good, Actually

Did I cry throughout this entire book? Yes, yes I did.

 

This book is so sad, and funny, and relatable.

 

So much of this book made me look back on my past relationships and realize this shit could literally happen to anyone. It honestly validated so many of the emotions I've been dealing with for the last 6 months.

Maggie and Jon just ended their 9 year relationship because somewhere along the way their marriage crumbled. It left Maggie feeling down, destroyed, and down right shitty. Her nights became filled with the overwhelming urge to cry. Her husband was gone, her cat went with him, and her life all but fell apart. But she decided to put herself back out there. She needed a new hobby, career, or even a new love interest. Literally anything to keep her from dealing with her own thoughts.

 

God, even writing this review has me crying.

 

Just trust me when I say this book is great.

Love, Pamela

I read Pamela's book in less than 24 hours.

I've seen a lot of mixed emotions regarding her writing her own story but it's one that I absolutely wanted to read. Years ago I read Tommy Lee's book, Tommyland. I was mystified that he managed to snag Pamela freaking Anderson and that she was throwing him literally the coolest birthday party I'd ever heard of.

I think that's when my fascination started.

Or maybe it was when she guest starred in all my favorite shows from the early 2000s.

But it's probably when the kitchen timer went off in Friends and Joey and Chandler introduced me to Baywatch.

Either way, Pamela was writing her story and I knew I needed it.

I'll admit, I watched Pam & Tommy on Hulu before hearing how much that hurt her. So much of her life has been pure exploitation. Being a blonde bombshell, a pin up girl, and a Playboy Bunny, doesn't mean she isn't entitled to privacy and human decency. Besides, there's so much more to her than that. First and foremost, she's a mom. But she's also an activist, working with organizations all over the world. Her activism spans all walks of life, orphanages, animal rescue, even the rain forests.

 

I dare say she's a modern day Marilyn Monroe.

So much of their stories feel familiar to me.

They were both thrown into fame and stardom at such a young age.

The both wholeheartedly followed their hearts without a second glance.

I think there's something in their stories that we can all learn from.

Looking for other books featuring Pamela Anderson?

Tommyland

How to Sell a Haunted House

I went to see Grady on his book tour for How to Sell a Haunted House. His presentations are always so quirky and really get me hyped for his latest books.

 

This book was amazing.

The atmosphere, the vibes, the shock factor.

Everything.

 

Fair warning: If puppets or dolls give you the ick, you might want to avoid this book.

This was literally my nightmare growing up. Someone told me and my sister that if our Barbie dolls were still out at night, they'd come to life and attack us. I have vivid dreams of a Bratz doll scratching the lens of a camera, taunting me. We actually used to put our dolls to bed before we went to sleep, flipping all of them over onto their stomachs so they would be "asleep."

 

So yeah, this book definitely creeped me out a little more than I thought it would.

 

Louise and Mark's parents died in a freak car accident, leaving all their belongings to the kids. The house they grew up in, their father's work, and of course their mom's entire collection of puppets. Nancy started a Christian Puppet Ministry when they were kids. She had been carrying around a puppet named Pupkin since she was a little girl. The obsession grew from there. The puppets started to take on a life of their own. The love that Nancy showed them pushed them to be more than just the fabric and plastic that made up their bodies.

 

There were a few surprises that genuinely caught me off guard.

But holy shit, this book was great.

 

Looking for other Grady Hendrix books?

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

My Best Friend's Exorcism

Horrorstor

The Final Girl Support Group

We Sold Our Souls

BadAsstronauts

Immortality

A few months ago, my sister and I had a chance to go to YALLFest, a YA book festival held in Charleston, South Carolina. We had the best time and left out of there with so many new books, new authors, and new ARCs.

I happened to snag a copy of Immortality, the much awaited sequel to Anatomy by Dana Schwartz.

We learn a lot about anatomy, home remedies, and magical tinctures in the first book. Immortality has much of the same. But I felt like it was lacking just a little bit. I know we all got caught up in the romance between Jack and Hazel, but their future is nonexistent. In Immortality, Hazel has to find a way to move on with her life's work without Jack. She continues seeing patients and helping others merely for the sake of humanity. Furthering her education with this hands-on approach is something Hazel lives for. It's making her a better doctor and helping her to finish her very own treatise, or medical manual for the average person.

After finding herself in an awful misunderstanding, Hazel is called upon to treat Princess Charlotte, the future Queen of England. While treating the princess, Hazel receives an invite to an incredibly secret society, The Companions to the Death. Honestly, their part of the story is by far my favorite. I wish instead of creating an annoying ass love triangle, that we could have seen more from the Companions.

Honestly, I did not love this book.

It did bring me a sense of closure from Anatomy but overall I felt kind of meh about the whole thing.

It was written very well, but the story was lacking some of the empowerment that came with the first book. Hazel was a strong woman who was determined to become a surgeon, but her confidence really faltered throughout this book. I know love will do that, but man I missed her.

Huge thanks to Wednesday Books for the ARC!

Immortality hits shelves February 28, 2023!

Looking for the rest of the series?

Anatomy

Aurora

Ooh, this was a doozy.

I was in high school when James Holmes opened fire on a packed theater during the midnight premiere of The Dark Knight Rises. But I had never read an account quite like the one in Aurora: The Psychiatrist Who Treated The Movie Theater Killer Tells Her Story. Dr. Lynne Fenton and Kerrie Droban wove an incredulous tale of horror.

For a mere six weeks, Dr. Fenton treated James Holmes. He left her feeling uneasy and overwhelmed. It didn't help that he mentioned homicidal thoughts in their very first session. Something about him just nagged at her very being. But we have to remember, psychiatrists can only treat symptoms if they're patients are sharing them.

James wasn't someone who had a desire to maintain relationships with anyone. He hated all of humanity. It was only a matter of time before he hurt himself or someone else. The only problem was he didn't qualify for a psychiatric hold based on what he was willing to share with Dr. Fenton.

So much of Holmes' story left me reeling.

He omitted things from these sessions specifically to see if he could continue out his "mission" without further interference. Part of me thinks he really did want to be stopped, but part of me believes he wanted to do this for a long time.

This book contains graphic retellings of that fateful night but focuses primarily on Dr. Fenton and what she went through while treating James Holmes. Psychiatrists aren't supposed to be outed in criminal trials, which is why she was fully unprepared for the hate mail, death threats, and security measures she had to implement into her every day life.

It was definitely an interesting perspective.

Looking for other books on James Holmes?

A Dark Night in Aurora

We Sold Our Souls

Okay, I'm actually obsessed with this book.

Grady Hendrix has a love for "music saves" as a theme and honestly, I love it. Now I'm not going to pretend like we haven't heard all the Illuminati conspiracies when it comes to the music industry. We Sold Our Souls does a deep dive into a world of conspiracy turned reality. The horror genre and metal music collide and it is so freaking fantastic.

Washed up, Durt Wurk guitarist, Kris leads us through the nightmare that is now her life. She's getting pissed on while working the front desk of the Best Western. This wasn't supposed to be her life, she was supposed to be legendary. But The Blind King took everything from her. One time friend and frontman of Durt Wurk, Terry Hunt ruined her chance for infamy. He took the money, he sold out, and left them all in their own personal Hells.

But that's all about to change.

 

Koffin announces a Farewell Tour, followed by Hellstock '19, a music festival for the lost, lonely, and pissed off souls. Hundreds of thousands of people flock to Vegas for this once in a lifetime opportunity, including Kris. If he's going to play his entire discography beginning to end, he's not going to do it without Kris dragging their "lost album," Troglodyte back out of the grave. She has a score to settle with Terry, might as well do it on stage.

 

There's so much happening in this book....murder suicides, cross country road trips, more murders, a cult-like camp, and the worst of all, record execs. It put the music industry and consumerism on blast and tied it all together with a graphic gory bow.

 

This might actually be my favorite of his books.

 

Looking for other Grady Hendrix books?

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

My Best Friend's Exorcism

Horrorstor

The Final Girl Support Group

How to Sell a Haunted House

BadAsstronauts

Our Book of Awesome

This was a great book to start my year with.

Within the last week, my life has all but fallen apart.

Which is why I grabbed Our Book of Awesome off my TBR shelf.

I needed some peace, happiness, and awesomeness.

If you haven't figured it out yet, The Book of Awesome and all it's subsequent titles detail all the little things in life that we take for granted. It's literally just a list of all the awesome things we as people get to experience and live through every single day.

Some of my favorite things from Our Book of Awesome include:

-Being so obsessed with books you read every single word on the copyright page

-Driving down an old road with trees that touch and form a canopy over everything

-Watching your fav movie with someone who hasn't seen it before (would also like to add, listening to your fav album with someone who hasn't heard it before)

-Dogs hanging their heads out of car windows

-Singing the guitar solo

 

These are all great examples of things that I love and would love to share with other people.

Our Book of Awesome did it a little differently this time, instead of Neil Pasricha just sharing his awesome thoughts, he included comments and entries from people all over the world!

 

AWESOME!

 

Looking for the other Awesome books?

The Book of Awesome

The Book of (Even More) Awesome

The Book of (Holiday) Awesome