M. Zalewski

"Genre Fluid"

Reviewed: 09-14-21

Joe Hill describes himself as "genre fluid" and that is 100% appropriate for this collection. I have pretty mixed results with horror books in general, especially short story collections, and this was sold to me as horror, but there wasn't gore for the sake of being gruesome like many horror books.

Joe has a gift like his dad to capture the human experience that really pulls you in. Most short story collections range from terrible to excellent. This one ranges from pretty good to really great. My favorites were stories like "Late Return" with elements that make you think and connect emotionally, which is a good chunk of this book.

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1 person found this helpful

Laughed Out Loud

Reviewed: 09-13-21

I have been on stage and back stage in several MSND productions and I always thought Shakespeare could be improve by some well placed F-bombs. Thank You, Mr. Moore!

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So Much Non-toxic Fun

Reviewed: 09-09-21

I am tough to please with romances. I get turned off by relationships that are supposed to be "romantic" but are actually really creepy and toxic, which is the majority of the romance genre. This book avoids that. (Getting on a TV show to see your high school sweetheart again without her knowing skirts the line, but I can forgive it.)

I laughed and groaned at the characters and situations but kept wanting more. The web of confident, capable women around the main characters was really nice and it managed to illuminate the struggles of women in the past without being overly preachy or morose about it. I also liked that the romance was important to the story, but each character had their own life and struggles that weren't magically solved by finding love.

It felt like such dumb fun, but it was so much fun! This isn't the best book I have ever read, but it is probably the best romance book I have ever read/listened to.

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Very Heartfelt

Reviewed: 08-22-21

It took me a while to finish this one because I cried as much as I laughed. The beginning was the fun romp I expected, which made the sad parts hit so hard! I would still recommend it as it is so heartfelt, wholesome, and optimistic, but I wish I'd had a tissue box warning.

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Reading Rainbow Nostalgia & Great Grown-up Stories

Reviewed: 08-18-21

I cannot believe it took me so long to find out about this! LeVar Burton was such a part of my generation's childhood! And now he's back to read great short fiction to us as adults!! I love his voice and the audio effects that make the stories feel even more real. I am so happy to have stumbled across this podcast!!

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The Supernatural Elements Ruined A Great Story

Reviewed: 08-18-21

I was eating this book up until about 70% of the way through. I was really impressed with the little touches in sound editing, like making phone calls sound distant. I love learning about cults and fundamentalist compounds, and thought the author did a great job in the beginning exploring lives of young girls in those situations.

But as the story went on it almost felt like a different author took over, added a lot of plot conveniences to support the supernatural elements, and wrapped things up way too quickly with magic saving the day.

I loved the beginning and if the story had continued to be a young girl's crisis of faith, quest for freedom and safety for her family, and a living through a global pandemic I would have given it 4.75 out of 5. Seeing how people without much contact with the world would cope and rebuild would have been a great story. The ending killed it for me, though.

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So Fun

Reviewed: 08-12-21

The narrator was fantastic and I was disappointed and impressed to look at other books he narrates to find out he doesn't always have an Irish accent. The story was episodic, comedic, and an easy listen for a day off running errands and doing chores. I would love more in this universe but it is a satisfying stand alone and great palate cleanser between longer more serious books.

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Meh

Reviewed: 07-31-21

The writing style made you invest in the characters even if they didn't last long, which was enjoyable, but the scientific inaccuracies and the 67 year old lone wolf ex government agent pulled out of retirement to save the day when no one else believes the danger is real aspect pushed the suspension of disbelief a little too far into the ridiculous. With a little more editing this author has a lot of potential.

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Almost Gave Up But Glad I Didn't

Reviewed: 07-18-21

I almost gave up after the first few stories. The suspension of disbelief was pushed way too far (I can get behind zombies, psychics, and ghosts, but not a spy posing as a staff sergeant on duty at a military base allowed to wear spandex) and some seemed like juvenile shoot-em-up wish fulfillment with no substance, and 1 I had to listen to multiple times because I kept zoning out because it was just not that interesting. This was the 1st book I ever listened to sped up more than 1.5 not because the narrator was slow, but because I was bored and wanted to get to a reasonable DNF point sooner.

I wanted to get at least 40% through before returning it and I am glad I did! As the stories went on some of them were genuinely creative, suspenseful, heartfelt, and captivating. I ended up really enjoying most of it and will probably listen to some of them again around fall and Halloween. The introduction about Ramero's history was also interesting.

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Not as Fun as the First

Reviewed: 06-18-21

I loved the 1st Tom Stranger, it's a fun concept and the jokes were made at everyone's expense, so it was easy to laugh. This was much more liberal hating nonsense than well balanced satire. If I hadn't been driving I wouldn't have finished it. Very disappointing.

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