Tag: spooky reading

The Cosy Autumn Book Tag

Francesca LucyLeave a comment

I’m struggling to comprehend the fact that I’ve actually stuck to my posting-every-other-day schedule this month but, somehow, I’m still on track! And, as a result, I’ve posted a lot more reviews than normal this month. So I thought it would be nice to break these up with a seasonally appropriate tag.

I’ve seen this one going around recently and love any opportunity to talk about my favourite season so, without further ado, the Cosy Autumn Book Tag.

What book always reminds you of fall/autumn?

I don’t actually know why this was the first book to come to mind but: Good Girls Die First by Kathryn Foxfield. I read this book in Autumn last year, wrapped up in a blanket and completely freaked out by the combination of the plot, a thunderstorm and the creepy noises that my last flat made, and I will always associate it with this time of year as a result.

What is your favourite autumnal book cover?

Cemetery Boys! It doesn’t have that much Autumnal stuff on the cover, but it definitely still reminds me of the season a lot. And it’s completely beautiful. And one of my favourite books ever. Anyway…

What is your favourite autumnal drink to read with?

Hot chocolate! I used to hate hot drinks but, after getting obsessed with coffee last year, I started to like this too. Now, the second the temperature drops low enough, I love to switch from iced caramel lattes to hot chocolates and cream.

Do you prefer to read late at night or early in the morning?

Definitely late at night. I’m much more of a night owl than an early riser and love knowing that I can curl up in bed with a book at the end of the day, with no obligation to move until I’ve read as much as I want to.

Halloween is coming! What is your favourite spooky read?

I’ve been reading a lot of scary YA lately and it’s been getting me super nostalgic for Slasher Girls and Monster Boys, the YA horror anthology. I read this whole collection years ago but find myself visiting some of its stories often, especially when we’re nearing Halloween.

What is the ultimate comfort read for you?

Not autumnal in the slightest, as it’s the most summery book I can think of but… We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. It’s been getting a lot of hate recently thanks to TikTok but it’s the book I’ve read most in the world and I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it. Although not the happiest of stories, it’s just so easy, gripping and now nostalgic.

What is your favourite autumnal reading snack?

I baked Halloween-themed brownies recently (complete with spooky ghost decorations, of course) and they made a really cute reading snack. But really, anything with chocolate is a good reading snack all year round.

What is your favourite autumnal candle to burn whilst reading?

It’s a very unpopular opinion in book world, but I don’t actually really like candles. I do love the idea of Pumpkin Spice scented candles, or Vanilla Latte ones, but I only use electric ones, oops.

When you’re not reading, what is your favourite autumnal activity?

I love autumn walks! Seeing the streets covered in leaves and being able to leave the house wrapped up in cardigans and boots rather than summer clothes makes me happy.

What is on your autumn/fall reading list?

So much! I’m mostly focusing on Halloween rather than Autumn in general this year, so anything dark is great. Only A Monster is next up, then You’ll Be the Death of Me by Karen McManus and, of course, Kingdom of the Cursed by Kerri Maniscalco.

And that’s the tag! If you want to do it, consider yourself tagged 🙂 I’d love to know what your favourite autumnal read is too, so drop a comment below if you have any great Autumn recs!

Book Review: The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino

Francesca Lucy5 Comments

*Thank you to Titan Books for the eARC*

The Devil Makes Three is a dark-academia YA horror that follows Tess, a scholarship student and resident school librarian, and Eliot, the evil-headmaster’s privileged son, as they pair up to find grimoires and histories of dark magic to help Eliot on a personal quest and… accidentally unleash a book-bound demon. The two find themselves forced to put their differences and personal problems aside so they can work together to figure out what they seem to have set free, as Tess is all the while plagued by dreams of the devil and Eliot finds himself losing touch with the magic he has been struggling all his life to get a grasp of.

I’m mad at myself for having had an eARC of this since July and only now, in October, getting round to reading it, but I can’t deny that it fits perfectly on my scary October reading list. It’s a really dark story with a typical spooky setting and it had all of the atmosphere that I wanted from pre-Halloween reading. If you’re squeamish, it’s important to know that the author definitely doesn’t shy away from gore, but it really does help push the intensity and danger of the characters’ situations, and I do think that this was generally done well. Likewise, you should definitely look up the trigger warnings of this book before going into it as well, as there are a lot of triggering subjects such as child abuse, death and self-harm.

In terms of characters, I really liked the combination of Tess and Eliot’s perspectives. Tess was strong-willed, completely independent and unwilling to take anything from anyone, and Eliot’s quiet, inquisitive, hiding-behind-his-office-door nature made them a really fun pair to root for. It was a little strange at times that the way they described each other didn’t always completely align with the way that they actually behaved, but the use of both characters as protagonists made it much easier to understand both of them and why they might be falling for each other, despite their drastically different outlooks. It also definitely helped my enjoyment of this story that the rich-boy/scholarship-student romance trope is one that I love, and I may or may not have found rooting for them from before they even met (oops).

The story is a fairly straight-forward one, with a lot of intense moments of action and not a lot of twists. If you’re looking for a lot of surprises, this book may not be for you as it definitely relies more on atmosphere than mystery, but if you’re in the mood for a gory (for YA) page-turner, it definitely is. It’s an entertaining, not-quite-slasher-level horror with elements of dark academia, witchcraft and dark magic, and I’d absolutely recommend if you’re looking for some YA to get you into the Halloween spirit.

Rating: 4/5