Review: Snake-Eater by T Kingfisher
5 March 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, Books, Fantasy, Horror, Review, Snake-Eater, T Kingfisher
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Oddly Unique Yet Still Cosy
I think I can safely say that I never know what to expect from this author – other than, of course, it’s almost 99% certain that I will enjoy whatever she delivers.
In a nutshell the story begins with an introduction to Selena and her dog copper, arriving at Quartz Creek – where Selena’s aunt lived- only to find out that Selena’s aunt passed away a little time ago. Selena, is trying to escape an unhappy life in the city with a domineering partner. Her aunt’s cottage remains uninhabited, the desert not being a popular place to go to live apparently, and so, maybe she can stay for a little while, just to save up the money for the fare back home. In the meantime, the people of Quartz Creek take a real shine to Selena and take her under their collective wings. Unfortunately, something else seems to have taken a shine to Selena – something a little more creepy.
So, what did I love about this.
Well, Kingfisher excels at bringing her people to life. Selena is a great character, you really feel for her at the start, she’s so nervous and so scared of making mistakes. Her character really does undergo the most fabulous character arc. Grandma Billy is also a great character and of course the local priest, Father Aguirre. Both these characters will surprise you in the best way. On top of this Kingfisher is never afraid to introduce alternative characters such as Merv the Peacock and Copper the dog – they both play their roles perfectly. And, lets not forget the roadrunner. Yes, who would have thought that this particular character could be so, mmm, daunting! Enough said.
Quartz Creek is a great setting. I seriously loved it and the way of life. Wow, who wouldn’t love to find themselves in a place where the residents wrap you up and hold you close, feeding you, protecting you and fighting on your behalf. I could live here – although I could do without the strange things that stare in at the windows. Yes, there is also a side dose of horror with this one – just enough to give you the heebies mind, this isn’t some slasher type horror, it’s not blood soaked or terrifying. It’s just enough to be creepy. You might not be aware of cosy horror – I certainly wasn’t – but here you are, it’s arrived and I love it. I really do think that Kingfisher should take us back to Quartz Creek, I feel like there’s so much potential here. It’s one of those supernatural places with Gods, critters and myths and so much leeway for storytelling. Like Oliver, I would like more. Please.
I don’t think I can tell you too much more. Lovely writing, as always. Lovable characters and a little banger of a story. I have no hesitation in recommending this. Kingfisher fans will devour it and if this is your first time reading this author I have no doubt that this will make you want to take a look at the rest of her work. Happy reading. Beep beep.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4.5 of 5 stars
Review: Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman
26 February 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Between Two Fires, Book Review, Books, Christopher Buehlman, fiction, Horror, reading, Review
My Five Word TL:DR: A Bit Too Much Horror
I really do like this author, very much so. I like his style of writing. I absolutely loved The Blacktongue Thief and The Daughter’s War even moreso. In fact Between Two Fires has been on my wishlist for a while so I was excited to pick it up. And, to be perfectly honest, I really enjoyed this, but, I think this veered into perhaps a little too much horror for me personally. That being said, I still wolfed this down, the writing is good, the dialogue is excellent, its grim and gritty and I was positively intrigued.
The story gets off to an immediate start. We meet up with a band of brigands, really not very nice characters at all (serious understatement). They basically roam the countryside stealing and terrorising the people moving swiftly on before they can be caught. Unfortunately, they’re about to have a serious falling out. One of their band, Thomas, is about to disagree with their latest scheme and decide to save the young innocent girl they’ve just discovered (instead of following orders). This will be the first in what appears (to Thomas especially) a strange turnabout in character. He seems unable to say ‘no’ to this young girl and soon finds himself on a mission, accompanied by a priest.
The setting here is mediaeval, the period a particularly turbulent time when the plague was sweeping across Europe killing thousands in it’s wake. It seems like God has abandoned the people and hell and all it’s evil minions are running amok.
What I really liked about this.
Well, firstly I loved the writing. This is quite dark and bleak and the ending definitely descends into something of a blood bath – which isn’t really my thing, but I wanted to know how it was all going to end. For the record, this is not cosy, there is no romance, I would say it’s grimdark, meets horror, meets fiery apocalyptic end of world as we know it, with blood and lots of death. This author has a way with words where I find myself reading a story even when it becomes too much.
The characters. It’s a great group of characters. I was reading a discussion piece just recently about this very thing – good vs evil and morally grey characters. Here, we definitely fall into the ‘morally grey’ for at least two of the characters. The young girl is very innocent, although as the story develops it soon becomes clear that she is ‘different’. She knows things! Thomas is a disgraced knight and the priest has also suffered a fall from grace. I loved the dynamic between the three.
The majority of the story is in the style of overcoming trials and tribulations. The three are on a quest, travelling to a known destination, but without the knowledge of what they will need to do once they get there. The further they progress the more difficult their journey becomes and the more bizarre the trials that they endure.
What held this back a little for me.
First and foremost, it was just a bit too much horror for me, but that’s my personal preference and the last third, or maybe quarter, of the book, lost me a little. Now, I have been reflecting on what was taking place and so it has become clearer once I put the book down and had time to really think, but whilst I was reading I was definitely a bit perplexed and felt like I simply needed to push on to understand things, which turned out to be the case, because things did clear up. But, without doubt, for a spell there I was a bit, well, out of my depth – or at least that’s how it felt. Strange that even as I’m typing this review I’m having second thoughts because now I’m beginning to wonder if maybe the author intended for this to be all chaotic and confused. His characters were certainly a little lost after all. Mmm, food for thought. Seriously though – don’t you love a book that makes you think? I’m still going round in circles with my pondering which is exactly what I want from a book – I think this story will be in my head for a while making me go backwards and forwards, thinking I’ve pinned it down and then realising that I really haven’t.
Overall, I would have no hesitation in recommending this. The writing is excellent, I liked the characters, the setting was perfect – just be aware that it is very dark and quite horrific.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4 of 5 stars
Review: Temple Fall by RL Boyle
16 February 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, Books, Fantasy, fiction, Horror, Review, RL Boyle, Temple Fall
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Didn’t Quite Work It’s Magic
Temple Fall sounded like just my thing. A group of friends go to spend the night at an old abandoned house, in the process they manage to become cursed and one of them dies from a tragic accident. To all intents and purposes the rest of the friends also go missing and don’t reappear for months, even though to them it feels like only one evening has occurred. And, from there, things just go downhill.
It’s Jackson’s 18th birthday and his small group of close knit friends decide to camp out at a haunted, and rather creepy house. Upon arrival, the place doesn’t look nearly as bad as the group had expected, given how long it’s been abandoned. They even imagine that someone is still living there. They start to make camp but before long the sky darkens and a storm rolls in, it turns out they don’t have all the right camping gear and eventually they make the decision to enter the house for shelter. Again, the inside looks almost lived in, they find a decent sitting room and crack open the bottles of bubbly and other alcohol. Things get off to a good start but soon the tension starts to rise. The house seems to have it’s hooks in them, creating mistrust and suspicion and before you know it they’re starting to bicker. Then, someone has the great idea to have a seance which results in a scary entity taking over what started out as a bit of fun.
On the face of it I expected to enjoy this a lot more than I did. I loved the whole gothic vibe, the creepy, haunted house and the backstory. It’s well written in terms of the atmosphere and descriptions. I had no problem in envisioning the house and found the history to the place interesting.
However, I had issues. I think the plot suffers from uneven pacing. The first 20-25% in particular was really slow. On top of this there’s then a busyness to the story that just feels too much or too distracting. Flynn has her own past demons. Her mother was abusive and she was eventually taken into care, it’s taken a while for her to find her feet but she loves her new found family. That being said, she has her own ulterior motives for wanting to come to Temple Fall.
Temple Fall itself has a long and dark history that eventually unfolds as the group start investigating. The house is not as it first appears. And there’s a menacing presence lurking in the dark corners.
Personally, I felt like there was too much going on and the different stories were in a competition with each other for attention. I feel like it needed to be more focused. As it was we have the friction between the group, the curse, the house and it’s past, Flynn and her past and also the mystery of what happened to them all when they seemingly disappeared for a few months (as though time in Temple Falls is different from the outside world). All set against a ticking clock as the survivors try to find out more about their curse.
As well as the busy feel and, what was probably more of a deal breaker for me, was this has a YA feel. I didn’t really become attached to any of the characters. They were supposed to be really good friends and yet I didn’t get a feel for that at all and in turn this lack of investment stopped me from feeling worried or scared for any of them.
To be honest, part of this is definitely a case of ‘it’s me not you’ because I should have picked up on the 18th birthday party description. As it is I just became hooked with the whole gothic horror, haunted house description. To be fair, I think, even with the younger protagonists and their sometimes frustrating behaviour, if the story had remained at Temple Fall and focused on the scary elements I think this would probably have worked better for me.
I think Temple Fall will undoubtedly find it’s audience, it just didn’t quite work for me.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 3 of 5 stars
Booking Ahead/Weekly Wrap Up
15 February 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, book-blog, Booking Ahead, Books, Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Fantasy, reading, Sunday Post, Weekly wrap up
Today I’m posting my Weekly Wrap Up and I’m linking up to The Sunday Post over at Kimberly’s Caffeinated Reviewer. Without further ado:
Weekly Update
The bad weather has lessened which is a relief. I mean, it’s not brilliant, but it is better. I have been busy this week for some reason but I’ve still managed to squeeze in a couple of books. Here’s what I’ve been up to. I completed Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward, I enjoyed it but beware because it’s very dark. I also read Temple Fall by RL Boyle. I had mixed feelings with this one which is a bit of a shame, my review should be up tomorrow. I am currently reading Green and Deadly Things by Jenn Lyons (which is one of my March books). In other news I did pick up Loving a Vampire is Total Chaos by Aura Hayes but this was a DNF for me at 30%. I’m also listening to Boudicca’s Daughter by Elodie Harper which I’m hoping to finish next week.
Next Week’s reads
Well, I’d like to complete Green and Deadly Things by Jenn Lyons and also finish listening to Boudicca’s daughter by Elodie Harper. If I manage that I was thinking I would then pick up Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman. But, the best laid plans, etc, etc. Watch this space.
Reviews Posted:
- Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett
- Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward
Outstanding Reviews
- Temple Fall by RL Boyle
Review: A Forest, Darkly by AG Slatter
2 February 2026
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: A Forest Darkly, AG Slatter, Book Review, Books, Fantasy, fiction, Review
My Five Word TL:DR Review: To Put it Simply – Brilliant
I loved A Forest, Darkly. I would go even further and say this is my favourite Slatter book so far – but, I seem to have that feeling every time I read her latest work, she just gets better and better. This author is definitely my catnip and A Forest, Darkly is just what I’m in the mood for at the moment. A wonderful concoction of dark forests and witches with a boost provided by folklore, fae and the mystery of missing children, all wrapped up in a fairytale style with hints of Little Red Riding Hood. To be clear though. This is an adult fairytale, it’s dark and serious in places and certainly not a story to read to little ones. I would also mention that although this is set in the Sourdough universe this can be read as a standalone.
So, this story starts off with Mehrab. Mehrab has a history, things in her past that she ran away from and doesn’t like to dwell on. She ran far, far from home and ended up in a small cottage, tucked into the forest, not too deep to be at risk from anything too dark and not too near to the bordering village to have them watching her. It’s the perfect spot, and Mehrab has her life in order. Until two things happen almost simultaneously and cause upset, not to mention becoming the catalyst for change. Firstly, Rhea ventures deeper into the forest one day, chasing a rabbit, and becomes trapped. Clearly, something lured her in and if it wasn’t for her quick wits she could have been stuck there waiting for whatever might appear. Secondly, an old friend visited and brought with her a young woman, also running away from home and needing shelter. Mehrab takes in Rhea and becomes, begrudgingly at first, her mentor. Now, as this is playing out, it turns out that a number of children have gone missing from the village, some have been returned but seem not so much themselves any more.
What I loved about this.
Well, firstly, it’s beautifully dark, tantalisingly twisty and perfectly witchy. I love the way Slatter writes women.
They’re just so real – by which I mean, they’re not perfect. Mehrab is grumpy, curmudgeonly and yet alternatively wise and thoughtful. She sometimes takes her own sweet time to come round to an idea but she eventually gets there. Rhea is young. She’s impulsive and stubborn but she does listen and she takes pride in Mehrab’s praise. The two go well together and start to forge a firm bond. In fact one of the really enjoyable aspects of this is the ‘found family’ feel as Mehrab gradually seems to gather more lost sheep into her flock.
The setting is great. We obviously spend a great deal of time in the forest and the writing is so evocative. There are dark and twisted elements but also beauty and it’s all tempered by the warm cosy cottage. Meanwhile, in the village, people are starting to become scared. Their children are being taken and although they’re being returned – they’re different. On top of this there is the persistent fear that things are beginning to change. Folklore and religion don’t sit well together at this time and witches and wise women are hunted. Given that both Mehrab and Rhea are running from mistakes you can feel that it’s only a matter of time before they become ensnared. Mehrab is starting to feel the itch to move on but she is also desperate to salvage the mystery of the missing children.
Then we have a dark entity, a horned hunter who seems to be stalking Mehrab, for reasons unknown. She’s taking as many precautions as she can but there’s a dark ominous feel to the story like it’s only a matter of time before this creature succeeds.
Finally, I loved the imagination. The Sourdough universe is full of all sorts of wild and wonderous critters and A Forest, Darkly is no exception. We have a shadow creature of the Wild Hunt, changelings, critters that live in the lakes, green women, summer husbands and much more.
I absolutely adored this book, I wish I hadn’t read it so that I could have the pleasure of reading it for the first time again and I have no hesitation in recommending.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 5 of 5 bewitching stars
Books and travelling with Lynn 