Suzanne's Staff Picks
Suzanne's Staff Picks
By Underground Books
Lies and Weddings
Kevin Kwan
$29.00 $26.97This book was so much fun! It's all about having a proper pedigree, a large bank account and a love for couture! The book centers around two families and the secrets, lies, and class conflicts that surround them. There are characters that you love to love and a few that you love to hate. I was so immersed in this story that I did not want it to end! It's the perfect read for a long car ride or a beach trip!
Sociopath: A Memoir
Patric Gagne
$28.99 $26.96Patric knew she was different as a child. She knew she was a sociopath before her parents or therapist. This heart-touching and brutally honest account of her life seeks to not only educate but to break the stereotypes behind the word sociopath. Her memoir almost reads like a novel as she details the exploits of her life and her wish to help others like her.
So Thirsty
Rachel Harrison
$29.00 $26.97When a girl's weekend trip does not go exactly as planned, Sloane and Naomi find themselves thirsting for more than just cocktails and girl bonding. This fast-paced book is full of voracious vampires, forever friends, and violence galore! I drank this book up, and honestly, I'm thirsty for a sequel!
Lucy Undying: A Dracula Novel
Kiersten White
$28.99 $26.96All I have to say is that I knew it! I knew there had to be more to Lucy Westenra than Bram Stoker gave us in Dracula. This saphhic horror novel tells the story from three view points. We follow Lucy in the future, the past (via her diary) and from Iris Goldaming. Does that surname sound familiar? I've always been a Dracula girl, but now I realize he was just a bit player in something much larger! There are secrets, twists, a love story for the ages, and a shocking surprise visit that I was not expecting! This is a book that is going to be living rent-free in my head for quite a while!
Cabbage
C. S. Fritz
$10.99 $10.22I would love to live in the mind of C.S. Fritz. This short story enchants, draws you in so that you don't even notice the chills and tingles running down your spine. Nature can be your greatest friend or your most terrifying foe. Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.
Woodworm
Layla Martinez
$21.95 $20.41Originally written in Spanish, this horror novel held me spellbound while giving me the occasional quiet giggle. A woman and her granddaughter are bound to a cursed house that holds family secrets and a few family spirits. This book is about generational curses, finding vengeance in an unjust world, and maybe a body or two under the bed!
The Familiar
Leigh Bardugo
$29.99 $27.89Set in 16th century Spain, this Jewish fantasy CONSUMED me! It's all about magic, the Spanish Inquisition, greed, lust, a holy magical tournament, and a hot little scorpion man named Santangel. The book starts off at a languid pace, but by page 100, I was hooked! There is no way The Familiar is not making my top 5 of 2024!
Her Soul to Take: A Paranormal Dark Academia Romance
Harley Laroux
$18.95 $17.62I don't normally read romance, but when I do, it better be DARK and make me slightly uncomfortable. This dark, gothic, paranormal romance takes place in a witchy little town with a cult, a HOT naughty demon, and Rae. Poor Rae, who just does not always make the best choices, especially when there is a cult and a demon battling it out for her soul. Hmm...I guess demon smut is my thing now?
Expiration Dates
Rebecca Serle
$27.00 $25.11There are advantages to the universe sending you a little heads up regarding the length of your next relationship. For Daphne, it has worked to her advantage. Martin...three days, Hugo...three months. It's especially helpful if you are hiding important details of your life. When she receives a note with a name but no expiration date, she is thrown. Does this mean she has found her forever love? Possibly, but with commitment, comes honesty and Daphne's not sure she is ready for it. Fun and quirky, it was a nice break from my beloved gloom and doom!
The Reformatory
Tananarive Due
$28.99 $26.96This was hands down my favorite book of the year! Tananarive Due has written a powerful southern horror novel set in Florida during the Jim Crow era. Twelve year old Robbie Stephens is sent to the segregated Gracetown School for Boys for protecting his sister against the advances of the white son of the most powerful man in town. Not only does he have to contend with a sadistic and cruel warden but he also has the ability to see ghosts or "haints" that haunt the reformatory. Based on the notorious Dozier School for Boys, this story not only scares you but it haunts you with the heartbreaking and horrific realities of racism and inequality in the 1950's south.
The Spite House
Johnny Compton
$18.99 $17.66Sometimes when I read a book, I don't want a happy ending with rainbows and unicorns. Sometimes, I want to feel an overwhelming sense of dread and gloom. I want to bask in the feeling of horror and melancholy. That is what The Spite House gave me. The house was built for spite. A reminder of a man's bitterness and hate that was so great, it fed into the walls and very soul of the house, consuming everyone that dared enter it. Eric and his daughters are on the run from a life of secrets and are hired to stay in the Spite House to prove it's haunted for a large sum of money, but it will cost them more than they could ever get in return.
What the River Knows
Isabel Ibañez
$20.00 $18.60A book that is as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside. From Argentina to Egypt, Inez embarks on a dangerous journey to uncover the truth behind her parents' death. This captivating story brims with ancient Egyptian magic, a thrilling quest for Cleopatra's tomb, and an undeniable attraction to a man with a sketchy past. Inez finds herself alone with no one to trust but herself!
Mister Magic
Kiersten White
$28.00 $26.04Mister Magic is a popular 80's children's show that is abruptly cancelled after a tragic accident on live tv. Years later, the now adult cast members reunite with sketchy memories of what actually happened when they were children and a sinister sense of foreboding as they immerse themselves once again into the world of Mister Magic to try and find answers and stop a possible reboot that would suck their own children into this nightmare world.
Black Sheep
Rachel Harrison
$27.00 $25.11Vesper is a cynical twenty-something that hasn't seen her family in years. There's a good reason for this but when she gets an invitation to come home that she can't refuse, things really start to heat up. Her family is um...religious, in a manner of speaking. She is not only the "black sheep" of the family but the sacrificial lamb and she is about to unearth secrets and horrors that she never imagined.
Where You End
Abbott Kahler
$27.99 $26.03I came for the creepy cover. I stayed for the heart pounding plot line. Kat and Jude are mirror twins with a strangely cult-like upbringing. After Kat awakens following a car accident, she suffers from amnesia and must rely on her twin, Jude, to fill in the gaps of her memory. But is she? Kat thinks maybe not as she uncovers the horrors of their past. Secrets come to light that perhaps should have remained buried, making Kat realize her past is far from the idyllic picture Jude has painted for her!
Little Eve
Catriona Ward
$27.99 $26.03An intense gothic horror novel that I devoured in one night! Set on the Scottish coast, the story begins with a horrifying discovery and never loses momentum! A man known as "Uncle" lives on the island with his cult, consisting of two women and four children. Nothing is off limits here! A deadly snake, violent rituals and a gruesome sacrifice are only the beginning. As always, Catriona Ward saves the most chilling surprise for the end!
Black River Orchard
Chuck Wendig
$29.99 $27.89An apple a day...you know the saying. This couldn't be more true in Harrow, Pa., where Dan is following in his father's footsteps to create an orchard from a very special apple, thought lost long ago. The townsfolk take a shine to this apple. It makes them feel healthier, stronger, violent, something a little more than human. It's up to Dan's daughter and those who haven't fallen under the Ruby Slipper apple's spell to save the town and possibly the world. The grotesque vivid imagery in this book is off the chain and a 10/10 spooky season recommend!
The September House
Carissa Orlando
$27.00 $25.11"There is blood running down the walls again. It must be September" I have so much to say about this book! Is Margaret's house really haunted or is she mentally ill, as her daughter suspects? Who knows? This is a macabre yet darkly funny story that I could not put down. Gory ghosts, bloody walls, dead children and a missing husband, nothing is off limits once September rolls around and Margaret is down for it! Her house may be haunted but it's her home and she's not going anywhere! This book will definitely be on my TBR every September!
What Kind of Mother
Clay McLeod Chapman
$21.99 $20.45Set at a slower pace than my beloved Ghost Eaters, this story takes a missing child, a deceased mother and a very guilty looking father and turns it into a gothic, supernatural horror/thriller. His only hope is his ex-girlfriend, Madi, who also happens to be the town "psychic". I just finished this book and am still in the WTF stage because I did not see what was coming. Clay McLeod Chapman is a storytelling genius and I would read his grocery list if he published it.
The Salt Grows Heavy
Cassandra Khaw
$21.99 $20.45A lovely little horror novella about mermaids...with teeth. I have never read a story that so beautifully describes viscera and entrails. I devoured this book in one sitting...kind of like the mermaids do with an entire kingdom.
Cackle
Rachel Harrison
$18.00A deliciously bewitching tale of lost love, a most interesting and slightly disturbing friendship and poor Annie who just cannot fathom life without a man by her side. When she meets Sophie, the town pariah, she realizes there is more to Sophie and to herself than she ever realized. Is Sophie a good witch or a bad witch? Hmm...depends on perspective. I gained five pounds reading this book as these women are constantly drinking and eating but I enjoyed every delicious minute of it.
A Dowry of Blood
S. T. Gibson
$17.99 $16.73Take Dracula and his brides and make it...spicy. The king of vampires is broody, possessive and loves to collect beautiful things. His brides are beautiful, intelligent and quickly becoming more enamored of each other than with their maker. I love a little dark romance with my horror and this book does not disappoint!
The Heiress
Rachel Hawkins
$29.00 $26.97What is not to love about family drama, murder, secrets, twists and lies upon lies upon lies! Kalynn, Anna and I tore through this thriller and could not wait to discuss with each other and recommend to you!
My Heart Is a Chainsaw
Stephen Graham Jones
$18.99 $17.66This book is for all the slasher fans out there! Think you know all there is to know about surviving a psycho slasher? Jade Daniels LIVES for surviving her own real life slasher flick. With an abusive father, absentee mother and not a friend in the world, Jade lives in a world of her own making, until it's not. She sees a serial killer in every situation so when a real killer strikes her hometown, she is ready for it. Everyone is a suspect, including Jade and it will take all of her years of studying the genre to keep her alive!
Don't Call It Hair Metal: Art in the Excess of '80s Rock
Sean Kelly
$21.95 $20.41Finally, a non-fiction book that I can get passionate about! Crash Kelly founder, Sean Kelly breaks down the evolution of the metal and glam-metal scene that was the 1980's. This is the generation of music that I grew up with and it gave me such nostalgic feels. "Hair-Metal" has always had a stigma attached to it by the Indie Hipsters and later generations of music lovers. But, once you strip away all the Aquanet hair, the spandex, and the make up what you have is soulful music rooted in the '50's, '60's and '70's. From the guitar riffs of Eddie Van Halen and Randy Rhoads to the glitz and glamour of front men Sebastian Bach and Joe Elliot, in all its good and bad, the '80's metal scene sparked a decade of music unlike any other and I'm still here for it!
