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Back again with my April addition of #SpelltheMonthinBooks and happy to be here!

I’m not sure I’ve ever done this tag correctly so.. I just kind of do it differently every time. This month I’ve included books I have already read, recommend, and rated. Along with books on my TBR that I’m looking forward to reading.

This tag was so thoughtfully brought to you by @ Reviews From The Stacks.

The Rules:

• Using books you’ve read or want to read. Spell out the month.. but avoid using ‘A’, ‘the’, ‘and’ so on.
• Follow the theme. (Not really sure what the theme is this month.)
• Share your post through the linkup Here or in a comment.

Here we go,
Enjoy!

Warning: A lot of these books will contain adult content. Sexual situations, kidnapping, violence, murder, abuse and other disturbing and generally unpleasant themes are potentially present.

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(Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. Any purchases made through my links may earn me a small commission at no additional cost to you.)

Have Read:

A

All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda

Publication date: January 2017
Pages: 400
Genres: Novel, Thriller, Fiction, Mystery, Suspense
Standalone

It’s been ten years since Nicolette Farrell left her rural hometown after her best friend, Corinne, disappeared from Cooley Ridge without a trace. Back again to tie up loose ends and care for her ailing father, Nic is soon plunged into a shocking drama that reawakens Corinne’s case and breaks open old wounds long since stitched.

The decade-old investigation focused on Nic, her brother Daniel, boyfriend Tyler, and Corinne’s boyfriend Jackson. Since then, only Nic has left Cooley Ridge. Daniel and his wife, Laura, are expecting a baby; Jackson works at the town bar; and Tyler is dating Annaleise Carter, Nic’s younger neighbor and the group’s alibi the night Corinne disappeared. Then, within days of Nic’s return, Annaleise goes missing.

Told backwards—Day 15 to Day 1—from the time Annaleise goes missing, Nic works to unravel the truth about her younger neighbor’s disappearance, revealing shocking truths about her friends, her family, and what really happened to Corinne that night ten years ago.

“There is nothing more dangerous, nothing more powerful, nothing more necessary and essential for survival than the lies we tell ourselves.”

Five Stars!

This is a complicated and winding story of a young woman’s determination to uncover the truth. Twists and turns throughout will keep you on the edge of your seat as you devour the mystery of one girls disappearance and the others struggle for closure.

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P

Phantoms by Dean Koontz

Publication date: March 1983
Pages: 352
Genres: Horror, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery
Standalone

They found the town silent, apparently abandoned. Then they found the first body, strangely swollen and still warm. One hundred fifty were dead, 350 missing. But the terror had only begun in the tiny mountain town of Snowfield, California.

At first they thought it was the work of a maniac. Or terrorists. Or toxic contamination. Or a bizarre new disease.

But then they found the truth. And they saw it in the flesh. And it was worse than anything any of them had ever imagined…

“There’s no use wasting are energy being afraid of the devils, demons and things that go bump in the night… Because ultimately we’ll never encounter anything more terrifying than the monster among us. Hell is where we make it.”

Four Stars!

I love Dean Koontz, I’ve been reading his books for.. (wow, I just got old) a really long time. Time and again he hits it out of the park with his exceptional writing. Koontz’ unsettling and intelligent creations have an almost life like quality that practically crawls from the page.
‘Phantoms’ is no exception.

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R

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Publication date: September 2012
Pages: 468
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of 4: The Raven Cycle

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them–until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn’t believe in true love, and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

“She recognized the strange happiness that came from loving something without knowing why you did, that strange happiness that was sometimes so big that it felt like sadness.”

Five Stars!

I dare you not to fall for The Raven Boys. The characters here are a beautiful blend of haunted youth and stubborn resolve. Stiefvater takes you on a journey through the joys and pain of friendships forged.. and love lost. Follow these kids as they aid one characters life-long hunt for the legendary king, Glendower and find in one another a place to belong.

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I

Ill Wind by Rachel Caine

Publication date: December 2003
Pages: 352
Genre: Fantasy Fiction
Series: Book 1 of 9: Weather Warden

The Wardens Association has been around pretty much forever. Some Wardens control Fire, others control Earth or Water or Wind—and the most powerful can control more than one. Without wardens, Mother Nature would wipe humanity off the face of the earth…

Joanne Baldwin is a Weather Warden. Usually, all it takes is a wave of her hand to tame the most violent weather. But now, Joanne is trying to outrun another kind of storm: accusations of corruption and murder. So, she’s resorting to the very human tactic of running for her life…

Her only hope is Lewis, the most powerful warden known. Unfortunately, he’s also on the run from the Council. It seems he’s stolen not one but three bottles of Djinn—making him the most wanted man on earth. And without Lewis, Joanne’s chances of surviving are as good as a snowball in—well, a place she may be headed. So, she and her classic Mustang are racing hard to find him—because there’s some bad weather closing in fast…

“People talk about nature as a mother, but to me she’s always been Medea, ready and willing to slaughter her children.”

Four Stars!

This character is unlucky. She has pissed off some very powerful people and now, after being framed for the murder of one of their own, she’s on the run. Fortunately, she’s pretty resilient and has a handy way of getting out of some pretty tough spots.

Elementals, Djinn, and murder.. Oh, my!

This book is fast paced and entertaining with likable characters.

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L

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Publication date: April 2004
Page count: 368
Genres: Novel, Psychological Fiction, Domestic Fiction
Standalone

“My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973.”

So begins the story of Susie Salmon, who is adjusting to her new home in heaven, a place that is not at all what she expected, even as she is watching life on earth continue without her — her friends trading rumors about her disappearance, her killer trying to cover his tracks, her grief-stricken family unraveling.

Out of unspeakable tragedy and loss, The Lovely Bones succeeds, miraculously, in building a tale filled with hope, humor, suspense, even joy.

“Each time I told my story, I lost a bit, the smallest drop of pain. It was that day that I knew I wanted to tell the story of my family. Because horror on Earth is real and it is every day. It is like a flower or like the sun; it cannot be contained.”

Five Stars!

Few books have ever devastated me as thoroughly as this. Barring ‘My sister’s Keeper’ this is one of the most tragic and heartbreaking stories. Told from the perspective of a young girl, watching from Heaven she’s able to see the life altering consequences her murder have on the people she loves.

I raged.
I may have even cried.
What a deeply moving story.

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And now for some of the books I want to read!

TBR:

A

Among Thieves by M. J. Kuhn

Publication date: September 2021
Pages: 352
Genre: Fantasy Fiction
Standalone

In just over a year’s time, Ryia Cautella has already earned herself a reputation as the quickest, deadliest blade in the dockside city of Carrowwick—not to mention the sharpest tongue. But Ryia Cautella is not her real name.

For the past six years, a deadly secret has kept her in hiding, running from town to town, doing whatever it takes to stay one step ahead of the formidable Guildmaster—the sovereign ruler of the five kingdoms of Thamorr. No matter how far or fast she travels, his servants never fail to track her down…but even the most powerful men can be defeated.

Ryia’s path now leads directly into the heart of the Guildmaster’s stronghold, and against every instinct she has, it’s not a path she can walk alone. Forced to team up with a crew of assorted miscreants, smugglers, and thieves, Ryia must plan her next moves very carefully. If she succeeds, her freedom is won once and for all…but unfortunately for Ryia, her new allies are nearly as selfish as she is, and they all have plans of their own.

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P

The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni

Publication date: April 2021
Pages: 421
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of 2: The Prison Healer

Seventeen-year-old Kiva Meridan has spent the last ten years fighting for survival in the notorious death prison, Zalindov, working as the prison healer.

When the Rebel Queen is captured, Kiva is charged with keeping the terminally ill woman alive long enough for her to undergo the Trial by Ordeal: a series of elemental challenges against the torments of air, fire, water, and earth, assigned to only the most dangerous of criminals.

Then a coded message from Kiva’s family arrives, containing a single order: “Don’t let her die. We are coming.” Aware that the Trials will kill the sickly queen, Kiva risks her own life to volunteer in her place. If she succeeds, both she and the queen will be granted their freedom.

But no one has ever survived.

With an incurable plague sweeping Zalindov, a mysterious new inmate fighting for Kiva’s heart, and a prison rebellion brewing, Kiva can’t escape the terrible feeling that her trials have only just begun.

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R

Rhapsodic by Laura Thalassa

Publication date: November 2016
Pages: 423
Genres: Romance novel, Fantasy fiction, Paranormal fiction
Series: Book 1 of 3: The Bargainer

Callypso Lillis is a siren with a very big problem, one that stretches up her arm and far into her past. For the last seven years she’s been collecting a bracelet of black beads up her wrist, magical IOUs for favors she’s received. Only death or repayment will fulfill the obligations. Only then will the beads disappear.

Everyone knows that if you need a favor, you go to the Bargainer to make it happen. He’s a man who can get you anything you want … at a price. And everyone knows that sooner or later he always collects.

But for one of his clients, he’s never asked for repayment. Not until now. When Callie finds the fae king of the night in her room, a grin on his lips and a twinkle in his eye, she knows things are about to change. At first it’s just a chaste kiss—a single bead’s worth—and a promise for more.

For the Bargainer, it’s more than just a matter of rekindling an old romance. Something is happening in the Otherworld. Fae warriors are going missing one by one. Only the women are returned, each in a glass casket, a child clutched to their breast. And then there are the whispers among the slaves, whispers of an evil that’s been awoken.

If the Bargainer has any hope to save his people, he’ll need the help of the siren he spurned long ago. Only, his foe has a taste for exotic creatures, and Callie just happens to be one.

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I

The Isle of Sins and Shadows by Keri Lake

Publication date: March 2021
Pages: 542
Genre: Gothic Romance
Standalone

This island alone boasts more ghost stories than all of Louisiana combined.
And I’m one of them.

In the Louisiana swamplands, ghost stories are as much a part of childhood as chasing fireflies and crawfishing. They never much scared me, though, nor the possibility of evil out to do me harm. Until the night I watched shadows come to life and butcher everything I loved.

With a stranger’s help, I managed to escape to an isolated place miles north, and, in time, became my own ghost story. A cautionary tale for the locals. Nearly a decade passed, before I returned to my birthplace, in hopes of unearthing long-awaited answers. Instead, I found something I wasn’t looking for. Someone. A remedy for my loneliness.

Or so I thought.

Turns out, Thierry Bergeron is no elixir. He’s a deadly poison, cursed by the demons of his past, and feared by those who call him the elusive Rougarou of the bayou. A devious rogue, whose seductive whispers and rough hands haunt my dreams. The big bad wolf that defiles me without apology, or remorse. I should resist him, but I can’t.

And when the shadows return to stake their claim on me, his darkness is the only safe place to hide.

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L

Lies We Bury by Elle Marr

Publication date: April 2021
Pages: 299
Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense
Standalone

I was born in captivity…

Two decades ago Marissa Mo escaped a basement prison—the only home she’d ever known. At twenty-seven, Marissa’s moved beyond the trauma and is working under a new name as a freelance photographer. But when she accepts a job covering a string of macabre murders in Portland, it’s impossible for Marissa not to remember.

Everything is eerily familiar. The same underground lairs. Sad trinkets and toys left behind, identical to those Marissa had as a child. And then there is the note meant just for her that freezes Marissa’s blood: See you soon, Missy.

To determine the killer’s next move, Marissa must retrieve her long-forgotten memories and return to a past she’s hidden away. But she won’t be facing her fears alone. Someone is waiting for her in the dark.

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There we go!
I hope you enjoyed this #SpelltheMonthinBooks as much as I did in making it!

What are you looking forward to reading?

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