🚨What happens when one tiny lie turns into a full-blown nightmare you can’t escape? Because One Small Mistake proves that sometimes one bad decision is all it takes.😬

Our book club dove into One Small Mistake by Dandy Smith, and let’s just say the theories, gasps, and “WAIT… WHAT?!” moments were nonstop. Here’s what the club thought:

📚 The Plot Twist Queen: I was hooked from the start. Elodie’s desperation to prove she’s not the disappointing sister felt so real, and that drunken lie about a book deal made me cringe because I knew it was about to spiral. Watching it unravel was equal parts stressful and addictive.

🕵️ The Detective: I loved trying to piece everything together. Every time I thought I knew what happened to Elodie, the story flipped the script. Ada digging into her sister’s disappearance had me side-eyeing every single character.

😱 The Suspense Addict: This book gave me that delicious anxiety where you keep reading even though you know it’s going to get worse. Elodie’s situation just kept escalating and I couldn’t look away.

🔍 The Overthinker: Ada’s perspective really pulled me in. Her perfect life slowly cracking while she searches for the truth added another layer to the story. The deeper she looked, the darker everything got.

🍷 The Late-Night Reader: I kept telling myself “just one more chapter” and suddenly it was 2 AM. The cliffhangers at the end of each chapter made it impossible to stop.

📖 The Twist Hunter: The pacing was fantastic and the secrets kept coming. I loved how no one felt completely trustworthy it made the mystery even more fun to unravel.

✨Book Club Verdict: A twisty, tense thriller about lies, secrets, and the terrifying ripple effect of one bad choice. If you love suspense that keeps you guessing, this one delivers.

❓What’s your favorite thriller where one small lie spirals into a massive, life-changing disaster?

"In fact, what she most wanted, and could never before articulate, was to find the place where she made sense and help others do the same."

GENRE: Cozy Fantasy
RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc

Overall Impression: What a BEAUTIFUL story! This one is for those of us who are a little bit lost, looking for a place to call home and a community that accepts us as we are. It teaches us that we don't need to change and one day, we'll find that perfect home and found family that shows us that

Review:
Okay where do I start? I LOVED everything about The Moonsingers, from the whimsy and the tone, the themes that focus on finding yourself and your home, building a community and a small town? Plus the entire adventure of trains, telegrams & letters, folklore and so much more? I AM IN (or well, I was and then I read it and I loved it😂)

The Moonsinger is a Cozy Fantasy that focuses on so many things but ultimately, to me, it was a story about standing out in a community that never understood you and having to leave to find your home and place in the world. Ismay never fit in society and didn't understand all the unsaid rules. Because of this, she struggles to find her own community outside of her family and even then, her own family loves her but doesn't understand her.

And so Ismay moves to a smaller town for a job to fix her own situation and intends to go back but OH WHAT AN ADVENTURE SHE EXPERIENCES!!

Ismay moves to Glenmaidens and becomes a private tutor to the Underhill sisters and oh, what a lovely community they build. It's two different communities who have always been outsiders, never fitting in finding each other. Ismay leads all the three girls through different lessons and learns with them that fitting in isn't necessary when you are in a place that will accept you as you are. With that, they all find a home in each other and a community. Sometimes, you have to leave the place you grew up in and find a home somewhere else rather than work to fit yourself in somewhere you were never meant to be in.

Oh and the adventures in The Moonsingers? We have Ismay meeting Hamish Breck, finding out about the secrets that are hidden in Glenmaidens with a dose of magic and Ismay making friends and meeting new people in the community. OH and obviously, them trying to stop the train from being built where the Oak tree is!

This Cozy Fantasy is for those of us who feel a little bit lost and dont know where home is. It's for those of us who haven't found our community and feel that loneliness at not belonging where we grew up. It's a story that gives us hope that there is a place for us somewhere that will accept us as we are and people that will love us for who we are. It's a lesson that we don't need to change to fit in, we will find those who love us for who we are.

What a beautiful and lovely story. I now want to try Tablet and can't wait to acquire some!

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

If your book club loves twisty thrillers, messy secrets, and stories that make you question every single character, then One Small Mistake by Dandy Smith needs to be on your reading list immediately.

This gripping suspense novel starts with something that feels harmless enough: a tiny lie told during a drunken night out. But when Elodie’s small mistake spirals into something much bigger, the consequences become darker, messier, and far more dangerous than anyone expected.

Meanwhile, her sister Ada’s seemingly perfect life starts to crack as she digs deeper into Elodie’s disappearance. The more she uncovers, the more it becomes clear that nothing and no one is exactly what it seems.

And honestly? It’s the kind of book that demands a book club discussion. The theories alone will keep your group talking all night.

What’s Inside the Book Club Kit

To make your next meeting unforgettable, I’ve put together a fully themed book club kit inspired by the suspense, secrets, and twists in the story.

When you tap the link, you’ll get access to:

📖 A full discussion guide with thought-provoking questions about the characters, themes, and shocking twists

🍸 A themed menu with recipes inspired by lies, secrets, and plot twists

🎲 Interactive book club activities including a detective board mystery game and fun lie-themed icebreakers

🎁 Themed door prize ideas perfect for thriller lovers

Basically, everything you need to turn a normal meeting into a suspense-filled book club experience.

Perfect For Book Clubs That Love…

🔎 Psychological thrillers

📚 Character-driven mysteries

😱 Plot twists you don’t see coming

🍷 Fun, interactive book club nights

If your group enjoys books that keep everyone guessing until the very last page, this one will definitely spark some lively debate.

Ready to Plan Your Book Club Night?

Whether your group is full of amateur detectives or just loves a good thriller, this kit makes hosting easy and fun.

👉 Tap the link to get the full One Small Mistake Book Club Kit and start planning your next suspense-filled book club night.

https://tinyurl.com/mu9rtydz

Trust me once your group starts sharing theories, you’ll all be wondering the same thing:

How far would you go to protect one small lie? 👀📖

"Have you ever heard of the invisible string theory? ... It's this idea that two people who are destined to be together are made up of all these invisible strings that lead them to each other."

GENRE: Romance
RATING: 4.25/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc
Tropes: Fake Dating, Second Chance, Popstar x Screenwriter, Slow Burn

Review:
This was an interesting, fun read and in many ways, showed us a different kind of love: The Vulnerable kind that survives outside pressure with Sienna being famous.

We basically follow along from Sienna's POV as she gets a second chance at love with Luc through a fake relationship that might become the real thing?

Sienna is a complicated character, one that the author clearly wrote to make us empathise with her yet feel frustrated at her. There were a lot of moments that I related to Sienna: how hard it is to trust people, how grief changes who you are and you lose sight of it which impacts how others see you and the inability to be able to control everything. It's also protecting yourself from hurt when its been a lifetime of them.

I think writing a character like Sienna with the focus being that she became a pop star so young and that it has dominated so much of her life making her mistrust her own judgement of people and not being able to be her own person added a depth to the story that was done beautifully.

We also get to see Sienna acknowledge her privileges and how she balances that struggle with being Burnt out from her career and we do dive into this as a theme in the book, which I enjoyed overall.

We then meet Luc and as this is Sienna's POV only, we get the entire story from her eyes. My heart did go out to Luc and the hurt they had both endured. I think I would have liked to get to know more about Luc but usually, getting to know the other MCs in a single-POV Romance tend to be a hit or miss depending on the narrative style the authors choose. We do get to see Luc is a kind MMC, one that is willing to stand with Sienna through all her journey and is willing to be there, if she'd accept him. It did hurt my heart when he got hurt, not going to lie but that is a testimony to building a connection with our MMC.

I also loved the theory of Invisible strings, how two people are destined for one another in every life no matter what. It's when Luc tells Sienna that they would have met even if she never became famous🥺

I really did enjoy Infinite Ghost and I can't wait to read more by the author! As her debut, I think this is a lovely book and I'm excited for more releases.

Thank you to the author for the Arc copy in the exchange for my honest opinion.

There's been some heavy news coming out of the fundamental Christian world this week. When these stories come to light, it can trigger a lot of emotions in those of us who have left high-control religion.

One thing that has helped me deconstuct from evangelicalism is (surprise, surprise) reading. Here are a few books that have helped me. First the non-fiction:

Jesus and John Wayne by Kristin Kobes Du Mez

I read this when I was still in the evangelical church. It helped me to start to identify the way patriarchal values have influenced what I was taught to believe about Jesus.

A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy by Tia Levings

In the church, this would be called a "powerful testimony" that highlights the harm fostered in such spaces.

Awake by Jen Hatmaker

Jen was too liberal for me when I was in the church, but reading her story of deconstructing was healing for me.

Wild Faith: How the Christian Right is Taking Over America by Tal Lavin

There have been a number of recent books on the Christian Right, but this one helped me process through it as a political movement.

And now some fiction books that provided healing:

Gay the Pray Away by Natalie Naudus

Our protagonist is a teen growing up in a controlling religious family, coming to terms with her own sexuality.

American Rapture by CJ Leede

Our protagonist was raised in a controlling religious family, but now has to make it on her own in apocalyptic times.

Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

At a conversion therapy camp, whose side are the demons on?

"I'm not sure I have the right words to describe it yet because "love" doesn't feel strong enough to describe what's grown between us."

GENRE: Romance
RATING:4.25/5
FORMAT:eBook Arc

Overall Impression:A Love Story that brings two people who don't believe they deserve more and has the dynamic of a Grumpy x Sunshine? I'm always in for this, especially with a soft hearted MMC that breaks through the walls of our strong willed FMC.

Review:
Selfless Love is a story about two people who find each other, bring the best out of each other and show one another that there is hope in the world for them.

You have Adhira, who is going through cancer and grieving for multiple reason. Because of a lot of different factors, she decides to tackle her treatment and struggles alone. In many ways throughout the story, we see why Adhira makes this choice and how it impacts her. A lot of it ties to the fact that she feels she is too much for everyone else and that she isn't worth being a burden to her family and friends.

Enter Elijah, who is her new flatmate and instantly recognises a lot of the signs that Adhira tries to hide and he shows up for her in ways she didnt expect or want to accept. As we slowly starts to get to know him, we see Elijah for the Golden Retriever MMC he is, how he gives and has constantly done so without receiving a lot back.

I think one of my favourite part about Selfless Love is that you get to see how both MCs help each other. Adhira is able to see that she deserves help and is not a burden. She is shown throughout the story by multiple people that just because she is different whether it is due to her neurodivergent, her newly discovered sickness and treatment or other things that have hunted her throughout life. Elijah gets to see that he can't be there for everyone without receiving anything back. You can only give so much before there is nothing left to give if you don't take care of yourself.

We also get to meet their friend group. This is book 2 in an inter-connected series but as I havent read book one, it was lovely to get to know all the side characters and made me excited to read book 1 and continue the series.

We also meet Archie and both the MCs families. Meeting Elijah's sisters was so wholesome and you see Adhira build her relationship with them throughout the story too.

And as always, I am always here for a Grumpy x Sunshine dynamic and I think this was done in a lovely way with so much pain, emotions and love. I can't wait to read more by the author and the first book in the series.

Thank you to the author and Happily Booked Arc for the Arc copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

"Is there any line that you will not cross for our freedom?"

GENRE: Fantasy with Retelling & Moroccan Mythology Folklore
RATING: 4.75/5
FORMAT: Arc (eBook & physical)

Review:
Historical Fantasy and Retellings/Mythologies as a sub-genres are one of my favourites and when you mix them together, I always know I'm going to end up loving it. In the case of Aicha here, this is a Moroccan Folklore written by an OwnVoice author and it was beautiful to see a representation of my own culture in Fantasy books.

I think the author did an amazing work of building up to that climax in the story. Perhaps it isn't the way most people would prefer in stories (which is completely valid) but to me, it was written in a way that slowly showed us all the various points that Aicha and her family are fighting for. It built the stakes and showed what life was under occupation. It showed what happens when your country is taken over by colonisation and their attempt of erasing your culture. It's the culmination of years of grief, loss and anger coming through Aicha.

You get to see Aicha in her community, with Rachid and see their love blossom in a way that it could when you're fighting for so many things. You could see Aicha and her sister, Samira, as you feel their loss after losing their mother. You see Aicha caring for her father, her friends and the community overall. And most importantly? You see Aicha's internal struggle against her rage and the monster inside her.

Essentially, Soraya Bouazzaoui wrote a story in which we get to see Moroccan culture represented through food, setting and other elements. We get to see it's beauty and what people would do to preserve their home and get it back. It shows the cost of being part of a rebellion and what everyone gives up to win against colonial powers in their own homes. It's a story of Atay, Meloui and beautiful Moroccan settings that reminds me of being in there with family, years later where we reap the reward of those who have fought before us.

Before I end this review, I do want to point out that after discussing the book with other readers who have read it, I will say that I did enjoy the narrative style in here personally but there's been a lot of discussion as to whether the rage is being told as opposed to being shown. Overall, this may not work for you if you prefer action packed stories or stories in which there is more "telling" as opposed to "showing". I think this can be very subjective, as to me, I felt we could feel Aicha's Anger and the Feminine Rage in the way she was allowed to. Aicha lives in a time where she wasn't able to express this rage and had to hide it in smaller, defiant actions or keep it entirely internal. I did feel that the way her rage was reflected throughout the story was fitting for the entire thing. I always love discussing books with others and it was interesting to see how we all interpreted the book!

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for the Arc copy! I can't wait to read more from the author in the future.

I can't believe I forgot to share my Janurary reads with y'all! Better late than never, I guess. I read 5 books in January and most of them were audiobooks because my brain was not cooperating with reading print and e-books. Here are the books I read and my mini reviews.

The Undertakers (Murder and Magic #2) by Nicole Glover

Black American • Historical Fantasy Mystery

The Undertakers is a multi-genre adventure! 

We follow magical investigators Hetty and Benjy Rhodes, living in Philly after the Civil War, as they investigate the death of Raimond Duval. Raimond appears to have died in one of the many fires plaguing the city’s Black communities. When his son Valentine is also found dead, they suspect that this mystery is deeper than it seems.

Hetty and Benji’s investigation skills compliment one another, which makes this story entertaining. Each time I thought I’d figure out the case, another clue emerged! While I was glad that I couldn’t immediately figure out who the culprit was, I also felt like there may have been too many moving pieces. This made the pace drag a bit for me.

The Improvisers (Murder and Magic #3) by Nicole Glover

Black American • Historical Fantasy Mystery

The Improvisers is probably my favorite book of the Murder and Magic series, so far. 

Book 3 focuses on a new generation of the Rhodes family through Velma Frye, a woman of manyyyy talents. She’s a pilot, a former bootlegger, a jazz pianist & can wield celestial magic. Although her favorite thing to do is fly, Velma also works as an investigator for arcane oddities for a magic rights organization. When her latest investigation leads her to a murder on her family’s stomping grounds, she realizes that she might not have to do this work alone.

I had a fun time following the twists & turns this story took! We get a look at what people thought of flying planes & exploring the arts scene for Black folks in the early 20th century United States.

Sweet Heat by Bolu Babalola

Black British Contemporary Romance

Bolu Babalola’s follow-up to Honey & Spice is full of life!

I got lost in her world and forgot myself because the characters feel so true and yet, poetic. Kiki Banjo has always been relatable to me as someone who puts my whole heart into music. Her vulnerability, sharp wit, loyalty, and passion are addictive in this story. It was longer than I expected but I hardly noticed and actually got sad when I finished it.

This is romance but it is also literature! I wholeheartedly recommend this book as well as Honey & Spice to anyone looking for that 90s R&B kind of love.

Summoner's Circle by Coral Alejandra Moore

AfroLatina • New Adult Urban Fantasy

If you’re looking for an entertaining urban fantasy novel w/ a college-aged lead & non-western magic, Summoner’s Circle may be for you!

Dari Jiménez is an average student at a college in Moonlight Bay, Oregon. One day, while working in the library, she’s attacked by a mysterious creature and quickly saved by a tattooed woman with a mohawk. The woman claims that Dari has untapped powers inherited from her mother & needs to learn to harness them quickly to protect herself. In between combat sessions, classes, and work, her boyfriend Tyler is starting to suspect that she’s keeping something from him.

Summoner’s Circle is a relatively quick read packed w/ themes of self-discovery and intuition. I enjoyed the magic system & exploring Dari’s family’s past. I wish there was more on that & hoped there would be a second book because the ending is a bit open-ended.

The Chainbreakers by Julian Randall

Black & Caribbean • Middle Grade Fantasy

This middle grade/YA fantasy centers on community, resistance, and memory. I love the original storytelling that imagines Africans who freed themselves and others from their would-be enslavers and lived.

The Chainbreakers follows a young girl named Violet Moon, of the Sun People, who must rescue her father from the Children of the Shark. According to their lore, the chainmakers were cursed by the gods for their cruelty & forced to the depths of the ocean where they became Children of the Shark, creatures endlessly hungry for the souls of the chainbreakers aka The Sun People.

The actions & creativity of Violet and her crew are thrilling & sometimes playful. Her community is loving & compassionate as well as fierce. I'd definitely recommend this book to everyone!

If any of these books interest you, I hope you'll check them out from your local library and/or purchase them via Bookshop.org or Libby.fm!

There's a reason why this one is one of my all time favorites! I love amusement parks and this one definitely delivers! One Day At Horrorland delivers nonstop scares and action!

Today's book recs feature some twisted amusement parks.

FantasticLand by Mike Bockoven--When a hurricane traps workers in an amusement park for over a month, it turns into a Lord Of The Flies situation.

Hide by Kirsten White-- An abandoned amusement park becomes the site of a killer contest.

Shockwaves by Matt Kurtz--An amusement park gets attacked by giant bugs and creatures in this fight for survival.

Ride or Die by Delilah S. Dawson-- A sleepover at an abandoned amusement park turns into a night of terror in this middle grade novel.

Bennytown by Matt Carter--A Disney like amusement park with a dark history.

Wow! That week flew by fast. 🏃🏻‍♀️ It feels like just yesterday I was telling y'all about my terrible flight back to Los Angeles (10/10 do not recommend flying right now), and here we are for another weekly update.

We'll keep this one sweet and short, because not much reading has been going on around here. Instead, I've been playing with my website, Pinterest, and prepping for the April historical fiction look-ahead. I've also posted a few things on Instagram that I'll share below. Plus, I've been posting again on TikTok, though I still refuse to add the app back to my phone.

I finished The Hired Man, the new Sandra Dallas Dust Bowl book, and, unsurprisingly, I loved it. She has a knack for character development and atmospheric storytelling that brings her books to life. I also really appreciate that her books with young characters never feel YA, which suits me just fine. I can't wait to finish prepping my Dust Bowl Historical Fiction blog post/YT video. That book will DEFINITELY make the list. 4⭐️s

With Love From Harlem was up next for me and, boy, did it blow me away! I won't lie, Reshonda Tate's debut wasn't my favorite, though I did find it enjoyable. I think I rated The Queen of Sugar Hill 3.5⭐️s, so I wasn't sure what to expect from her latest. My chief complaint about Sugar Hill was the pacing and the character's cyclical story arc, but I did really appreciate the inside view of Hattie McDaniel, the first Black woman to win an Oscar. Well, I'm happy to report that With Love, From Harlem was spectacular! I really hadn't heard of Hazel Scott before reading the book, and now I'm wondering why? Hazel was an incredibly gifted musician/performer and was one of the most famous Black women in America in her heyday. Learning about her life through Tate's eyes was really fun! So many great Black artists, writers, and activists made an appearance that I couldn't help but think about Harlem Rhapsody, one of my favorite books of 2025. I highly recommend With Love From Harlem if you enjoy fictionalized biographies. 4.75⭐️

I'm still reading Before We Were Yours and The Secret Lives of Murderer's Wives, but I'm getting close to finishing both. To be honest, I haven't been in a rush to finish a book lately, instead feeling very inspired to create, create, create. I suspect that's because I know I'll soon be traveling, so I'm trying to batch content. But I also have a LOT to say lately.

I'll finish this update with a look ahead: the April newsletter will be out soon, so that means first looks at the May Historical Fiction Heads Up blog post and a few other fun new things I have up my sleeve. If you haven't signed up for my newsletter yet, I encourage you to do so. It's truly my favorite part of this whole passion project.

Until next week my friend!

This Week in SBB:

• Last, Now, Next Audiobook Edition

• The Vanishing Half book review

• Five Star Book Tag

• Sunday Morning with Me and Sandra Dallas

Hear it Here First:

My next giveaway will be a copy of In the Great Quiet, a debut novel by Laura Vogt! I'll announce it soon, so watch for that on your favorite social media channel.

The BBFL April poll hasn't closed yet, but it looks like we will be reading Go as a River. Join the club and read along if that one's still on your TBR!

xoxo

C

Hello, Sickos! The April polls for the History/Fiction Sickos Book Clubs are live! You can go vote on them in the appropriate Discord channels (scroll down a bit and you'll see #fiction-vote and #history-vote). The polls run for 72 hours so you've got plenty of opportunity to bribe and bully people into voting for your choice.

If you're not seeing the channels, make sure you've linked your Bindery subscription to Discord via the Account Settings page. Those vote/discussion channels unlock at the Sicko plus paid tiers, so if you're a "Follower", you'll need to upgrade. Along with the book club forums you also get access to a ton of other channels for various genres, book recommendation requests, movies/TV, buddy reads (like Project Hail Mary, Lonesome Dove, Red Rising, Malazan, Discworld, Robin Hobb, John Gwynne, A Complement of Scoundrels, etc) and much more.

Back to the options... These are the 8 books across the 2 clubs that we're voting on.

FICTION SICKOS

The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan

An immortal monster-hunter sharing his body with a heart-eating demon must reunite with his estranged lover in 1785 France to finally slay the legendary Beast of Gévaudan. (dark historical fantasy)

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

A small, hockey-obsessed Swedish town is torn apart when a violent act involving its star player forces the community to choose between its dreams of victory and the pursuit of justice (contemporary literary)

There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak

A single drop of water and the ancient Epic of Gilgamesh bridge the lives of a Victorian London urchin-turned-scholar, a young Yazidi girl in 2014 Turkey, and a modern-day hydrologist. (historical literary w/magical realism)

Butter: A Novel of Food and Murder by Asako Yuzuki

A journalist attempts to solve a series of murders by befriending a legendary gourmet serial killer who manipulates her victims through the seductive power of high-end cooking. (contemporary literary psychological thriller)

HISTORY SICKOS

All the Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror by Stephen Kinzer

chronicles the 1953 CIA-backed coup in Iran that toppled Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh to reinstate the Shah, forever altering Middle Eastern politics and U.S. foreign relations. (narrative nonfiction history)

A Little Devil in America: In Praise of Black Performance by Hanif Abdurraqib

Blends personal memoir with sharp criticism to explore the profound impact of Black performance on American life, from the joy of Soul Train to the complexities of Minstrelsy. (cultural history/essay collection)

The Celts: Search for a Civilization by Alice Roberts

Uses modern archaeological discoveries and genetic evidence to debunk myths and reveal the true, diverse identity of the ancient Iron Age peoples known as the Celts. (narrative nonfiction history)

The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale by Art Spiegelman

Art Spiegelman interviews his father about his harrowing survival of the Holocaust as a Polish Jew, famously depicting Jews as mice and Nazis as cats to explore intergenerational trauma and the haunting nature of memory. (nonfiction graphic memoir)

That's it, go vote! (also remember to pre-order A Complement of Scoundrels!)

Folk horror feels as if it was made for the spring and fall seasons. Reading this subgenre during these months really immerse me in the reads.

Here are a few folk horrors that are perfect for the season of fresh life and fertility.

Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss-- A family's two week vacation to live as if they are in the Iron Age in the woods takes a dark turn when the group encounters a ghost wall.

The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister-- A family that tends a cranberry bog has always been sustained by it. But when the bog fails to provide it's promised "bog wife," the family is left to face an unknown future.

Lost In The Garden by Adam S. Leslie--A dreamlike novel trapped in an endless summer. A group of women travel to the town of Almanby--a town known for disappearances. They say if you go to Almanby, you won't come back.

Itch! by Gemma Amor-- A woman finds a body in a forest. A killer stalks the small town in the present, and some shocking discoveries are unveiled about her past.

Something In The Walls by Daisy Pearce--A young girl claims she's being haunted by a witch. This sparks both the interest of the media, and child psychologist Mina. The more Mina uncovers, the more disturbing she finds the town.

Welcome back to my Director's Cut Reviews! Today I'm diving into Morsel by Carter Keane.

Book: Morsel

Author: Carter Keane

Page Count: 208

Setting: Ohio

Genre: Horror

Subgenre/Themes: Folk, Woods, Workplace, Cults, Survival, Eco, Bugs, Appalachian

Comps: The Blair Witch, The Ritual, The Twisted Ones, Run On Red

Rating: 4 stars

Release Date: 04-14-26

Brief Summary: Lou dedicated her time to her job. But when her mom fell ill, she took a step back in order to take care of her. Now that she's at risk of being fired, she greedily takes the offer her boss gives her: go take some pictures of a property in rural, Appalachian Ohio. When she gets there, a terrifying encounter leads to a sabotaged car. Stranded with her dog Ripley in the woods, Lou must fight to survive both humans and monsters alike.

My Thoughts: I FLEW through this one so fast. IN less than 24 hours I was able to finish this delicious book. Is it perfect? No. But did I have a fantastic, fun time reading it? Absolutely I did. I loved how fast-paced this one was. I was never bored. The plot was always moving. It felt like a true survival horror with twists and turns around each corner.

While I wish there was a little more time in the woods, I loved the setting. The tense atmosphere was definitely conveyed across the page. I also loved that the author tells us that the dog makes it right at the start of the book. Ripley was the bestest girl and while she went through hell, I was glad to know she would come out on top. The culty aspect and jabs at capitalism were also really well done.

Lou was a very complex character. I loved how she adored her dog and would fight tooth and nail to ensure her safety. Both her and her dog are put through the ringer in this book. Lou has a lot of intrusive thoughts that she attributes to her inner goblin. These thoughts progressivly get darker as the novel goes on. We also see that Lou is not scared to defend herself against her attackers, with some pretty gnarly descriptions of body horror and the actions that cause it.

Overall, I loved this book and definitely think it's worth your time.

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