Month: January 2019

Posted in Answer a question

Do you prefer books or e-books or audiobooks?

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I thought this would be a pretty cool topic to discuss. We live in a world of technology….so more and more people are using tablets/e-readers to read or they are listening to audiobooks on their phone and such. There are plenty of ways to read now since technology has changed our world a bit. I don’t have any audiobooks. I don’t spend a lot of time driving and my commute to work isn’t that long so I don’t really have the opportunity to listen to books. I mean, I do but I prefer reading a book myself as opposed to having someone else read to me. Now, I currently have a Kindle Fire which I use for reading only. I didn’t get one till last year (I want to say around late February or early March was when I got it). I only got one because my bookshelves were filled to capacity and I didn’t have any room to add anymore books. I still prefer to read the actual book (and I’m always going to prefer the physical copy) because I love the smell of books and turning each page as I’m reading. But there is one benefit of having my Kindle. If my husband and I ever travel, then I can take a bunch of books with me to read without taking up a lot of space. I just have to remember to take the charger with me for my Kindle. So, do you prefer to read books, do you prefer to read using a tablet/e-reader or do you prefer listening to an audiobook?

Posted in Author

Author Spotlight

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I wanted to take a minute to talk to you about an author by the name of Wayne Hancock and some of the novels he’s written…

“Gotcha!” (A Murder in Warrensburg) was the first book I read. Then I went on to read “Along Came Bill” (Another Murder in Warrensburg) and “The Hard Way” (book 3 in the Gotcha! series). Once I read those, I read “The Vampire Rebellion” (this doesn’t have anything to do with the Gotcha! series). I do have “The Vampire’s Revenge” which is a follow up to the Vampire Rebellion novel but I haven’t gotten to read that book yet. I also have the novel “The Unlikely Predator” but I haven’t gotten around to reading it yet either (unfortunately). I also have the novel “Off To War”, which is suppose to be the 4th novel (and the conclusion) in the Gotcha! series but I haven’t read that novel yet either. I know what you’re thinking….I need to get reading and I do plan on reading these books. I just have so many books to read and I just wish I had more time to devote to it. There are other books that this author has written but I haven’t purchased them yet because I want to finish reading the books that I’ve got. His crime novels are perfect for people who like the classic who done it type novels. If you are looking for something more from the fantasy novels then you should take a look at his Vampire’s Rebellion and Vampire’s Revenge novels. If no one has these books in your area, I’ve noticed that you can order them on Amazon. I would check this author out if you haven’t already.

Posted in Literature, mystery, young adult

“The Stranger Game” by Cylin Busby

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I finished reading this novel this afternoon. I am usually surprised by the time I get to the end when everything is revealed but I managed to figure most of the things out before I got to the end of this one. It was a good book, I would prefer being surprised when all the loose ends are being tied up in the end.


Synopsis: The Stranger Gameis a dark, suspenseful, and twisty novel that is Gone Girl for teens. Perfect for fans of Lauren Oliver and E. Lockhart.

When Nico Morris’s older sister mysteriously disappears, her parents, family, and friends are devastated. But Nico can never admit what she herself feels: relief at finally being free of Sarah’s daily cruelties.

Then the best and worst thing happens: four years later, after dozens of false leads, Sarah is found.

But this girl is much changed from the one Nico knew. She’s thin and drawn, when Sarah had been golden and athletic; timid and unsure, instead of brash and competitive; and strangest of all, sweet and kind, when she had once been mean and abusive. Sarah’s retrograde amnesia has caused her to forget almost everything about her life, from small things like the plots of her favorite books and her tennis game to the more critical—where she’s been the last four years and what happened at the park on the fateful day she vanished. Despite the happy ending, the dark details of that day continue to haunt Nico, and it becomes clear that more than one person knows the true story of what happened to Sarah. . . .

Posted in horror, Literature

“A Haunting” by L. I. Albemont

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I have been reading this book on my Kindle Fire that I have and I recently finished reading it. It’s my first e-book for this year and I now have to see what I’ll read next on my Kindle. Anyway, I did enjoy this book and I have no regrets about purchasing it. The book started out good and stayed that way throughout the entire story. I didn’t want it to end. As a matter of fact, I hope the author makes a sequel to this book. If you plan on picking up your own copy of this book to read, you may want to leave the lights on while reading.

Synopsis: Fleeing a troubled past, Sarah Faust thinks she has found the perfect place to start a new life. Tucked away on a charming side street and surrounded by lush grounds, the three-hundred year old fixer upper in the port city of Charleston offers a refuge and a place to start over. But all is not as it seems at 5 Rue Lane and she soon finds that her new house harbors something that has been there for a very long time. Something that refuses to stay buried. In A Haunting, Albemont brings us parallel tales of old and modern horror, weaving colonial era events into a modern ghost story you won’t soon forget.

Posted in Literature

Looking forward to….

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I don’t know if any of you have been reading Madeleine Roux’s “House of Furies” series but I have. I own the first and second books in hardcover and I’ve enjoyed reading both of them. Well, the third book is set to be released on May 19th of this year and I can hardly wait. I want to see where the story takes us and what happens to the characters in this book. If you haven’t read this series yet, you should….unless you are easily scared.

Posted in children's, Literature

“The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle” by Janet Fox

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I just finished reading this novel last night before going to bed and I wanted to share it with you. I had found this book in the bargain section of my local bookstore and thought it looked interesting. Well, I wasn’t disappointed when I finished this book last night. This book kept me on my toes the whole time I was reading it. Fans of Harry Potter and/or The Chronicles of Narnia may like this book (this novel is a little bit more scary than those series though).

Synopsis: Something is not right at Rookskill Castle, a rundown Scottish manor shrouded in mystery. The castle is a temporary boarding school for children escaping the Blitz, but soon it’s clear there is something terribly wrong. There are clues hinting that a spy is in the house, and there are undeniable signs of a sinister magic. When the children in the castle’s temporary boarding school begin disappearing one by one, it’s a race against the clock for twelve-year-old Kat Bateson, her two younger siblings, and their new best friend.

Posted in TV (based on literature)

NOS4A2

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

NOS4A2 is a the third novel by author Joe Hill and published in 2013. AMC ordered a 10 episode television series on April 10, 2018 that will be based on the novel. The series is suppose to air sometime in 2019. Jami O’Brien is the showrunner and Zachary Quinto is set to play the villain, Charlie Manx. Entertainment Weekly has released photos of Quinto as his character and I’m getting excited to see this show. There is also a comic book mini series called “Wraith” that is written by Joe Hill. This doesn’t really add to the story that appears in NOS4A2, however, it does give you some back story on Charlie Manx and basically tells you how he became the character that you see in the novel. I’ve read both the novel and the comic book mini series and I enjoyed both of them. They are definitely a good read and I’ll look forward to the tv show set to come out some time this year.

Synopsis: NOS4A2 is a spine-tingling novel of supernatural suspense from master of horror Joe Hill, the New York Times bestselling author of Heart-Shaped Box and Horns.

Victoria McQueen has a secret gift for finding things: a misplaced bracelet, a missing photograph, answers to unanswerable questions. On her Raleigh Tuff Burner bike, she makes her way to a rickety covered bridge that, within moments, takes her wherever she needs to go, whether it’s across Massachusetts or across the country.

Charles Talent Manx has a way with children. He likes to take them for rides in his 1938 Rolls-Royce Wraith with the NOS4A2 vanity plate. With his old car, he can slip right out of the everyday world, and onto the hidden roads that transport them to an astonishing – and terrifying – playground of amusements he calls “Christmasland.”

Then, one day, Vic goes looking for trouble—and finds Manx. That was a lifetime ago. Now Vic, the only kid to ever escape Manx’s unmitigated evil, is all grown up and desperate to forget. But Charlie Manx never stopped thinking about Victoria McQueen. He’s on the road again and he’s picked up a new passenger: Vic’s own son.

Posted in TV (based on literature)

The Haunting of Hill House

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

The Haunting of Hill House is a book from the horror genre written by author Shirley Jackson, which I read the year before last. Well, they recently made a tv show based on the 1959 novel and I finally got to sit down to watch the show last week (I know I’m a little late getting around to posting this and I’m sorry). I enjoyed the show, however, I want to mention that there aren’t a lot of similarities between the book and the show. The only similarity is they named the show the same as the book. The story is completely different and the characters are completely different (even if some of the characters in the tv show share a name with some of the characters from the book). Despite that, I thought the show did a good job telling a really scary story and I was entertained the whole time I watched it. It’ll be something that you’ll just have to watch for yourself.

Posted in Literature, Other Fiction

“Poison” by Sarah Pinborough

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

This book is a pretty quick read (I was able to read it in one day) but it is still able to keep me interested while I was reading. This book is a classic retelling of the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. I was really surprised by the ending that I got but I understand that I was reading a “retelling” of a story, however, there are some things that you’ll notice that are similar between this and the classic story. The ending was kind of creepy though. (Please be advised that this book is definitely not for children.)

Synopsis: You think you know the story…

Once upon a time, in a kingdom far, far away, a handsome prince rescues a beautiful princess from the machinations of her wicked stepmother, sweeps her onto his white horse and rides off into the sunset.

Well, not quite.

Snow White as the innocent victim?

Prince Charming as the dashing hero?

Love at first sight?

Happily ever after?

In Sarah Pinborough’s wicked retelling of the classic tale, nothing is quite as you remember it…

Posted in horror, Literature

“And The Trees Crept In” by Dawn Kurtagich

Posted on by The Fireside Chats

I finished reading this novel this morning and I wanted to share it with you. It was a pretty creepy novel about two girls who run away to their aunt’s house and try to avoid the clutches of the Creeper Man. The way the Creeper Man is described, he sounds a lot like the Slender Man but he adds a nice creepy factor to the story. The ending was pretty surprising but the story will be explained when you reach the end. Overall, I was pleased with the novel and how it turned out.

Synopsis: Stay away from the woods….
When Silla and Nori arrive at their aunt’s home, it’s immediately clear that the manor is cursed. The endless creaking of the house at night and the eerie stillness of the woods surrounding them would be enough of a sign, but there are secrets, too – questions that Silla can’t ignore: Why does it seem that, ever since they arrived, the trees have been creeping closer? Who is the beautiful boy who’s appeared from the woods? And who is the tall man with no eyes who Nori plays with in the basement at night…a man no one else can see?