#with a lot of references to drugs and a woman fleeing an abusive relationship saying she was only something for her bf to do at night

[theodore-sallis]

“Nowhere to Go but Down,” Man-Thing (Vol. 1/1974), #2.

Writer: Steve Gerber; Penciler: Val Mayerik; Inker: Sal Trapani; Colorist: Petra Goldberg; Letterer: Jean Izzo

[addictedforbooksquad]

P I C K (S)  O F  T H E  M O N T H: O C T O B E R

Lie by Natalia Jaster

Villains series by V.E. Schwab

Wolfsong by TJ Klune

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Fall by Kristen Callihan

Scotland or Bust by Kira Archer

Dating the Enemy by Nicole Williams

Save the Date by Morgan Matson

Lie by Natalia Jaster

Genres: New Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Links: goodreads | amazon

Synopsis:

Once upon a time, there lived a liar... In the Kingdom of Autumn, Aspen is a girl of the trees. She’s a girl who knows her way around a falsehood. She’s the artful liar who steals from the Crown. Once upon a time, there lived a knight... In the shadows of a castle, Aire is a man of the wind. He’s a man who sees through Aspen’s treachery. He’s the relentless knight who pursues her. Once upon a time, there lived two enemies... In a fairytale woodland, a pair of mismatched souls are thrown together—only to find an unexpected bond. Both deceitful and passionate.

Why we love it:

beautiful, poetic prose

interesting, unusual take on Pinocchio

flawed, engaging characters who develop over the course of the book

their banter is entertaining as hell

heroine’s “skin condition” (so to speak) is not magically healed (at least not permanently) - she learns to love herself instead

Trigger warnings: ableism

Villains series by V.E.Schwab

Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Science-Fiction

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong. Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

Why we love it:

memorable cast of characters - likeable and morally grey villains, badass women

anti-hero story

a gripping, twisted tale of jealousy, ambition, murder, revenge and superpowers

interesting narrative style with timeline jumping back and forth fluidly with different perspectives

SO. MUCH. TENSION

Trigger warnings: domestic abuse, suicide, attempted rape, drug abuse, graphic violence

Wolfsong by TJ Klune

Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

Ox was twelve when his daddy taught him a very valuable lesson. He said that Ox wasn’t worth anything and people would never understand him. Then he left. Ox was sixteen when he met the boy on the road, the boy who talked and talked and talked. Ox found out later the boy hadn’t spoken in almost two years before that day, and that the boy belonged to a family who had moved into the house at the end of the lane. Ox was seventeen when he found out the boy’s secret, and it painted the world around him in colors of red and orange and violet, of Alpha and Beta and Omega. Ox was twenty-three when murder came to town and tore a hole in his head and heart. The boy chased after the monster with revenge in his bloodred eyes, leaving Ox behind to pick up the pieces. It’s been three years since that fateful day—and the boy is back. Except now he’s a man, and Ox can no longer ignore the song that howls between them.

Why we love it:

so many family feels!

highlights the importance of friends/family/people in your life that are not blood-related

MATES (we do love a WELL-done mates trope)

werewolves whose sexuality is fluid

angsty but worth it!

Trigger warnings: violence, death, emotional abuse

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Genres: Historical, Historical Fiction

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

Marie-Laure lives in Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where her father works. When she is twelve, the Nazis occupy Paris and father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s reclusive great uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel. In a mining town in Germany, Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find that brings them news and stories from places they have never seen or imagined. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments and is enlisted to use his talent to track down the resistance. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another.

Why we love it:

beautifully haunting prose

set during WWII

two parallel stories that intertwine briefly towards the end

poetically written and full of rich details

there are so many heartwarming and heartbreaking moments

Trigger warnings: n/a

Fall by Kristen Callihan

Genres: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

The first time I met Jax Blackwood things went a little sideways. In my defense, I didn’t know he was Jax Blackwood—who expects a legendary rock star to be shopping for groceries? More importantly, a blizzard was coming and he was about to grab the last carton of mint-chocolate chip. Still, I might have walked away, but then he smugly dared me to try and take the coveted ice cream. So I kissed him. And distracted that mint-chip right out of his hands. Okay, it was a dirty move, but desperate times and all that. Besides, I never expected he’d be my new neighbor. An annoying neighbor who takes great pleasure in reminding me that I owe him ice cream but would happily accept more kisses as payment. An irresistible neighbor who keeps me up while playing guitar naked–spectacularly naked–in his living room. Clearly, avoidance is key. Except nothing about Jax is easy to ignore—not the way he makes me laugh, or that his particular brand of darkness matches mine, or how one look from him melts me faster than butter under a hot sun. Neither of us believes in love or forever. Yet we’re quickly becoming each other’s addiction. But we could be more. We could be everything. All we have to do is trust enough to fall.

Why we love it:

story written with SO MUCH feeling

deals with depression in a realistic way

wonderfully painful and satisfying slow-burn

actual relationship buildup, unlike the usual instalove that we see a lot in contemporaries

characters that feel very real and utterly relatable

“musician” aspect of the story is not just there, it’s a focus of some scenes

interesting and entertaining secondary characters

makes us long for the next installment!

Trigger warnings: mentions of suicide, depression

Scotland or Bust by Kira Archer

Genres: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

After dumping her boyfriend, Nicole Franklin impulsively jumps on a plane and heads to Europe. Sure, money and a job would have been nice to line up first. Even a visa, for that matter. So now she has to play tour guide at an Outlander experience for the most obnoxious man on the planet. Until she stumbles into the wrong bed in the middle of the night and wakes up in Harrison’s arms. Now his family thinks they’re engaged, and the entire village is betting on how long before she’ll be running for the hills. Harrison Troy has a reputation in the town for burning through assistants. And the bubbly new one he’s just hired is likely no different. But his family quickly has them “engaged.” He should be upset, but she’s the perfect buffer for his interfering family. She says she doesn’t need another man in her life--even if he comes with a castle--and that’s fine with him. So why can’t he stop thinking about the woman who is charming everyone in the town, and maybe even him?

Why we love it:

fake dating trope

set in Scotland

crazy adorable family

so many outlander and Jamie/Claire references

Trigger warnings: n/a

Dating the Enemy by Nicole Williams

Genres: Adult, Romance, Contemporary

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

Ms. Romance, Hannah Arden, writes one of the top read relationship advice columns in the nation. Mr. Reality, Brooks North, writes the top read relationship advice column. Ms. Romance believes in true love and soul mates. Mr. Reality believes love is a term humanity has assigned to the primal instinct to procreate. She believes in fate—he in chance. She knows there’s one right person for everyone—he knows there are multiple ones. The two writers couldn’t be more polarized on relationships. They’re professional rivals, and philosophical antagonists. For eight years, their battles have been fought with words and ink. That changes when they apply for the same position at the World Times and find themselves face-to-face for the first time. Brooks isn’t the sour-faced, antiquity of a man Hannah pictured. And Hannah isn’t exactly the middle-aged shrew with cat hair on her housedress that Brooks imagined either. In lieu of competing for the promotion traditional ways, the two writers are presented with playing the leading roles in a social experiment unlike any before. Can a person be tricked into falling in love? Can a relationship be crafted under the right string of circumstances? Hannah knows the answer. So does Brooks. Agreeing to the terms, the two set out on a three-month dating experiment, live-streamed for the world to watch. All Hannah has to do to win is not fall in love with the narcissistic brute. All Brooks has to do is get the starry-eyed dreamer to fall in love with him. Both are so confident in their philosophies, they expect the challenge to be easy. With the world watching, Brooks and Hannah will be forced to confront their beliefs and conclude, once and for all, who’s right. The answer is one neither of them saw coming.

Why we love it:

fake dating (we do have a weakness for this trope!)

interesting dynamic

likeable characters

The-Ugly-Truth-meets-The-Hating-Game premise

Trigger warnings: n/a

Save The Date by Morgan Matson

Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary

Links: goodreads | bookdepository

Synopsis:

Charlie Grant's older sister is getting married this weekend at their family home, and Charlie can't wait for the first time in years, all four of her older siblings will be under one roof. Charlie is desperate for one last perfect weekend, before the house is sold and everything changes. The house will be filled with jokes and games and laughs again. Making decisions about things like what college to attend and reuniting with longstanding crush Jesse Foster all that can wait. She wants to focus on making the weekend perfect. The only problem? The weekend is shaping up to be an absolute disaster. There's the unexpected dog with a penchant for howling, house alarm that won't stop going off, and a papergirl with a grudge. There are the relatives who aren't speaking, the (awful) girl her favorite brother brought home unannounced, and a missing tuxedo. Not to mention the neighbor who seems to be bent on sabotage and a storm that is bent on drenching everything. The justice of the peace is missing. The band will only play covers. The guests are all crazy. And the wedding planner's nephew is unexpectedly, distractedly cute. Over the course of three ridiculously chaotic days, Charlie will learn more than she ever expected about the family she thought she knew by heart. And she'll realize that sometimes, trying to keep everything like it was in the past means missing out on the future.

Why we love it:

adorable, intriguing and complex dynamic between Grant siblings

Trigger warnings: n/a