"The Outsider" - Book Review -

“The Outsider”

Written by Stephen King

Reviewed by Diana Iozzia

The Outsider is a recent novel by the renowned horror and supernatural writer, Stephen King. The story begins with the finding of the body of young eleven-year-old boy, Frank Anderson. The murder itself was extremely gruesome; Frank was sodomized and then killed by bites to his many organs and then a lethal one to his neck. Fingers point at Terry Maitland, Frank’s baseball beloved baseball coach. The murder envelops the town in a dark shadow, with parents and children in an uproar, thinking they trusted Terry.

To continue, I enjoyed how the story developed, introducing many appealing characters. The main detective, Ralph, of the police department is wise and pleasant. We see him often, interacting with other detectives, his wife, and investigators. Ralph was such a happy surprise, since many of King’s police characters have been brash, crude, and just downright offensive. Ralph and his wife become embroiled in the investigation. Over time, we are introduced to a great investigator character, who hails from the Mr. Mercedes series, Holly.

The first third of The Outsider had me thoroughly invested, stuck in suspended animation, as I waited for more clues to be revealed. A major shock involving Terry was so well-executed, I was gob smacked. Unfortunately, the detectives begin to notice that Terry could not have been involved in Frank’s murder, because how could he be in two places at once? Hoping this to continue in an Agatha Christie-like mystery, I was excited. Sadly, it becomes apparent that the monster who committed the murder is supernatural, rather than human.

Personally, the scariest moments and characters in King’s work incorporate evil humans, rather than evil beings and entities. The Green Mile, Children of the Corn, The Shining, Carrie, 1922, Misery, Dolores Claiborne, and Under the Dome have evil characters. Although there are some supernatural baddies or evil influence from beings in these favorites of mine, the majority of the malevolence manifests in the humans. I have never been frightened in It, Pet Sematary, ‘Salem’s Lot, Bag of Bones, and The Stand. I would have loved this book if we just had a murder mystery, with a wicked serial killer walking around Flint City.

The villain, the “outsider”, was a completely different character to what I would have liked. A Mexican folklore villain who imitates the appearance and voice of others, who feasts on the fear of children? Did we need another Pennywise monster?

Lastly, my final disappointment was the audiobook. I have enjoyed Will Patton’s audiobook reading before, but his dark and gruff voice made the narration seem underwhelming, as he seems to overact each sentence. Less is more, in audiobooks for me. I stopped listening to the audiobook and switched to a print copy, because I was unhappy with his cadence and tone.

I recommend this book if you find King’s monsters to be scarier, but I do not recommend if you like evil humans to be scariest. I will not be keeping this book in my collection, nor watching the television adaptation of the novel.

I rated this novel at three of five stars, because King still delivers an interesting plot with great characters, but I would have hoped for so much more.

"Deathless Divide"

"Deathless Divide"
Written by Justina Ireland
Reviewed by Diana Iozzia


"Deathless Divide" is the second novel in the "Dread Nation" series written by Justina Ireland. The series follows our main character, Jane, who lives in a post-Civil War era but there is a twist. After the soldiers on both sides of the war died, they rose back to life, as zombie-like "shamblers" with acute senses of smell and hearing. Jane and her friends must learn to survive, utilizing the skills they have learned at the Miss Preston's Academy, in which black teens learn to fight against shamblers to protect their mistresses.

"Deathless Divide" picks up immediately after the fall of the town our main characters were stationed in, which was more of a cult than a safe haven. Jane and Katherine, a brilliant friend and secondary main character, must find their friends and escape to the nearest safe place. Jane and Kate have realized that Gideon, the mad scientist working on a shambler vaccine, is more Mr. Hyde than Dr. Jekyll, which prompts them to search for him, to stop him.

"D.D." takes place in two parts, both brilliantly executed. I have to admit, I was terrified to pick up the sequel, after adoring "Deathless Divide" incredibly. Fearing my disappointment, I found myself savoring every page, taking far too long to read the story. Ireland continues her magnificent ability to create wonderful characters, realistic dialogue, and compelling plots. The main trophy of this story, as with "Dread Nation" is the friendship between Jane and Kate. If a reader begins the series expecting zombies and horror similar to "The Walking Dead", they can continue in a different direction. The shambler horror is far lessened in this novel, as the true main villain manifests in Gideon.

The second part of the story continues in a brilliant fashion, causing a separation between the two main characters. As they begin to heal their relationship, they must fight against the odds to win and stop the evil.

I absolutely loved this novel, and I truly hope that Ireland continues the series. Although the sequel ended on a great final note, I'd absolutely hope for more.

I received a finished copy from the publisher, Titan Books, in exchange for reading, reviewing, and promoting the novel. Thank you again.

I rated this novel as a five star read out of five stars.

"Full Throttle"

“Full Throttle”

Written by Joe Hill

Reviewed by Diana Iozzia

As an occasional fan of Stephen King, I became gradually interested in reading works by his son. I was curious to see how the two prolific writers would be similar and how aspects of their works would contrast. Personally, I was astounded to see how much I enjoyed Hill’s short story collection, “Full Throttle”. I was happily surprised to notice less harsh and brutal sequences, less foul language, and less sexual content, compared to King’s work.

Hill’s short stories have very creative horror themes, as well as his father’s. However, I find that Hill does the technique of “showing” more than “telling”, while King provides far too much detail often. Hill’s work was very intriguing, depicting very realistic characters in an accurate and appealing portrayal. I chose to read this book by listening to the audiobook, which was a longer process, but I felt that I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the different actors and actresses and hearing how they would bring the stories to life. There are many memorable narrators, but I was especially excited to listen to Kate Mulgrew, Zachary Quinto, and Neil Gaiman. I found myself enjoying the other lesser known narrators far more, and I hope to find more audio work by these narrators. I’d like to share my thoughts on each individual story.

The first story in this collection, “Throttle”, is about a maniacal truck driver who brutally attacks motorcyclists on a tough road. Unfortunately, I strongly disliked this story. I felt it was a strange story to open on and especially to be the story that the collection was titled after.

“Dark Carousel” is one of my favorites from this collection. A group of four teens goes to a New Jersey boardwalk, which you may know is a favorite place to be. The teens dumbly and drunkenly mess with the carousel animals and the ride’s operator. As they begin to leave, the teens notice that the animals have come to life, to wreak their vengeance on behalf of their owner. Although the premise sounds a tad ridiculous, I can assure you that the execution of the story is so well-created that the story plays off like a horror movie, akin to the great “The Twilight Zone” or Alfred Hitchcock’s work. The second act of this story was absolutely spine-tingling. The conclusion of this story truly showed madness in its most human and animal forms.

“Wolverton Station” follows a businessman, whose career involves running small businesses into the ground, to make way for new locations of Jim Coffee, a fun reference to “The Green Mile” by King. The main character of this story sits on a train, awaiting transportation to the next step in his journey, when he notices deadly and horrifying wolfmen in business clothing. This story is a tad more political but not quite absurd in its content. The audiobook narrator creates a great atmosphere with his diction and acting abilities.

“By the Silver Water of Lake Champlain” was a more unusual story, with a far too irritating narration by the great Kate Mulgrew. The story bites off more than it can chew, with a family who owns robots, of which the children find a mysterious dinosaur fossil in the woods. The children and their friends turn on each other when deciding what to do with the fossil.

“Faun” is a truly bizarre but well-rounded story. This follows two boys, Peter and Christian, who are brought on an illegal hunting expedition, in which the boys and rich men hunt elusive and endangered animals. The game changes and increases in bewildering ways, when the boys are shown magical and other-worldly creatures to hunt, that must be found in a magical parallel world. Zachary Quinto’s narration adds such delight to this story.

“Late Returns” is absolutely my favorite story of this collection and may have become my new favorite short story of all time. This splendid tale of sadness, love, grief, and death encompasses so many important themes. Our main character has begun a job, in which he drives and maintains a mobile library that’s contained in a large van.  The main character has been told by his boss that many previous drivers have encountered some strange sights. One driver had been so confused, he thought he had been trapped in a different decade. One driver believed he was seeing ghosts. The story continues in a fantastic direction. Our new driver begins the operation but comes to the realization that the people who come onto the van to return books past their due date are ghosts. They are not yet dead ghosts, but they have traveled to this bookmobile to return their late books and read a new one. There are many different characters that come aboard the bookmobile, with many different types of backgrounds and elements that add wondrously to this story. I found myself listening to this story during a night of insomnia. The story was so heartbreaking yet warming, and I found myself crying twice. “Late Returns” is a story that I will find myself talking about for the rest of my life and also perhaps hope that it might come true.

“All I Care About is You” was a strange story, and I am still not quite sure of my enjoyment level. In this, a woman named Iris uses tokens to have the assistance of a ‘clockwork’ named Chip. Iris develops an uncomfortable and obsessive relationship with the piece of machinery, that has been programmed to detect emotions, to cater to the user’s needs, and to provide conversation.

“Thumbprint” is a gritty and gruesome story about a military crew who tortures an Arab man for information. Our main character from the crew has been finding thumbprints, first delivered to her by mailbox, then inside her house, and then on her mirror. This story was very uncomfortable to listen to, and due to the material, I was not interested.

“The Devil on the Staircase” follows a man who is in love with his cousin. After killing her lover on a beautiful, ornate staircase, he becomes haunted by madness. This feels like an ode to the great Edgar Allan Poe, in its atmospheric nature and insanity.

“Mums” follows our main character, Jack, who lives in a very unhappy family. His mother attempts to escape her manipulative husband, but she is accidentally killed. By his father? Hmm. Jack must learn to survive his childhood, but he slowly loses his mind. The true kicker hits when he starts to see mums that he planted by his mother’s grave take on the countenance of his mother. The mums scream to him, begging to eat flesh. This absurd but deliciously gripping story was great, especially when narrated by a fantastic voice actor. This story reminds me of “1922” by King, one of my favorite novellas by him.

I had previously watched “In the Tall Grass” about two weeks prior to reading its short story origin. Although my anticipation for the film did not pay off, I still wanted to listen to the source material. “In the Tall Grass” follows a few different characters but primarily Cal and his pregnant sister, Becky, who have wandered into a grassy field, when they have heard a child calling for help. The grassy field starts morphing around them, which cause Becky and Cal to be trapped and separated. The grass changes the space between the characters rapidly, letting them think they are closer when they are much further apart. The two meet the Humboldt family, who have also been trapped in the woods. Father Russ, mother Natalie, and son Tobin have been running around searching for each other, but something is off about Russ. And the massive enchanting rock in the middle of the field. In reading the source material, some of the aspects I did not enjoy from the film had been taken out, but I felt that the source material also lacked a bit of charm that the film created.

“You Are Released” was a bit of a confusing and sad story. On an airplane, the story chronicles specific passengers, the flight attendants, and the captain’s crew as they all discover that Guam has been hit by a nuclear bomb, sent only by North Korea. The third world war is breaking out, which causes a certain level of terror at twenty-thousand feet.

Moreover, a great part of most short story collections is the afterword, in which the authors provide a bit of background on each story or share the inspiration behind it. Although Hill’s notes were not very fulfilling, I am glad he incorporated them. He mentioned that his main goal with assembling a short story collection is making the stories seem coherent, as if they are all connected in some ways.

In conclusion, I am so thrilled that I chose to read this collection of short stories. I do not read collections as often as I would like, so I appreciate that I took the time. I plan to continue reading Hill’s work at my next opportunity. I wholeheartedly recommend these, as well as King’s collections. I truly recommend listening to “Full Throttle” as an audiobook. It was such a worthy experience.

"Friday Black"

“Friday Black”

Written by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Review written by Diana Iozzia

I am absolutely struggling to decide how I’d like to rate this book. My favorite stories from this collection are absolutely fantastic. I was enthralled by them. Entranced. Bewildered and horrified. This book is compared often to “Black Mirror”, and I can understand why. This collection of short stories centers around modern and past struggles that black Americans face often, mixed and twisted with false presents and futures, allowing a very fitting “Twilight Zone” meets “Get Out” collection. I feel that most of his stories are very uncomfortable, eerie, but also very captivating. We receive an objective perspective, in the sense where our writer asks us our own morals in each story, showing us that humans can truly be monsters. To further review this book, I feel like a separate explanation and my thoughts on each specific story would be the best method.

“The Finkelstein Five” is a devasting look into the mob mindset, of someone who sat on the fence but is pulled into the insidious side of justice. The themes of justice and honesty gone too far are prevalent through this short story collection. Our main character explains a trial in which a white man is acquitted after brutally killing five children with a chain saw, claiming self-defense. Black teens and adults begin killing white people, shouting the names of the five children. This present action is also wrapped around the dialogue of the trial. This was easily my favorite story of this collection. It was utterly jarring, but most of all; it was absolutely petrifying to watch a young man become entangled in the group of killers.

“Things My Mother Said” does not make any sense to me at all. I will have to look into further explanations of this.

“The Era” follows our main character in a society where parents choose certain genetic qualities for their future children. This allows certain people to be intelligent in ways that we deem but also renders people without these additions to be stupid and useless. We also see his character become more acquainted with a friend whose parents run a house they call “The Era” in which it is kept to the similar society style that we know today. It was also interesting in this story to learn a bit about the history between the life we know and when this story takes place. We learn about wars based on truth and honesty, which provide science fictional satire and dystopia but allow the reader to inquire further by not providing enough information. This was my second favorite story.

“Lark Street” personifies unborn children as animate fetuses as they slowly die outside women’s bodies. They interact with their mother and father as they decay quickly into dust. I can understand the political and satirical stances that provide backing for this story, but I personally just did not find it interesting or entertaining.

“The Hospital Where” is a strange story. Strange and bizarre. We read through the mind of a mentally unstable man who sacrifices his soul and tongue to a demon who creates cures for those who enter a specific hospital. I can imagine the intent: a man who would sacrifice everything to save his father; however, this comes off as confusing and completely passable.

“Zimmer Land” is brilliant. We are thrown into the mix of an employee of an amusement park themed around justice. There are interactive sections where people are able to engage in a George Zimmerman type scenario, in which people approach a black teen in a hoodie with a weapon. The patrons of the park choose to engage the black teen, an employee, in the manner they wish to execute justice, sometimes killing him. Sometimes, there are repeat patrons who pay just to simulate killing the teen. The impetus of the character arises when his bosses decide to create a new amusement in the park which asks young patrons to find a bomb in a school simulation. This was my second favorite story.

“Friday Black” is a gruesome tale of horror set in a society in which murder is excused in order to find the best sale during Black Friday. This provides no further detail about what society would excuse this. I personally did not enjoy this story, because it felt too unrealistic.

“The Lion and the Spider” confused me as well. I believe it is a sort of fairy tale or fable connected to the life of a man working in a hardware store. That’s all I understood.

“Light Spitter” features two characters, a boy and a girl. The boy kills her in a school shooting type scenario and then himself. They meet in an afterlife, in which she is an angel setting out to save another teen from completing a school shooting.

“How to Sell a Jacket as Told by IceKing” was really boring to me. Basically, imagine how to sell a jacket, told by an eager employee. This seems to take place in a similar society or the same one as “Friday Black” does.

“Through the Flash” is one of the more interesting but barely explained stories in this collection. We have our narrator who experiences the same day over and over again. However, she and others have noticed glitches or anomalies that are occurring that would lead us to believe that the day experience repeatedly is for a greater purpose, not just a scientific cataclysm.

In conclusion, I absolutely loved the stories I enjoyed. The stories I did not like were just not my type of writing. I feel that with short story collections, I understand if I do not enjoy every one of them, as long as I connect and love a few of them. I enjoyed the satire, the short spurts of dystopia, and the grim horrors. I felt though as this is branded as a collection that talks about black experiences in America, there was also a certain element of how those who want to fix those experiences could turn the tide in a different way. I felt a certain equilibrium between the political spectrum and the racism elements. This is a well-created and balanced book.

Thank you to Quercus Books for the advance reader’s copy, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.

"My Sister, The Serial Killer"

“My Sister, The Serial Killer”
Written by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Reviewed by Diana Iozzia

“My Sister, The Serial Killer” sheds a comedic but dark light on the side of serial killing we do not often see depicted: the effect on the family. This fun but unsettling thriller is an enjoyable read. I read this during the holiday season, days after moving into my first home in a different country. So, perhaps I read this at the optimal time.

This is not a detailed story, with descriptions that are enthralling. This is short book, with a small plot. Our main character, Korede, has to repeatedly clean up after her sister’s killing. Her sister, Ayoola, is an immature serial dater, whose boyfriends mysteriously die. To others. To Korede, she knows everything her sister is doing and is the best woman for the job to clean up the blood.

This book encompasses all of the amusing and not-so-serious parts of “American Psycho”, “The Talented Mr. Ripley”, and reminds me a lot of “Jennifer’s Body”. We have a childlike curiosity to see how the story will progress. I enjoyed this, because I did not have to look for plot holes, poor dialogue, red herrings, dramatic choices, and more. This book took all of the grave and solemn parts out of a mystery and thriller, by making it entertaining in other ways. I really enjoyed this, and I hope that it will be made into a film.

Also, I have to mention that I enjoyed the location of Lagos, Nigeria. I do not personally know all that much about Nigeria, so it was interesting to learn about the food, the dialect, the police investigations, and the culture. I hope to read more of this author in the future. 

"Tales of Mystery and Imagination"

"Tales of Mystery and Imagination"
Written by Edgar Allan Poe
Review written by Diana Iozzia


The collection of short stories by Edgar Allan Poe, known as "Tales of Mystery and Imagination" is a wonderful classic in the horror and mystery genres. I have been a reader of Edgar Allan Poe for years, for at least most of my childhood and adulthood. Due to this, I had read a few of the stories in the collection, but I was relatively impressed by the other ones I had not yet heard of.

"The Gold Bug" is a mystery including puzzles and codes. I personally enjoyed this, because it reminded by of "The Most Dangerous Game". We start to suspect that the narrator's friend has a threatening motivation behind the hunt for treasure on which they have embarked.

"The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar" is a strange sort of "campfire" story or story that you'd tell at a sleepover. It is an archetypal ghost story. Our narrator is interested in mesmerism and hypnotism. He tells of his friend who was in a comatose state, but kept alive in a mesmerized state.

"Message Found in a Bottle" has a narrator who writes in his diary as a whirlpool consumes his crew and ship.

"A Descent into the Maelstrom" features a narrator who is told a story of a man delving into a maelstrom. I personally was not charmed by this one.

"The Murders in the Rue Morgue", "The Mystery of Marie Roget", and "The Purloined Letter" were the biggest disappointments for me in this collection. I was astounded by my dislike for Poe's mystery short stories. They were unrealistic and boring to me.

"The Fall of the House of Usher" is one of my favorite films starring Vincent Price. I was surprised by the lack of detail and plot in the actual story it was based on. I still liked the plot: a man visits his old friend, whose own mental health and that of his sister's has been ruined by the house.

"The Pit and the Pendulum" features a character plagued by imprisonment in a horrific pit.

"The Premature Burial" features smaller vignettes about people who are at the brink of death, but are buried alive.

"The Black Cat" was one of my favorite stories that I found through this collection. I had heard of it before, but had not read it. It features a man spiral through different levels of insanity, haunted by his murdered cat.

"The Cask of the Amontillado" and "The Tell Tale Heart" are stories I know like the back of my hand and love.

"The Oblong Box" features a man who encounters strange occurrences while on a cruise with his wife. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

"Ligeia" hosts a narrator who talks about the odd mysteries surrounding his wife's death.

"Silence: A Fable" has a demon recall his journey through a dark abyss.

"The Man of the Crowd" features a narrator follow and observe a mysterious man in London.

"Some Words with a Mummy" is a more comedic story. A group of scientists meet a man who has been mummified that rises and speaks to them.

All in all, I enjoyed reading this collection. I personally love short stories, especially the works of Edgar Allan Poe. I have to say, I thought the glossary and index in this book was not at all helpful for understanding the stories.

"Station Eleven"

“Station Eleven”
Written by Emily St. John Mandel
Review written by Diana Iozzia



“Station Eleven” is purely magical. Reading this book was a different type of experience than I imagined: one where you find yourself wrapped up like a ribbon into this little world, of many different times, characters, and events. We have characters that begin the story and end in other characters’ lives in many strange occurrences. We see characters live, grow, and die in happy, sad, and expected deaths. This will not be a spoiler-free review, please take caution as you read on.

To begin, we have a large cast of characters, but neither of them seems to me like a main character. Kirsten is mentioned in every blurb and description you can find, but I personally think she is one of the most insignificant characters. Her plot is important, but just as important as every other characters’ story. To start with, there is the death of a major celebrity who has seemed to fall from grace but was still beloved by many characters and most of America. He suffers a collapse after a very difficult and exhausting time, and his heart gives out. The death of Arthur does not ignite the plot of the story, but the end of the world begins the night of his death: an epidemic virus that causes death, sort of like the swine flu epidemic.

We meet many characters as they begin to experience the epidemic, years down the line, and years before the epidemic. The weaving of time is not confusing, but merely magical and nostalgic. We see characters at different points in their lives and pray that they survive the entirety of the story. I will be telling the story of the book through each character, not in order of the plot, because it is not chronologically told.

Jeevan’s plot line mainly explains the beginning of the epidemic; how it starts and his experience as the world falls apart. I think this is one of the most compelling sections. The beautiful storytelling technique of “Station Eleven” creates a theatrical scene, where Jeevan is at the play in which Arthur dies. He has lost his girlfriend in the crowd, so then he moves along in stages, like he’s following a script. He fluidly moves from Point A to B as his story progresses. He finds out about the epidemic, then walks down the street past people who are already worried and anxious. He goes grocery shopping and finds his way back to his brother. Although all the plots are out of place and time, and we find out bits and pieces, I’ll continue explaining his story. Jeevan protects his brother and takes care of him, as the epidemic slowly takes out the access to the outside world: the technology, the water, the electricity, any form of cohesive survival. His brother kills himself, which prompts Jeevan to leave the apartment in search of a mean to survival. He walks through the cities, through states, and eventually finds himself at a peaceful compound. He survives the rest of his days with his wife and his family. We also see some backstory of Jeevan, as he was a paparazzo and reporter, who interviewed Arthur and his multiple wives, years prior to the epidemic.

Kirsten is made to be the main character, the one who is described in all blurbs. She is a member of the Traveling Symphony, a group of musicians and actors that travel whatever is left of the United States to perform music and Shakespearean plays. We begin their tale as they travel into an old town, looking for members of their symphony, who had settled in this town to have their baby and wait to rejoin the symphony, the next time the group returns. As they look for Jeremy, Charlie, and baby Annabel, they find the town is very strange, with odd citizens and marked graves of people who may not be dead, only excised from the community. This town seems very eerie, almost as if it was run by a cult. We soon find out that the Prophet is a cult leader, who will exile those who do not conform to his plan.

Miranda is a very interesting character as well, and by far the second character I enjoyed most. She is the one character I wanted to survive the most, and her story is very impacting of the rest of the characters as well. We are introduced to her when she is seventeen years old, who has a boring, awkward lunch date with the much older Arthur. His character was not sexually creepy, but he gives off the Harvey Weinstein vibe, certainly. Miranda is stuck in a corporate assistant job, but she dreams of writing comics. She’s created “Station Eleven”, a short series of comic books that do not become popular to the masses. She only publishes them and gives them to loved ones, anyway. However, eventually, the comics become very important to Kirsten as a coping mechanism in which she clings to. Also, the Prophet uses the comics as a means of devotion and faith. Back to Miranda, she is Arthur’s first wife. We see them at an awkward dinner party in which she suspects Arthur is cheating on her with a guest at the party, Elizabeth. They eventually divorce. Clark is also another character at the party, who holds significance and was beloved by me. Unfortunately, Miranda lives an unfulfilled life, and succumbs to the virus. This made me quite upset, because she was a great character.

Arthur is a character who is used as a backbone device for the plot. He is not important other than he progresses the plot and creates events that impact future characters. We see a bit of his life through dinner parties, through lunches, and through his last day, in which Miranda gives him the Station Eleven comics. He sends them to his son, Tyler, and he gives them to his little favorite actress in the play he’s performing, who just happens to be Kirsten.

Clark is a close friend of Arthur, so we see his perspective as a younger man at the dinner party, as they stay awkward friends throughout the years. Clark has a great connection to the past and future. One of the main goals of Jeevan, of Kirsten, the Symphony, Charlie and Jeremy, and more is to find the Severn City Airport. However, we begin Clark’s most important story in this airport, as the epidemic begins. Clark lands in the airport, after having flown with Elizabeth and her son with Arthur. Clark begins the section of the epidemic that is the people of the United States beginning to settle down, collect food, create a little community of people within the airport, and to begin surviving. Throughout the years, Clark creates a museum, containing objects from years gone by: like tablets, cell phones, clothing, motorcycles, and more, for the new children of the United States to learn from. This museum was spoken about by Kirsten and her friend August, who long to find the airport and the museum to continue their survival.

The Prophet is important to the story line, but it’s interesting to watch his origin. We soon suspect the Prophet is the older version of Tyler, Elizabeth and Arthur’s son, who holds up with Clark in the airport. He had been given a copy of “Station Eleven” by his father, which we soon realize is the faith, combined with a bible, that the Prophet teaches. We see young Tyler at the airport standing outside and shouting the phrases and verses from the book of Revelations. In Kirsten’s plot, we see the Prophet angry with Kirsten and the symphony, because a young follower of his decides to join the symphony and escape from the cult. Tyler / The Prophet is eventually killed by one of his other followers, who tries to protect Kirsten and friends.

The End: We find our characters, Clark, Kirsten, Charlie, Annabel, Jeremy, and members of the symphony all safe in the airport. At this point, survival is not difficult for those there. They have found ways to hunt and keep safe. In the last bit of the book, we have the largest, most inspiring piece of hope: lights turning on in a nearby town.

My Conclusion: I thoroughly enjoyed this book, but not for the reasons I thought I would. I had incorrectly thought that this book would only be about Kirsten and the Symphony’s survival. I did not imagine the scope and the life that Emily St. John Mandel created for this story. It was truly magical. The ideas, the characters, the hope of electricity at the end. This was a very humbling and sobering book. I really wanted these characters to live. I felt they were real.

"The Couple Next Door"

"The Couple Next Door" 
Written by Shari Lapena
Review written by Diana Iozzia



I have very mixed feelings about this book. I borrowed it from the library, read it last night, and finished it five minutes ago. This book is very complex with many different characters, lies, and plot twists. Are they all fantastic? Well, you see my rating out of five. I enjoyed this for the fast, intriguing pace, but this was predictable. And repetitive. And by the last few pages, the final plot twist just felt normal to me. It's similar to a bag of Halloween candy for me. You eat all of the boring ones first, and by the time you get to your favorite candy, it's really great. Then, you have three more and it doesn't feel special anymore.

Anne and Marco visited their neighbors for a little birthday dinner, leaving their six month-old daughter, Cora, asleep in her crib. They return, she's gone. Wow. I think the best part of this book is the investigation completed by Detective Rasbach. It's very reminiscent of the detectives Boney and Gilpin from "Gone Girl" or the actual crime story of Laci and Scott Peterson. I enjoyed that Detective Rasbach was very thorough and investigated all of the right people, places, and events. It bugs me in books when the detectives aren't that thorough, and they may make mistakes. Rasbach was just the right level of intelligent, where he didn't figure out the entire plot magically.

This book is very well-written, but the story wasn't as impressive as I hoped it to be. We have the scary truth of the kidnapping told to us half-way through, which I appreciated, but it wasn't interesting. The people involved in the kidnapping were very obvious. The eventual main villain in the book wasn't as obvious, but yet again, this wasn't a great reveal. I think I need to stay away from psychological thrillers involving kidnappings of children, because they don't interested me as greatly as other p.t. crimes. I also think this book had a little of a tendency to bite off more than it could chew. Which I don't say lightly. I wasn't impressed by the side characters, I mainly only felt sympathetic towards the women characters, and Anne's dissociative identity disorder seemed all too convenient for the plot and twists. Lastly, I do recommend this, but I just felt a little disappointed. I would definitely read another novel by Shari Lapena in the future. I'll check out "A Stranger in the House" and report back.

"Nightmares and Dreamscapes"

“Nightmares and Dreamscapes”

Written by Stephen King

Review written by Diana Iozzia

            “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” is a collection of short stories written by the beloved author, Stephen King. There are 23 in the collection, and I was pretty pleased with the stories. As with most of Stephen King’s work, there is a very large range of types of stories and who would enjoy the stories most. I have always said that his stories fit a shotgun effect for me, I have to read a few before I find one that I really enjoy. I loved reading the introduction and the “Notes” sections. His introductions aren’t that amusing or funny to me usually, but I enjoyed this one. The “Notes” section always includes little explanations or inspirations for each story.

             I don’t particularly enjoy his short stories about revenge, so I didn’t like “Dolan’s Cadillac” and its theme, but the quality of the story was intriguing. A man whose wife was killed by this horrible man seeks revenge after years gone by.

            In “The End of the Whole Mess”, we learn of two brothers. One brother, Bobby, is a child genius and prodigy, while his brother, the narrator, Howard, was smart, but lesser in comparison. Bobby is a flighty person, spending many of his years on his own, learning interesting things about the world and conducting experiments. One day, he shows up on Howard’s porch, explaining his new discovery. His discovery is a form of medicinal chemical that is supposed to stop a volcano from devastating the south of Earth. When this chemical does not work, many people begin to die. We read Howard’s narration after he’s put his brother down and is slowly dying by suicide. This was really sad, but very interesting. I always enjoy a good science-fiction, alternate future story.

            “Suffer the Little Children” follows Miss Sidley, a boarding school teacher, whose students start to creep up on her and drive her paranoid. The results of her paranoia and insanity are heartbreaking. As with most good science fiction / horror stories, this ends off on a cliffhanger, a strange future to come after the story ends. I enjoyed this, “Crouch End”, “Home Delivery”, and “The End of the Whole Mess” best out of the stories in this collection.

            “The Night Flier” is a sort of noir detective story where a man becomes obsessed with following and finding a mysterious serial killer who drains his victim’s blood during night flights. This was weird and creepy, but I liked it.

            “Popsy” is a creepy, kidnapping story, where you read through the perspective of the pedophile, which was uncomfortable. King always has a fantastic habit of making readers feel very unsettled. Not to spoil the ending, but the characteristics of the person who rescues the little boy, his Popsy, was an interesting twist.

            “It Grows on You” is a depressing epilogue to King’s “Needful Things”, my least favorite book by him so far. Needless (no pun intended) to say, I didn’t want to read or enjoy this story. Spoiler alert, I didn’t enjoy it.

            “Chattery Teeth” was a hitchhiker story gone wrong. I tend to like King’s hitchhiker stories. This was odd, but enjoyable.

            “Dedication” was about a woman whose son dedicated a story to her. We learn of her not-very-interesting backstory of her first husband, and then her second husband. Domestic abuse stories aren’t interesting to me.

            “The Moving Finger” came across as a campfire scary story for adults. A man is haunted by a little finger that pops up in his bathroom. He’s driven insane by this little finger. It’s comical and also slightly disturbing. I also enjoyed the characters as well as the story. A strange, but enjoyable read.

            “Sneakers” is about a man who sees a specific pair of sneakers at work, in the bathroom, and in other places in public. I didn’t understand this story, and I don’t think I’m missing out.

            “You Know They Got a Hell of a Band” is a great. My father is a collector and big music fan, so imagining my father finding himself in a rock-and-roll hell was an amusing time. Probably the worst version of Hell for him, so it was funny to read a story like that. A couple finds themselves trapped in a small town that turns out to have evil versions of Janis Joplin, Buddy Holly, and Roy Orbison. This read like a “Goosebumps” story / “Twilight Zone” story combined. I thoroughly enjoyed this funny but spooky read.

            “Home Delivery” is a really cool zombie story, but it doesn’t feel at all like a “Walking Dead” type story. I really enjoyed this science fiction, zombie horror story for many of its elements. Our narrator, Maddie, is pregnant. We learn of her horrific, abusive marriage. Maddie lives on a little fishing island, and we start to learn how on the mainland across the United States, corpses are coming back to life. We have a mini version of an epic story, where we witness the stopping of the corpses, her husband come back to life, and we resolve with Maddie becoming ready for her child to come, in a home delivery of course. This was great.

            “Rainy Season” follows a couple who find themselves on vacation in a strange town where every seven years, killer toads rain down from the sky. Weird, but pleasant story.

            I didn’t understand the story, “My Pretty Pony”. It first sounded like a predatory grandpa telling his grandson about life. I have no idea what happened in it.

            “Sorry, Right Number” is a creepy and twisty screenplay, where a mother Katie thinks she is receiving phone calls from her daughter, who seemingly is perfectly fine and not in danger.

            “The Ten O’Clock People” was my least favorite short story I’ve ever read by King. A man discovers that people around him are like secret alien / lizard creatures.

            “Crouch End” follows a team of London cops who try to help a woman find her husband who has disappeared. We read the story in two parts, the cops trying to find the husband and her story that she tells to the police. I really liked this, but I don’t want to reveal anymore, because there are great twists and turns.

            “The House on Maple Street” follows the children in a family explore their summer home and also find a way to seek revenge on their disliked stepfather. This was strange, but I enjoyed it. It reminded me a little of the books by Lemony Snicket.

            “The Doctor’s Case” is a story written through the perspective of Dr. John Watson, following a case in which Watson works with Sherlock Holmes. I liked Sherlock Holmes when I was younger, but this was a trip down memory lane. It was written in the same melodic style as Arthur Conan Doyle.

            In “The Fifth Quarter”, Jerry Tarkanian seeks revenge for his friend who died. He shows up to make a deal with Barney’s killers.

            “Umney’s Last Case” follows a private investigator who meets his last client, the author who created him. Then, Umney finds himself in a worse situation than he began.

            I didn’t read “Heads Down”. It chronicles his son’s baseball season and is practically a diary. “Brooklyn August” is a poem that coincides.

            “The Beggar and the Diamond” is a re-written Hindu teaching. It was similar to a cautionary tale.

            

"Long Black Veil"

“Long Black Veil”

Written by Jennifer Finney

Review written by Diana Iozzia

                I was thoroughly disappointed with the book, “Long Black Veil”. I had received this as a complementary advanced reader’s copy, and I was very hopeful based on the description. The book blurb tells that this fictional story is about a group of friends who had broken into the Eastern State Penitentiary. However, one of them didn’t make it out alive. Then, years later, a mysterious woman named Judith finds her way into this murder investigation.

            This sounded like an interesting murder mystery/thriller. I admit: the first chapter of this book is very intriguing. The first paragraph hook is fantastic, really setting up the scene for the beginning of the book. There are many characters introduced very quickly, and it becomes very confusing to keep track of these characters.

            This book becomes more about the woman, Judith, who has a connection to these friends that is later revealed. In addition, you find the answer to the mystery half-way through the book! This doesn’t create a thrilling conclusion, it just ruins the surprise. It’s not even that a great surprise, who killed the victim and why. Just bland.

            I enjoyed the creepy and eerie chapters where the characters are walking around the Penitentiary. The characters had done this in the eighties, and the murder investigation kicks off in the 2013-2015 range. I had visited these penitentiary ruins last summer, so it was great to read a book about the place, but it was hardly about the prison. The main story is the murder investigation, but it hardly feels like that. It’s basically just Judith’s past and present story and how it relates to everyone else. (Spoiler: it’s not that interesting a connection.) I found myself often skimming this, because I just wasn't that interested.

            The positive points are: LGBT friendly, lots of suspense in the prison exploration, some twists and turns, and the characters Maisie and Rachel. 

"The Only Child"

“The Only Child”

Written by Andrew Pyper

Review written by Diana Iozzia

 

            “The Only Child” is very reminiscent of horror classics that I have read thus far in my life. It takes inspiration from “The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, “Frankenstein”, and “Dracula”. Andrew Pyper has created a horror classic, and it’s only a few months old.

            We read about our main character, Lily, a criminal psychologist who isn’t living a very happy adult life. She talks about her lack of sexual interest, her drinking, and she seems to choke it up to her childhood tragedies. She meets her newest client, who tells her that he is the monster who inspired the classic stories I’ve mentioned above. He also tells her that he is her father.

            This is a whirlwind of a tale. Pyper has created a new monster, that is unlike other monsters I’ve read before, but exactly like other monsters. Without any further detail, (I feel I may spoil this), this is one of the best monster horror books I’ve read in a very long time. I am a longtime fan of Stephen King, who often makes his humans the monsters, but Andrew Pyper makes his monsters very human.

            This is a brilliant read, but there are some duller parts. The opening chapters are very reminiscent of the beginning of “The Silence of the Lambs”. I liked drawing the comparison, but it’s very obvious and not that thrilling. The last quarter of the book, including the climax, was very thrilling, and I couldn’t stop reading. However, I can’t lie and say the rest of the book was one where I couldn’t put the book down. I could, but when I picked it back up, I was happy to jump right back in.

            There are many characters, and they can get a bit confusing. One of my favorite quotes is “In writing, you must kill all your darlings.” I remembered this quote often as I read this book.

"The Marsh King's Daughter"

“The Marsh King’s Daughter”

Written by Karen Dionne

Review written by Diana Iozzia

         "The Marsh King's Daughter" was a very suspenseful and intriguing book, an adaptation of the fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson. I was so interested in this book, and was very appreciative to receive a complementary advanced reader's copy.

          Helena is our narrator and tells her story of her growing up living off marshland with her father and mother, but with a twist. Her father had kidnapped her mother when she was young, and eventually had Helena. Helena finds out (years later) that her father has escaped from prison. Her main mission has now become to hunt him down and exact revenge.

          This is a really interesting concept, mainly because I have an interest in true life crime, as well. I enjoyed this adaptation of a fairy tale that I hadn't even heard of, but I have a sneaky suspicion that this fairy tale inspired "Shrek". 

           I have some warnings. In living off the land, Helena and her family hunt many animals with a bit of gruesome detail, so beware those who are sensitive to animal death (I am, yuck). In addition, the abuse and pain of kidnapping and living in a kidnapper's household is pretty vivid as well.

"The Breakdown"

“The Breakdown”

Written by B.A. Paris

Review written by Diana Iozzia

            “The Breakdown” is very reminiscent of other female character-driven psychological horrors, for example: “Gone Girl”, “Girl on the Train”, and “Before I Go to Sleep”. This is one to add to the list of really well-written psychological thrilling fiction.

            Our main character is losing her mind to early onset dementia, as she believes she inherited from her late mother. Cass is a teacher who witnesses a woman whose car broke down on the side of the road, as Cass is driving home from a work party. Cass doesn’t call the police, and leaves shortly after waiting to see if the woman needs help. She finds out that the woman was one of her co-workers, someone she had newly become friends with. Haunted by her guilt, Cass starts to forget simple details, about a friend’s birthday present, an alarm system bought when she can’t remember signing the receipt.

            This book turns into a whirlwind in the last half, after Cass finds something out that she shouldn’t have. This is written very well from the unreliable narrative of Cass, who is slowly losing her abilities to create new memories.

            THERE IS A HUGE PLOT TWIST. If you love plot twists that sucker punch you in the gut, open this book and dive in. In addition, the last chapter is really unexpected in the resolution, and I really welcomed that.

            There are some things I didn’t like with the book:

1. Cass is an unlikable character.

2. Her husband is slightly overbearing and annoying.

3. The plot twist is great, I thought it was really predictable. I enjoyed how it unfolded and the aftermath, but I wasn't surprised.

** I received this as a complementary, advanced reading copy from the publisher. **

"Gone Girl"

“Gone Girl” 

Written by Gillian Flynn

Review written by Diana Iozzia

            "Gone Girl" is a caper like no other. The book starts out as a mushy gushy love story told by Amazing Amy Dunne, in dual perspective contrasting with ego-maniac and possible alcoholic Nick Dunne, who has discovered that Amy has gone missing. Frankly, the first half of her narrative is boring, endless, and I struggled through it, but you read on to realize it's purposely written like that.

            It's likely you may already know the twist behind Amy's disappearance, but if you don't, read this book. If you do, read this book immediately. It's not often I encounter a book that completely warps my mind and makes me doubt everything. This unreliable narrative could make Edgar Allan Poe green with envy.

            I am a very picky person, and find it very difficult to rate my favorite things in top ten forms, but this easily could be one of my top three book choices. I really, really love this.

"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"

“The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”

Written by Robert Louis Stevenson

Review written by Diana Iozzia

          What a fantastic and morbid novel. Naturally, I had known about this story all of my life until I was very fortunate to read it in English class, I’ve read it thrice since.

          This is a bone-chilling and grotesque novel, for the time period, but it still holds its terror-inducing chills and thrills to this day. The dark, spooky London streets are haunted by a mysterious monster man, known as Mr. Edward Hyde. Why has our narrator, Mr. Utterson, noticed this Mr. Hyde lurking around the home and laboratory of his dear friend, Dr. Henry Jekyll?

          I love this novel for more than the deep and intriguing descriptions and interesting plot. You see the descent of madness that Dr. Jekyll endures in his letters and diaries. You also see the destruction of the man he once was, juxtaposed with the monster, Mr. Hyde.

          I love science fiction, and I believe that this is the second-best science fiction known to man, losing to Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”.

          Unfortunately, I will never be able to not know the secret behind Mr. Hyde. It’s on par with many literary and film twists, that once you know the secret, you would never read the story the same way. It would have been lovely to read this novel before knowing the truth about Mr. Hyde and Dr. Jekyll, but even so, this is a fantastic read. I almost forgot the secret, if that helps.

          I often find myself emerged in a book or story, then completely lose faith or lose interest. This happened in the first chapter, but that’s it? It felt like a slow start to me, but then I was more enraptured than I thought I could be. 

"The Picture of Dorian Gray"

“The Picture of Dorian Gray”

Written by Oscar Wilde

Review written by Diana Iozzia

            My, oh, me. This is probably one of the most hyped classic stories, along with the stories written by the Brontes, Shakespeare, Poe, and Jane Austen. However, I really do not think that the hype is well deserved for this book. I realize I’m a bit late to the game, but I am twenty-one, so I could have waited a longer time. If I’m correct, I read this in January 2016 as a Christmas gift.

            For the time period, it was an iconic, scandalous, crude, and creepy tale. It just doesn’t hold up as well in today’s society. Dorian Gray is an interesting villain, in theory. He’s a young, charming, charismatic, and licentious man, but he has a taste for the darker side. Slowly, the book unfolds how distorted he is. (But to be honest, he’s not really all that bad). For the time period and years after that, he was creepy. I just didn’t get an uncomfortable, creepy vibe from him. It’s interesting how he pursues his female love interest, but when he gets his way, he pouts like a little boy. In addition, there's a strange narration. 

            I was just disappointed in this book, in comparison to all of the other spooky classics out there.

"The Tommyknockers"

“The Tommyknockers” by Stephen King

Review Written by Diana Iozzia

            I can tell you right now that Stephen King is my favorite author. He writes horror fiction, which is one of my favorite genres, and he’s damn good at it. Everyone either despises him or worships him. “The Tommyknockers” was one of the only books I’ve read by him that I despised. You read about a very uninteresting and depressed protagonist named Bobbi Anderson. Bobbi is walking in her backyard with her old dog, when she finds a hunk of metal protruding from the ground.

            There are many ways to spoil this book, but I’d rather not completely ruin it for you. It’s very reminiscent of an episode from The Twilight Zone, or at least the beginning is. In many of King’s books, he writes of his inspirations and his connections, but sometimes, they feel so much more coincidental and slightly like he rips off some of his stories.

            I love Mr. King, but this was a very skippable book. It’s absolutely gigantic, and I just could not finish this with my sanity full intact. I was tired and bored of it by the first three chapters. Perhaps, I’ll re-read it in ten years and see if my thoughts have changed. Unfortunately, for now, I wouldn’t recommend this book. If I had a heart, it'd be broken by this book.