Crossroads, Inc by Andrew Adams

When Crossroads, Inc—a life insurance company offering cash advances on policies—arrives in town, it brings something Glanton hasn’t seen in generations: hope.

Young Hannah Cassady and her seven siblings visit Crossroads to collect on their life insurance advancements for the family’s mounting bills, discovering the company intends to collect big returns on its investments—with severed body parts for the money.

How much is too much for free money? What’s the true cost of a better quality of life?

 

"Just when you think you can’t take no more darkness and will do anything to escape it then that’s when the sun peaks over that blessed horizon like some great symbol of hope."

Living in desolate times, young Hannah and her family are struggling to make ends meet. They live in a dilapidated house, live on meager meals, they work long hours in factories only to just scrape by and drink what they call "the brew" to try to feel better at the end of the day, The smog is so thick, it's hard to breathe. 

When Crossroads, Inc appears in their town of Glanton, they think that maybe this is their opportunity to get them out of their dire situation. The company is offering free life insurance and money to improve the people of the town's quality of life. Letting their curiosity get the best of them, members of Hannah's family decide to visit Crossroads, Inc and what they discover there is frightening.  They quickly learn that there is a much too high of a price to pay.

The people of the town are succumbing to the desire to get free money, which is essentially destroying their lives. The town is falling deeper and deeper into darkness and despair.

Hannah is the one telling her story and I just love her character. She's strong, smart, and wise beyond her years at just thirteen. She cares for her family a great deal and she is always trying to look out for them. Through all her difficulties, and even though she is scared, she stands her ground and sticks to her morals. She's a fighter and a survivor.

I was really impressed with the author's writing style and really enjoyed reading this book. It's dark, disturbing, and at times quite grotesque. But there are also moments that had me holding onto a hope for a brighter future for Hannah and the ending was quite thought provoking. 

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Song Pairing: Dark Dystopian Music-Mentality

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Crone: A Witch's Tale by Jae Mazer

"By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes."  -- William Shakespeare

 Drowning in a sea of despair and fear, young Abbey struggles through her childhood alone and afraid. She lives on an isolated acreage with a cold and abusive family, spending her time afraid and miserable in her solitude.

 But is she truly alone?

 Abbey’s brother has convinced her that there is a witch living in their basement. Everyone knows it’s just a wicked story told for the sake of torment, but Abbey can’t help wondering if there really is something horrible and terrifying lurking beneath the stairs, watching, waiting…

 CRONE is a tale of a witch that hides in the dark corners of the mind and deep in the shadows of life. It is a tumultuous journey filled with pain and joy, blood and smiles, suffering and relief, monsters and magic. Come along with Abbey as she escapes her childhood and is thrust into adulthood, followed by the ghosts of her past, and a fairytale that couldn’t possibly be real.

 Could it?

"The words didn't hurt. They never did anymore. The same scar slashed over and over again hurts less every time."

Young Abbey's life is heartbreaking. Her family treats her as if she is less than human and she suffers much abuse by the ones she should be able to trust and should love her unconditionally. She finds an unexpected love from a realm of darkness and light. What she fears the most becomes her hope and her solitude.

Long into adulthood, she continues to encounter many difficulties. When she goes in search of a place of peace, what she finds is not what she expected, and her life once again begins to unravel.

There is so much dreamlike unreality, really makes one question what the reality is, but the wonderful prose brings the magic to life. There were lots of dark elements but also a tale of finding love and protection where least expected. It was not at all what I was expecting which made it all much more captivating. What started out in darkness, ends in a beautiful story of love and redemption.

An atmospheric tale of dread, darkness and light, and in the end, love wins!

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Song Pairing:  Dark Creepy Gothic Piano by Divination

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What Happened at the Abbey (The Strathbairn Trilogy Book 1) by Isobel Blackthorn

When Ingrid flees a violent husband to become a housekeeper in the Scottish Highlands, she discovers the family she works for has a much darker history than her own.

Who haunts Strathbairn? Why are the adult McCleod children at each other’s throats? And why does the youngest sneak off at night? As Ingrid searches for answers, she grows ever more fearful that her husband will track her down.

Set in late 19th century Scottish Highlands, WHAT HAPPENED AT THE ABBEY is a gothic mystery brimming with intrigue, ghostly drama, and family secrets.

"Oh, to be a bat. To fly off when most of the rest of the world sleeps, and feast on other, lesser, creatures of the night. The freedom. The quiet. Away from the clamors of the day. Away from judgements and condemnations, and so many inquisitive eyes."

When Ingrid flees with her daughter from an abusive life, her hope is to start a new life. Going back to her homeland of Scotland, taking a position as housekeeper for a prominent family, she must protect herself and her daughter. Little does she know that she has stepped into a family that holds many dark and disturbing secrets. As the secrets are slowly revealed, each one becomes more disturbing, and Ingrid realizes how dysfunctional this family truly is. 

Putting her trust in another has proven to be a mistake, but in doing so has also provided her with an unexpected freedom. 

This story has so much mystery and intrigue that it is quite surprising as each one comes to light. Ingrid and her daughter Sarah are the light of the story that shines in the darkness that is deeply seated within the walls of Strathbairn. The McCleod family are so filled with dark hearts and disturbed souls, such unlikable characters, and yet one could not help but feel some pity for their plight. A past that forever haunts them. So much dissention and mistrust abound between them that leads them on a continuous dark path of doom. The past forever has a gripping hold, shattering their lives throughout their many years. 

The atmosphere is foreboding as the setting is in an isolated area in the highlands of Scotland. An old farm not far from an abandoned Abbey. A mire that holds a dark secret. Gloomy days and dark misty moonlit nights with seemingly voices on the wind. Haunting in the gloaming of the night.

A very captivating gothic story sure to entertain fans of the genre.

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Song Pairing: My Dark Litle Rose by Roisin Dubh

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The Ghosts of Thorwald Place by Helen Power

Rachel Drake is on the run from the man who killed her husband. She never leaves her safe haven in an anonymous doorman building, until one night a phone call sends her running. On her way to the garage, she is murdered in the elevator. But her story doesn’t end there.

She finds herself in the afterlife, tethered to her death spot, her reach tied to the adjacent apartments. As she rides the elevator up and down, the lives of the residents intertwine. Every one of them has a dark secret. An aging trophy wife whose husband strays. A surgeon guarding a locked room. A TV medium who may be a fraud. An ordinary man with a mysterious hobby.

Compelled to spend eternity observing her neighbors, she realizes that any one of them could be her killer.

"The man who walks in shadow is not of this world. He was never human. He was created by humans." "He is a manifestation of all the dark urges, the wicked desires and cruel impulses of those who inhibit this building. He thrives on the pain, the fear, the hate, the evil that lives in every one of us."

Rachel has fled from a life she feels is threatened by the person that murdered her husband. She now lives a reclusive life in Thorwald Place. She never leaves her apartment or interacts with the other tenants. It is a place with high security and protection, at least, that is what she thinks until the day comes where she feels threatened again and decides to flee. As she is trying to flee, death finds her at the most unexpected moment, she finds herself stuck in the afterlife and tethered to her place of death. As she is pulled from place to place, she learns about her neighbors, all the things about their lives that she didn't know when she was alive. Many dark secrets are revealed, and her frustration rises as she is trying to understand why she is trapped and not allowed to move on. She learns that the person who murdered her husband is not who she thought it was and she also learns who the person is that murdered her. While all of this is happening to her ghostly self, she meets the other ghosts tethered to the building, one that is very threatening, "the man who walks in shadow."

The whole concept of this was so entertaining and intriguing. We are told the whole story through the voice of Rachel in her ghostly form. She learns so much more in death than she ever did in life. She comes to care so much for the neighbors and feels compelled to help them in any way she can, which in reality she can only watch as she is powerless to be able to do anything. It was so exciting to learn of all the hidden secrets of the neighbors who personified a perfect life, but in truth there was so much sadness and darkness. It was also a big surprise to find out who the real murderers were. This was all just so compelling and had just enough mystery to keep me intrigued. Then there was the macabre ghosts that added the ominous, shivery elements.

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Song Pairing: When the Silence Screams by Lewis Capaldi

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Ghost From A Yard Sale by Jerry Roth

 Welcome to Moxie Manor...

When bestselling horror author Caspar Finch moves into a mysterious 1908 church for inspiration, his wife Harper hopes the move can mend her wounds.

Still mourning the loss of their child, Harper finds comfort in secondhand treasures until a baby monitor from a yard sale reveals the ghostly image of a little girl trapped between worlds.

With every new yard sale item, the spirit grows more possessive. Flickers of light turn into full-blown terror as Harper uncovers a legacy soaked in sorrow and secrets.

To free the girl, she must face the darkness at the heart of Moxie Manor. But the truth has claws and it won’t let go.
Some bargains cost more than your soul.

"As a Christian, how could he justify conjuring demons and killers, only to send them out into the world through his writing, like unleashing a virus into his readers’ minds."

What is it about an empty church that feels so lonely and yet not alone? A place where peace and sanctity usually abide becomes something else within that feels unsettling and uneasy. This dread filled story will take you there and have you hanging in the balance between those places.

Knowing the author and his family lived in what once was a church to me is chilling in and of itself. (I could never!) And sharing snippets of experienced occurrences is even more chilling.

But there is more to this story than meets the eye. A husband, also an author with mysterious secrets, hoping that they will never be revealed. A wife haunted by a spirit leading her to solve the mystery of her death, causing even more death and fear. Sorrow and grief.

Creatures of the nearby forest always watching and waiting.

An unusual doppelganger.

Hidden messages. Keep your eyes open.

An unexpected ending that ties it all together. The suspense will keep you reading until the very end, if the ghosts, shadows, and creepy hallways don't scare you away.

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Song Pairing: Wrong Side of Heaven by Five Finger Death Punch

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Industrial Divinity by Regina Watts

Don't miss the exquisite illustrations by cover artist Nuno Moreira that enrich this paperback edition of the transgressive novel from DOTTIE FOR YOU author Regina Watts!

Once upon a time lived a woman who was immortal but not invulnerable. This is the story of everything that happened after she discovered that fact. This is the story of a virus. It is the story of a country that is afraid of change. This is the story of a woman who becomes a sadomasochistic performance artist called "The Degenetrix" during a time when the human race is more isolated than ever before.

This is the story of the Degenetrix and the career she built by mutilating herself on the Internet for the pleasure of strangers, of stalkers, and of a mysterious benefactor who showers her with wealth but refuses to reveal his identity. This is the story of love during pandemic, of alienation in an alienated world. This is the story of pain and of lust and of the immortality of the human mind.

But don't worry. This is a happy story, and you are permitted to feel happy while you read it. Empathy is the greatest of all human virtues and the human race has been put on this planet called "Earth" so as to learn it.

Such is the will of the spider-mother.

"She had once read, however, that the human brain responded to fantasies about a thing as if it were truly experiencing that thing—that books, for instance, impacted the human mind as if the reader lived the protagonist’s life."

Transgressive fiction delves us deep into the tropes of one woman's immortality. Set during a pandemic related to the times, her reclusive lifestyle and her discovery of her human condition sets her on a path of creating human body art and sharing it with the world. Her ability to self-harm herself unto the brink of death and yet defy it in all its forms has the world fascinated. Her fan base grows as they watch her through her video postings, her popularity grows exponentially and she grows more and more dangerous in her acts. The more dangerous she becomes, the more popular her Only Fans website grows and she is given monetary donations. As the world watches her, she watches the world. Humanity is not always pleasant, greed, unwanted sexual advances, comments that reach to destroy her and yet she comes to know an everlasting love.

My thoughts: There is so much to this story that creates a deep thinking. A woman's painful life, searching for a way to connect with her inner self and find some hope in a world filled with ugliness. She is tired of the world and its expectations put upon woman and humanity itself. Through her journey she is able to find a connection to life and death and traverse through a spirituality that brings her a peacefulness that she has been searching for. Now let's talk about her finding her one true love, the one who desires her, accepts her, and loves her deeply and unequivocally. Is there anything more beautiful? I think not!!

There is much brutality as this is a splatterpunk love story at its deepest core, to love oneself and find true love in all its glory. The beauty of it far outweighs the gore. There is so much passion within, it feels as if you have become a part of it. The feelings, the beauty, the passion, the love, and a unique experience of LIFE!

Enthralling and riveting writing that makes one really think and inclusion of learning new is an experience that cannot be easily forgotten! 

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Song Pairing: Stay by Rihanna ft. Mikky Ekko

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Sisters of the Crimson Vine by P.L. McMillan

John Ainsworth nearly died in that car crash.

Soon he’ll learn there are worse fates.

After a brutal accident, John awakens in the dilapidated Crimoria Convent under the care of thirteen unconventional nuns. Grievous injuries trap him within the borders of the ruined sanctuary and its strangely successful vineyard. When his body starts healing faster than nature allows, John’s questions quickly pile up.

A pair of Church auditors arrive to look into the convent’s finances. It’s obvious the pair are unwelcome guests, but John has bigger concerns. The order’s annual ritual draws near and John begins to discover things that make him wonder if any of them are truly safe in the hands of the Sisters of the Crimson Vine.

“Old wounds heal and the scars remain to remind us,” she said. “It’s important to remember and appreciate each and every day.”

John Ainsworth is an auditor traveling to a convent. On the way there, he has a car accident and becomes debilitated. The sisters are welcoming and take care of him, but there are many occurrences that have him confused and questioning. There are seemingly many secrets and an underlying strangeness that surrounds the sisters and the convent. As the secrets are revealed, Mr. Ainsworth must make a difficult decision that will affect a life and all the lives of the sisters. 

In the vein of cosmic horror and folklore, this is an atmospheric novella where the unknown is dark and menacing. The sisters are the heart of the story as they are shown to be strong in their convictions and powerful in their commitments to each other, the convent, and the preservation of the land. They hold strong in their yearly sacrifice that is paramount to their survival. They follow the ways of the old and timeless. They are the "Sisters of the Crimson Vine."

Grim and foreboding. Isolating and unnerving. The dread is quietly built which leads to some shocking and horrifying details. It's ominous, uncanny, and has an evocative quality within the storytelling. 

“Year after year, the grapes are nourished in the soil that our sisters died on. Their blood fed the earth and, in turn, the earth feeds us,” Agatha said.

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Song Pairing: A Beautiful delusion by Peter Gundry

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