Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, by V.E. Schwab

 Sexy, broken, emotional, and emotionless.
If you thought the world did not need another vampire story, you were absolutely wrong.
V.E. Schwab has created characters so complex, yet so relatable, they make you believe they are real.
Three women connected over many centuries, their stories at once tragic and courageous, innocent and evil.
I could not stop reading this book until it was done, and I craved more. I spent the better part of an afternoon at work to finish it. V.E. Schwab is one of my favorite authors, and this is absolutely one of her best.

Expected publication June 10, 2025
Thanks to the publisher, Tor, and Netgalley for the ARC version of this book.

 

Old Soul, by Susan Barker

 

 

 There is nothing scarier than a subtle horror that quietly works on your mind and makes you look over your shoulder while walking down the street. This book has it in spades.
When Jake and Mariko meet by chance in the Osaka airport, an uncanny connection is discovered. Jake's best friend and Mariko's twin both died in suspicious circumstances, 6000 miles apart, but both had come into contact with a strikingly similar woman in the weeks before their deaths. This sets Jake on a quest to find the woman, and he gathers the stories of other victims. Who is the woman, where did she come from, and how is she connected to the bizarre string of deaths?
These victims each show us a human vulnerability, one the chameleon of a woman exploits for her own twisted purposes.
Can Jake find her and stop her?
The beautiful writing style, so soft and elegant, portraying the horror the woman trails along behind her, was such a perfect contrast. The pace isn't fast, but it never feels bogged down by that. The timing is perfect for the story-line.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Publishing Group for this ARC.