Author: Ryan

WWW Wednesday – November 19, 2025

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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I’m between books at the moment. Also, I’ve finished my reading challenge for this year! Everything until the end of the year is a bonus addition.

Recently Finished

Yesterday I finished reading Once Upon a Time in Hollywood by Quentin Tarantino, a novel adapting the director/author’s film of the same name. I’m really feeling an itch to review this book, as it made for a fascinating reading experience, especially after rewatching the film as a primer. Overall, I wouldn’t actually rate the book all that high, though it certainly isn’t a bad novel, but it’s a really interesting companion to the film, especially in how it fleshes out and recontextualizes certain characters. My early observation proved correct: this is not a novelization of the film, it is a novel adaptation, and weirdly, it only kind of tells the same story. I’ll probably write the review for next week, as I feel like I need to chew on this a little longer.

Reading Next

I’ve decided that the next book I’m going to read is Year of the Griffin by Dianna Wynne Jones, the sequel to The Dark Lord of Derkholm. It’s looking like this novel will be the last in my endeavours this year to finish up book pairs/trilogies I started years ago. I still have a few outstanding cases, but with this one done I’ll be happy to have wrapped up so much unfinished business this year. Despite clearly having some recurring characters from the first book, it’s looking like this novel will be fairly standalone. The cast was quite big in the first one, so I’m hoping this means it won’t be a big deal that I read it over three years ago, though it’s not as if I remember nothing about it. Time will tell.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – November 12, 2025

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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I haven’t made great progress on it so far, but on Monday I started reading Once Upon a Time in Hollywood by Quentin Tarantino, a novel adaptation of the author/director’s movie of the same name. I’m really happy that I re-watched the film over the weekend before starting because even though I’ve only read the first chapter, it is immediately apparent that this is not simply a novelization; it is actively telling the story differently. The basics of the opening scene are essentially the same, but some of the characters present, where it is taking place, and the extent of the conversation are markedly different. In some cases, anecdotes that don’t show up until later in the film occur here, for example. The story still appears to be following the same trajectory of the film, but I’m really intrigued to see how it handles it differently and why Tarantino was compelled to author this version.

Recently Finished

Last week I finished reading The Destroyer of Worlds by Matt Ruff. I have some mixed feelings about this book, though this isn’t from lack of quality on the author’s part. I really enjoyed becoming reacquainted with these characters after not having read Lovecraft Country since 2017, but I recall that first novel having more punch to it. It was more a collection of stories with a narrative through line, and each ended in their own satisfying ways while ultimately weaving together by the end. In this novel, the stories were more loosely connected episodes, and a few of them I don’t feel ended in a satisfying way, particularly the one with Atticus and his father. They just unceremoniously return while another story is in progress, with something from their story eventually serving as a plot device. I was still rather invested in the story leading up to the climax, but the book just didn’t feel as much like a cohesive whole.

Reading Next

I’m actually not sure what I want to be reading next. With so little time left in the year now, I will have to give that some careful consideration.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

Halloween 2025 Recap

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Every year, I try to hand-pick a selection of books to read in celebration of the Halloween season. Previously, I have participated in Frighteningly Good Reads, hosted over at the blog Silver Button Books. Unfortunately, she did not run that this year. So, with no outlet to participate in to talk about what I read, I just wanted to do a brief rundown on the books I got through on my Halloween reading list for this year, especially since I’ve been less motivated to write full reviews as of late.

I hope everybody else had a spooktacular Halloween! 🎃Read More »

New Books & Novel Discoveries (October 2025)

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In contrast to last month, I managed to show a modicum of restraint in October and didn’t pick up very many books, though it honestly wasn’t from lack of trying. Thrift stores can be a dice roll; sometimes you make great finds, and other times their selection is disappointing. Strangely, I’ve been seeing a deluge of the novels Three Day Road and Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden. Not sure what’s up with that, but I digress. I visited thrift stores several times in October but found nothing worth picking up, with one small exception. So it goes. I also went to a library book sale and walked away empty handed. I really tried to buy books even though I’m running out of space. What am I doing?

Let’s see what I did pick up.Read More »

WWW Wednesday – October 29, 2025

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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

This week I started reading The Destroyer of Worlds by Matt Ruff, the sequel novel to Lovecraft Country. It’s been a number of years since I read the first book, but I’m easing back into the characters and the setting nicely. I’m worried there’s a lot I don’t remember about the first book, but this one is doing a good job of fairly seamlessly refreshing me on who is who and what happened previously. Already my memory has been jogged about a few things despite being less than 50 pages in. Reading has been slower this week, so I’m not certain I will finish it before the end of the month, but it was a last-minute addition to my Halloween reading list since I finished all the others so quickly,  so I won’t be bothered too much if it bleeds into November.

Recently Finished

Since last week I finished reading Come Closer by Sara Gran, and I’ve been vexed over how ambivalent I’m feeling about this book. Right off the bat, I do feel I was duped by the online sources that recommended it over-hyping it, as I really didn’t find anything about it to be overly shocking or scary, and the writing was fairly straightforward in its delivery, so there was nothing particularly artful in that respect that elevated the narrative. On the other hand, there was still a visceral feeling of dread to the overall reading experience as the main character is rendered increasingly impotent while the demon takes over and destroys her life, with her willingness or complacency ultimately being her undoing. I feel I have to chew this one over a bit more, so I’ll perhaps flesh out my thoughts better for a Halloween breakdown post next week.

Reading Next

There’s a book I’ve been interested in checking out recently, and the theme for the next “book mixer” at the library next month is adaptations, so I’ve decided to borrow Once Upon a Time in Hollywood by Quentin Tarantino, a novel telling the story of the author/director’s film of the same name. It apparently isn’t a novelization, however, as it expands upon the story in a lot of areas rather than simply novelizing the film. I’m really curious to check it out; I think I will rewatch the film first though.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – October 22, 2025

Ryan1 Comment
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Since last week I’ve started reading the last book on my Halloween reading list for this year: Come Closer by Sara Gran. So far I’m only about 30 pages in, but it’s a novella so that’s about a fifth of the way. I’m liking it well enough so far, but I feel like I’m still getting into it. I know it’s a possession story, and in these first chapters it has done an interesting job of feeding into the ambiguity of the main character’s situation. On the one hand, it seems quite clear that something otherworldly is intruding upon her life, but there are seeds that maybe she isn’t as emotionally well balanced and stable of a person as she wants us to believe. Personally, I always prefer if the monster or supernatural forces in a story are real, perhaps serving as an analogy for something while also being literal, but I can enjoy some well-served ambiguity. Let’s see where this goes.

Recently Finished

After writing my post last week I finished up reading The Thief of Always by Clive Barker. I haven’t got a lot more to say about it, except that I’m surprised such a great all-ages horror story doesn’t have more of a cultural presence. More people should read it, and it deserves a stop-motion animated adaptation. I also started and finished Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu since last week. I’m happy I made such short work of it, as I often worry I will struggle with the writing style of older books, though I will say that Le Fanu could calm down a little with the use of commas, for Pete’s sake. Also, I find it hilarious that the trope of a vampire existing incognito under a false identity by just rearranging the letters in their name dates back to at least this book. Of all the cemented lore and tropes of vampire fiction I expected to come from this book, I’m really surprised that this was one of them.

Reading Next

Since I’m making great progress with my reading list for the month, I’m going to try and squeeze in another for the last week. That book will be The Destroyer of Worlds by Matt Ruff, the sequel to Lovecraft Country, which will also satisfy my inclination this year to finish duologies and trilogies that I’ve left hanging. It’ll definitely be the longest of my selection of books, so I may not finish it until early November, but I can accept that considering how good reading progress has been already. I have no idea what it’s actually about, but I really like the first book so that’s enough for me.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – October 15, 2025

Ryan1 Comment
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Since last week I started reading The Thief of Always by Clive Barker as part of my to-read list for Halloween this year. I’d never read any Clive Barker before, despite him being a big name in the horror genre, and it was high time I changed that. I’d always imagined his work as more hardcore, so I was surprised to find this novel is actually more of an all-ages read akin to something like Coraline. The story is about a boy named Harvey who is led away to the Holiday House, a magical manor behind a dense wall of fog where all your needs are met and any desire you may have is but a whim away. But something sinister lurks behind this veneer of perfection, and if Harvey isn’t careful he may never see home again. Despite being suitable for younger readers, it’s really dark and has had some genuinely harrowing moments. Illustrations done by Barker himself are included throughout. I’m really enjoying it and expect I’ll finish it today or tomorrow.

Recently Finished

Nothing this week!

Reading Next

The next book I’m going to read for the Halloween season this year is Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu. I’ve been wanting to read more classic literature this year, though I’ve only made good in a couple instances, so I decided one of my reads for this month ought to be one. I’ve only heard about this book in passing and don’t believe I’ve ever read anything else by the author, but I’m hopeful it will make for an enriching reading experience. Once I’ve read this book, I believe I will have read all the classic, seminal vampire books (at least that I’m aware of). I’m a little worried that this being an older book will slow down my reading pace, but the page count should hopefully make up for that.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

WWW Wednesday – October 8, 2025

Ryan4 Comments
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

I’m between books at the moment!

Recently Finished

Last week I finished up reading Strange Pictures by Uketsu, which I’m happy to report I continued to find a lot better than the author’s previous book that I read a month or so ago, so I will likely pick up more of Uketsu’s work in the future after all. I was hoping going into this book that it would be more of a horror story, as advertised, with altogether creepier elements at play, but this is really more of a mystery novel, especially in how each chapter at first seems isolated, but close connections are slowly revealed. The overall mystery at the heart of the book plays out really well, however, and the motif of strange pictures with hidden meanings was used pretty creatively throughout and never felt contrived or forced. Something I find strange about the discourse I’ve seen around these books is the insistence that you will be compelled to pore over the images and uncover their meaning for yourself, but based on my experience that wouldn’t be a fruitful use of your time.

I also spent the last couple of days reading through Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum, a rather short horror novella and another one of my Halloween reads for this year. I was originally going to borrow this digitally from the library, but I picked up a copy at a horror bookstore in Toronto the other weekend, where the shopkeeper spoke very highly of it. I was going to read it anyway, but this really encouraged picking it up. The book didn’t blow me away, but it was a very effective tale of medical body horror with unexpected eldritch elements. This went in directions I really wasn’t expecting and was exceptionally well told, but I’m a little disappointed that it didn’t successfully creep me out or scare me in any noteworthy ways. I suppose it’s rare that a book actually does, I guess this one just became a little too over-hyped in the lead up to me reading it.

Reading Next

Continuing with my Halloween reading plans, the next book I’m going to start reading is The Thief of Always by Clive Barker. Barker is one of those authors I’ve heard of all my life but never actually read, and as a fan of horror I’d been thinking it’s high time I actually read one. I picked this up earlier this year and am doing a good job for once and making myself read it soon after. This is a longer novel among the books I picked to read for this October so I want to make sure I get through it quicker, but with the progress I’ve made already thanks to reading Helpmeet so quickly, I’m starting to think I may be able to squeeze in another, larger novel before the month is out. Time will tell.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.

New Books & Novel Discoveries (September 2025)

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I thought September was going to be another low-key month for a while there, but I wound up having a surprise opportunity to hit up some bookstores I don’t normally get to, and that led me to get a little carried away with picking up some new ones. It made for a great outing, however, and I picked up some books I’ve been trying to hunt down for a while.

Let’s see what I picked up.Read More »

WWW Wednesday – October 1, 2025

RyanLeave a comment
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WWW Wednesday is a weekly book meme run by Sam over at Taking on a World of Words. Check out her post and others over on her blog!

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently Reading

Since last week I’ve been reading Strange Pictures by Uketsu, a standalone novel written in a similar vein to the author’s previous novel Strange Houses. So far, I’m a couple of chapters in at just over 100 pages, and I’m liking it considerably more than the last book. Strange Houses had a problem of detachment, with the bulk of the narrative taking place as a conversation between characters, either speculating over floor plans or divulging secrets to each other. This time around, chapters are more couched in direct experiences, occasionally reviewing media, and it’s working out a lot better so far. I thought the chapters were their own self-contained stories with the motif of digging into the meaning behind seemingly mundane images, but the second chapter revealed they are in fact connected. I hope it pays off well by the end.

Recently Finished

Last week I finished reading The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett, the 28th Discworld novel. Though I wrote last week that I felt the book had oddly already reached its end despite nearly 50 pages reamining, I’m happy to report that it stills ends strong and did not feel disjointed with the rest of the book. In fact, throughout my reading I had felt that the community of Bad Blinitz was unusually absent for much of it, so it did a great job of taking that loose end and tying things back together. I’m curious if these characters will make any more appearances throughout the remainder of the series; I was already surprised to learn that they were first referenced all the way back in Reaper Man in 1991.

Reading Next

As today kicks off the Halloween season, I shall soon be starting my Halloween reads for this year (Strange Pictures still serving as the primer, which I’ll hopefully be finishing this week). First off, I will be reading Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum, a novella I’ve been meaning to read for a while. Originally, my plan was to borrow a digital copy of this book from my library, but I ended up making an unplanned visit to Little Ghosts Books, a horror bookshop in Toronto, where I was able to buy myself a copy. I’m eager to find out what all the fuss is about with this book; according to the worker at the bookstore, it’s body horror, which I wasn’t expecting.

Until next time, thank you for reading! Feel free to share your own post down below.