Rosh's Reviews

  EDITOR: L. Stephenson GENRE: Christmas Horror Anthology PUBLICATION DATE:  December 12, 2024 RATING:  In a Nutshell: A short-fiction anthology filled with Christmassy horror. Some really good stories here, though I wish there had been more variety in the “source of the evil.” A good option for those who are fed up of saccharine seasonal stories. This is the time of the year when readers are torn between spooky season and Christmas season. Here's a book that combines both. 😉 This indie anthology contains twenty-six stories by twenty-six writers. There’s no editor’s note, but the title and the tagline make the theme clear – it is a “Christmas horror” anthology. The stories are mostly fast-paced, which works well in this genre. After the first few stories, I wondered why a majority of them were using the Christmas tree as the horror device-of-choice. It occurred frequently enough for me to start eyeing every Christmas tree in the stories suspiciously. Only after rere...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Katelyn Rae GENRE: Children's Picture Book, Retelling PUBLICATION DATE: November 9, 2022 RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book focussing on the emotions felt by Elizabeth and the other characters of Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice.’ Not sure how much kids will understand of the story, but the P&P fan in me is mighty amused! Plot Preview: The same story as ‘Pride and Prejudice’, but in a 40-pages-long picture book - Whoa! Pride and Prejudice is one of my all-time favourite books, so much so that I have never ever ( willingly ) read a P&P retelling because I don’t want to sully my memories of the original characters. But when I saw this cute picture book with Elizabeth’s name in the title, I HAD to give it a go! Honestly, I still can’t believe that P&P can be shrunk to this size. Imagine a 450-page novel has been condensed to a 40-page picture book without losing much of the plot! 🤭 The author does a fabulous job, given the immense ...

AUTHOR: Bree Paulsen GENRE: Graphic Novel PUBLICATION DATE: N.A. RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A loveable webcomic about a (now) friendly vampire and his attempts at fitting in the human world. Gruesome and/or sad at times, but mostly heartwarming. Free for all to read on the author’s site, but it is incomplete and there’s not much hope of its getting an ending anytime soon. Plot Preview: The fact that Patrik is a vampire often comes in the way of his making friends. But he hasn't stopped trying. While he does have his demons (mostly figurative, but one actual), he is still an amiable fellow who enjoys helping others. If only they could see beyond his fangs and his compulsive need for blood! The story comes to us mostly from Patrik's third-person perspective from various timelines, one of which is contemporary. I am not one for vampire stories, whether horror or comic. But I have wanted to try this webcomic ever since I read this author’s ‘Garlic and the Vampire’ graph...

AUTHOR: Shelly Jay Shore GENRE: Fantasy Romance PUBLICATION DATE: August 20, 2024 RATING: 2 stars. In a Nutshell: The title and the cover are awesome, but they don’t suit the content. This book is more about human issues than about paranormal entities. Too many characters, too many themes, too many traumatic events, too few “ghostly” vibes, too convenient in the flow. Great inclusivity but even that goes a step too far. Basically, it tries too hard to deliver and hence falls somewhat flat. Might work better as a family drama. Plot Preview: Ezra Friedman has been seeing ghosts since his childhood. This makes his work in the family-run funeral home complicated. It’s not like Ezra doesn’t have other challenges in his life as a trans + bisexual Jew who works as a birth doula. On top of it all, his mom announces during a family seder that she’s been a closet lesbian and is now eloping with the rabbi’s wife. As the funeral home has no one else to handle what his mom used to, Ezra has to st...

AUTHOR: Elise Gravel SERIES: Arlo & Pips, #3 GENRE: Children's Graphic Novel. PUBLICATION DATE: April 5, 2022 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: The third book of the Arlo & Pips early-reader chapter book series. The story, the wit, the trivia, and the illustrations come together in one adorable package. My favourite book of this series. What a wonderful finale! Arlo and Marla are now together. Their love has been… errrmm… fruitful, and there are... literally… new kids on the block in the flock. With the help of Pips, now promoted to “Uncle Pips”, the young parents navigate this new phase of their lives. As is clear, this series is progressing though Arlo’s life sequentially. From a young crow in the first book to a chap in love in the next one, Arlo is now a responsible parent. Don’t for a second imagine that this indicates a stop to his bragging! Au contraire, it only means that he has new points to brag about. This time though, he cannot be blamed as every parent loves...