May 22, 2024

Lamplighter

  


Title - The Lamplighter
Author - Crystal J. Bell
Release Date -  May 21st, 2024
Genre Young Adult Historical Horror

It’s an honor to bring light to the dark.

The whaling village of Warbler is famous for its lucky ship figureheads
and infamous for people disappearing into the nightly fog. In this murky locale, the lamplighter position is synonymous with safety and protection, and it’s a position Temperance assumes when her
father is found hanging from one of the lampposts. Though Tempe proves competent, the town is still hesitant to let a woman handle this responsibility.

When a girl goes missing after two lamps go out, Tempe’s ability to provide for her mother and younger sister hangs in the balance. She scrambles for answers, hindered at every turn by the village authorities’ call for her removal. As more villagers vanish under her watch, Tempe discovers unsettling truths about the famous Warbler figureheads and her own beloved father. But her warnings of a monster are ignored, even by her own family. Now she must follow the light out of her own fog of despair, as she faces the choice to look the other way or risk speaking out and possibly dooming herself and her sister to be among the lost.

Content Warning:
Murder, death of a parent
       






Crystal J. Bell is a Colorado native who writes horror and fantasy with the intent to make readers both eager and uneasy to turn the pages of her books. When she isn’t drinking up autumn like the elixir of life, she can be found on the back patio with her laptop and a book, out on the reservoirs on her stand up paddle board, or cooking in the kitchen with her husband. Most likely pasta..








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May 15, 2024

Summer Vamp

 


T
itle - Summer Vamp
Author - Violet Chan Karim
Release Date -  May 14th, 2024
Genre Middle Grade Fantasy

What happens when a very human kid ends up at the wrong summer camp—FOR VAMPIRES?! This quirky and heart warming graphic novel about making friends and getting in trouble is perfect for fans of Witches of Brooklyn.

After a lackluster school year, Maya anticipates an even more disappointing summer. The only thing she’s looking forward to is cooking and mixing ingredients in the kitchen, which these days brings her more joy than mingling with her peers . . . that is until her dad’s girlfriend registers her for culinary summer camp! Maya’s summer is saved! . . . or not. 

What was meant to be a summer filled with baking pastries and cooking pasta is suddenly looking a lot . . . paler?! Why do all of the kids have pointy fangs? And hate garlic? Turns out that Maya isn’t at culinary camp—she’s at a camp for VAMPIRES! Maya has a lot to learn if she’s going to survive this summer . . . and if she’s lucky, she might even make some friends along the way.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Review
    As someone who doesn't usually pick up middle grade books, I am glad I gave this one a shot. Maya our main character loves to cook and can't wait to spend her summer at a culinary camp, but when the buses are mixed up she ends up at a vampire camp instead and chaos ensues. Even with their differences of human to vampire Maya is able to overcome and make friends for the first time, it is incredibly wholesome. The story and the illustrations are beautiful and perfect for any age. I would like to Thank TBR Tours, Violet Chan Karim, and Netgalley for a copy of the book for review and blog tour purposes.
       






Violet Chan Karim is a comic artist and writer from Boston, Massachusetts. Her love for cartoons, books, and movies as a child led to her pursuing a career in writing and illustration as an adult. She graduated with a BFA in Sequential Art from Savannah College of Art and Design in 2020. Violet’s debut graphic novel, Summer Vamp, will be published in 2024 with Random House Graphic. She also creates the webcomic, Death of a Pop Star, with Webtoon.








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