Pop Culture Princess

Pop Culture Princess
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Monday, March 21, 2022

Setting a scary tea table for Spring Into Horror


 

With the spring season officially upon us, it’s time to look forward to warmer weather and some great books to enjoy both outdoor and indoor entertainment opportunities to come.

This April, Seasons of Reading(hosted by Michelle Miller) will launch their annual  Spring Into Horror readathon , which asks you to have at least one scary book on hand to take part in this fearful flower festival.


As usual, I’m sticking with a trio of new-to-me reads, ranging from sinister sweet to screamingly scary and my first frightening flavor sample will be  The Ex-Hex by Erin Sterling.

When Vivi at age nineteen broke up with her then boyfriend Rhys, her main method of coping was to put a curse on him( with the aid of  some potent booze and her cousin Gwyn).

Since she was just a newbie witch, Vivi didn’t think her fledgling spell had much of an impact. However, it’s nine years later and Rhys is back in town, ready to strengthen the local ley lines that keep the magical energy in the area in balance.

A big setback in that mission is Vivi’s curse which causes all sorts of chaos and despite her best efforts, it’s growing stronger by the minute. Can she and Rhys work together to save the town from otherworldly destruction and rekindle their romance to boot?

I know this was a big hit last year with folks and while it’s set around Halloween, a funky little love story like this should be suitable all year later long:


 
My next read is a revisit to a bloodthirsty brunch of a read from Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Certain Dark Things.

Atl is an ancient vampire looking to stay more than one step ahead of the Narco nosferatu crew out to get her.

She finds help in Domingo, a 17 year old street kid looking for any way to survive his rough and tumble life. Planning her escape requires a steady source of nourishment and a steadfast ruthlessness, one of which her new companion is willing to provide yet the other is in danger of weakening on both their sides.

This book is a wonderful wild ride and I’m happy to be rereading it in its new paperback form(the cover art is so gorgeous!). I do hope this becomes a movie someday because the emotional power of this story is very cinematic worthy indeed:



The final course for this literary feast is Stephen Graham-Jones’ slasher movie salute, My Heart is a Chainsaw.

Our leading lady is Jade, a teenage girl who escapes the dreariness of her small town
 by devouring slasher film lore and knowing the genre inside and out.

When a series of gruesome murders take place near the site of an upscale housing project in the area, Jade sees the deadly pattern for what it is and tries to warn everyone of the danger among them. However, is the only one listening and taking her theories seriously the killer in their midst?

I’ve heard so many great things about this book that waiting to read it is very hard there. Nonetheless, I know that my patience will be well rewarded:



Spring Into Horror begins on April 1( not a joke) and ends on the 30th. There is still plenty of time to sign  up and join in the spooky fun.

I know there’s quite a bit of real world terrors going on as we speak and for some, a good way to deal with that is channeling that tension through such pop culture formats like books or TV. Stress relief is important in times like these and a good scream can be as helpful as a good laugh, if you ask me:



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