casparquarius's reviews
83 reviews

Model Home by Rivers Solomon

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

this book burrowed into my bones and is going to live there for a long time. solomon's writing is incredible, the characterization full, and the characters themselves compelling and real. I saw more of myself in Ezri than is maybe comfortable while also being deeply, positively resonant. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

this book was so extremely up my alley and also just generally very fun. Jack Sparks is a guy that I absolutely would hate to hang out with but was written in such compelling fashion that I almost loved him, and the writing carried the narrative really beautifully in terms of character voices and styles
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional tense

4.5

Shirley Jackson was one of the best to ever write creepy stories and I'm not convinced there will ever be another like her
The Fisherman by John Langan

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

I liked this slow burn of a fishing horror quite a lot, and not just because I think fishing is a tragically underutilized horror context. the narrative was well-crafted and compelling, though I did find myself wanting a little more outside of Howard's story
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Ascension by Nicholas Binge

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

a quick fun read. I enjoyed the sense of confusion and urgency, and loved the format of the narrative. it wasn't particularly scary or as tense as I was hoping, but still definitely enjoyable 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
ANTIFA SPLATTERPUNK by Donyae Coles, Eric Raglin, John Baltisberger, Cynthia Gomez, Keith Rosson, Sarah Peploe, Joe Koch, Max D. Stanton, Caias Ward, Sam Richard, Kathe Koja, M. Lopes da Silva, Gordon B. White, Jonathan Louis Duckworth, Ana E. Robic, J.V. Gachs, Patrick Barb

Go to review page

challenging dark

4.0

anthologies, and short stories in general, are often hit or miss for me but this one was good fun throughout and I found some new-to-me authors to read more of
House of Rot by Danger Slater

Go to review page

dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I did like this but I wanted to like it so much more. this is exactly
my kind of thing, but I wound up wishing it had a little more to it? the characters' emotions and motivations felt too distant, the dialogue stilted, everything just slightly too ungrounded in anything to feel like it mattered
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Posthaste Manor by Carson Winter, Jolie Toomajan

Go to review page

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

wow what a book to start off 2025. I love a haunted house and I especially love a weird book, and this delivered on both counts
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

Go to review page

mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir

Go to review page

dark tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

a quick and fun read! deeply compelling, and as a chronically ill disabled person I found the descriptions of fatigue and the endless frustrating doctor appointments horrifyingly relatable. if you need explanations in your horror this is likely not for you, but I quite liked the way it leaves so much to the imagination. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings