I think this might be a case where I maybe overestimated my emotional readiness for the content of the book. It's an interesting enough read in a lot of ways, but it's also a real horror show. Contains heavy description of cannibalism (obviously, that is basically the main plot line)

This book made some promises early on that I'm not sure it delivered. The end fell a little flat and I also think it suffered some from being translated, but overall it was a quick and interesting enough read. I do wish I had realised it was set in the sex tourism trade BEFORE I'd started reading it on the bus.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It's a nice quick read, and I really felt the desperation of Rosemary's plight the whole way through.

I got maybe halfway through this before I ditched it. It starts off strong by being almost obtusely grim. I didn't mind that so much, but a lot of the character's stories are centred around a singular and obvious key trait and it makes them feel quite two dimensional. Also the poetry didn't quite do it for me. Equally I like to read on the bus and I didn't feel I could really do that with this book! Just not for me.

I loved Convenience Store Woman- this takes all the same themes and digs deeper and darker into them. If you've ever felt like you don't belong this might be for you. Warning- it does cover the topic of sexual abuse.

This book explores some pretty bleak aspects of humanity. Its conspiracies sometimes were more complicated than I could be bothered to keep up with and it also occasionally suffered for being told from multiple perspectives, but overall it was a good read. Just be warned though that it does explore graphic depictions of sexual violence.

A real page turner- full of suspense and you really get to choose what you make of it. Heavy on the eroticism though so if that's not your thing this book isn't for you!

I'm definitely biased as a huge fan of the Lecter universe in general, but I enjoyed this book. It was the only one in the series for which I had no real expectations for the story having not seen this book previously portrayed elsewhere (I haven't watched all the films/shows!). It's definitely a graphic and often unpleasant read- but that's what you'd expect from the mind that created Lecter!

I think overall this is probably a very worthwhile read for most people. For me personally there were bits of it that I found a bit pop-psychologyesque, but that probably wouldn't be an issue if you didn't waste £70k studying Psychology. This is much cheaper and has some good observations in it, it just wasn't for me.

Wicked, dark, often erotic, always haunting little vignettes of horrors that feel both real enough to be believable but still outlandish enough to be fascinating.

What can I say? It was just so plain fun to read.

Loved this book! Classic Flynn- with a dark, disturbed, and often borderline dislikeable female lead, this book had enough twists and turns to keep my interest right to the end.

I loved this book. It‘s a great quick read that unpicks societal norms in a satisfyingly quirky manner. I am slightly confused that so many critics labelled it as funny though- I found it disturbing rather than funny (although it could well be both). Either way, a brilliant read.

A book centred around loneliness and isolation, it‘s a very fitting read for these times. It‘s dark, sometimes confusing, always interesting, and ultimately satisfying. A great read.

I read this on the bus and I enjoyed it at the time- having said that, I completely forgot that I had read it until I was scrolling through my Apple Books library by chance, so it didn‘t make much of an impression.

A short and unsettling read, I‘d firstly suggest that anyone who enjoys psychological horror gives this book a shot, and secondly suggest that they do so before watching the film. Having watched the film first definitely spoiled some of my experience reading the book whereas I think having read the book first would actually have made my first watch of the film a lot less frustrating!

I know this is a book that means an awful lot to a lot of people, but I couldn‘t hack it. The characters are charming but not quite charming enough to get me past the fact I felt very strongly that every line was some kind of new pious moral lesson I was meant to be learning. I‘m sure it‘s brilliant in its own way, but it unfortunately just isn‘t for me!

This is a book my dad read to us as children that left a lasting impression on me. I think it‘s probably the foundation of my love for horror as an adult. Every few years I go back and re-read it, and I‘m not sure if it‘s just the nostalgia but I‘ve always felt it holds up. It‘s just the right mix of weird, scary, and fantastical. If you like Coraline, this strikes a very similar chord in my opinion.

The title says it better than I ever could.

Creepy in a way I didn‘t prepare myself for as I decided it was sensible to sit down and read this alone in my home in the middle of the night. I didn‘t think it possible for a written story to evoke fear in me in the same way as a film or a game but this short story absolutely horrified me- and that was before I started unpicking the commentary! A brilliant piece and new personal favourite, I won‘t be forgetting this any time soon.

Ok I might have been naive given the title but as a non-parental figure I think maybe I underestimated how much of this book would be talking about babies in a way that does nothing to move forward the plot. It was a comfortable read for the bus with all the right turns but it didn‘t necessarily shock me or stun me into silence in the way I like my thrillers to do.

I found this book wildly difficult to get into, which is unusual for any kind of murder mystery thrillers for me (I normally binge them). Once it got going I enjoyed it but I originally picked up this book because I was told the ending was shocking! Unpredictable! Gasp worthy! And I did not have that experience personally. It might be that my expectations were unrealistic, but my overall experience with this read was hit and miss.

This book had some obviously important and pertinent messages to convey, I just found that by the time it got to them I‘d forgotten what I was meant to be reading it for. A slow start but overall a decent read.

A classic whodunit, part of the intrigue of this book is its grounding in a real murder case. Based on media reports and police files from the actual investigation, it feels very real, which is part of what kept my interest in this book for so long. It did begin to wear out its welcome towards the end, and it is very obvious where the true story ends and the imagination of the author begins, but the ‘reveal‘ remained a top-notch jaw-drop moment.

A book for everybody- as a woman and a feminist this book gave me an insight into a world I thought existed but had never seen. A refreshingly honest account of the male experience, Webb reflects on his life with humour and masterful retrospection. A brilliant read.

My favourite of Ito- it combines his classic solo-chapter feel within a consistent storyline, meaning you still experience the full diversity of horror. Some brilliant and shocking moments; classic body horror. Ito is unrivalled in what he does and this is no exception.

Brilliantly dark.

Absolutely bizarre & dark body horror from Junji Ito. Fantastic artwork and an original story, and although the narrative isn‘t always the strongest it does horror manga so well that I never really minded. Bonus of having the enigma of the Amigara fault at the end, which is one of the best pieces of horror manga I‘ve ever come across and was what first attracted me to the genre when I came across it online as a young teen.

A game changer and a ground shaker. This true story was recommended to me in my Forensic Psychology class and I am endlessly glad I picked up a copy. I‘m going to warn you from experience- don‘t read this on the bus unless you‘re happy to cry in public!!

Having not loved the handmaid‘s tale I didn‘t go into this read with high hopes, but was pleasantly surprised. This book provided a lot of the context and world building missed in its predecessor, and the ending was the catharsis I had been long awaiting. Not only did I enjoy this book, but it made me retrospectively enjoy the handmaid‘s tale more as a result!

A childhood classic it took me far too long to get around to reading, this quickly ended up one of my favourites of all time. Seriously endearing, this book broke my heart and rejuvenated my spirit in one fell swoop. I was torn between wanting desperately to know the ending, and never wanting the book to end.

Fascinatingly original and imaginative, I thoroughly enjoyed the beginning and the end of this book. However, the middle third I found I had put together enough of the plot that it ended up feeling too slow paced and I actually put the book down for a good couple of weeks in the middle of reading it because I had a hard time pushing through that. It was worth it to get to the end, but only just.