One day, I will be ahead again. Today is obviously not that day. But, at least this was a very good batch of books to end October!

Psychopomp & Circumstance by Eden Royce
Hazelthorn by C.G. Drews
Cathedral of the Drowned by Nathan Ballingrud
The Sound of the Dark by Daniel Church
The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

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Psychopomp & Circumstance by Eden Royce
Published by Tordotcom on October 21, 2025
Pages: 166
Format:eARC
Source:Copy provided by publisher for review, via Netgalley

Ignyte and Mythopoeic Award-winning author Eden Royce pens a Southern Gothic historical fantasy story of a contentious funeral in her adult fiction debut.

Phee St. Margaret is a daughter of the Reconstruction, born to a family of free Black business owners in New Charleston. Coddled to within an inch of her life by a mother who refuses to let her daughter live a life other than the one she dictates, Phee yearns to demonstrate she's capable of more than simply marrying well.

When word arrives that her Aunt Cleo, long estranged from the family, has passed away, Phee risks her mother's wrath to step up and accept the role of pomp―the highly honored duty of planning the funeral service. Traveling alone to the town of Horizon and her aunt's unsettling home, Phee soon discovers that visions and shadows beckon from every reflective surface, and that some secrets transcend the borders of life and death.

Okay this tiny book packed a punch I was not expecting! I know what you’re thinking: ma’am, this is about a funeral, of course it would be emotional. But no, because Phee didn’t even fully remember her aunt who had died, just enough to know she deserved an appropriate sendoff despite her mother’s wishes. Speaking of, Phee’s mother will make you mad from page one. I hated how she treated her daughter, and honestly everyone else in her life, too. But it also felt so completely realistic, for don’t most of us have some like that in our lives? Someone who everyone seems to cater to and cower to, no matter their behavior? I also really felt for Phee, knowing how impossible it can feel to stand up to it.

When Phee takes on this responsibility, she heads to her late aunt’s house, and that is where the full beauty of this story unfolds. Without giving too much away, Phee meets some of the most incredible people in her aunt’s town, and learns some very valuable things along the way. I liked that the magical bits weren’t too overwhelming either- just enough to tell the story without taking over the story. The atmosphere was incredible, the food descriptions were literally mouthwatering, and overall I could not get enough of this story! I found myself completely wrapped up into Phee’s story, and cried more than once- but also smiled plenty, too. This was just an enjoyable and emotive reading experience from start to finish.

Bottom Line: Honestly I could read more of Phee’s story, and certainly more stories set in this world. Hint hint, nudge nudge.

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Hazelthorn by C.G. Drews
Published by Feiwel & Friends on October 28, 2025
Pages: 368
Format:eARC, Hardcover
Source:Copy provided by publisher for review, via Netgalley, Purchased

CG Drews, acclaimed author of Don't Let the Forest In, returns with another deeply unsettling and yet hauntingly beautiful tale of murder and botanical body horror, perfect for fans of Andrew Joseph White and We Have Always Lived in the Castle.

Evander has lived like a ghost in the forgotten corners of the Hazelthorn estate ever since he was taken in by his reclusive billionaire guardian, Byron Lennox-Hall, when he was a child. For his safety, Evander has been given three ironclad rules to follow:
He can never leave the estate. He can never go into the gardens. And most importantly, he can never again be left alone with Byron's charming, underachieving grandson, Laurie.

That last rule has been in place ever since Laurie tried to kill Evander seven years ago, and yet somehow Evander is still obsessed with him.

When Byron suddenly dies, Evander inherits Hazelthorn’s immense gothic mansion and acres of sprawling grounds, along with the entirety of the Lennox-Hall family's vast wealth. But Evander's sure his guardian was murdered, and Laurie may be the only one who can help him find the killer before they come for Evander next.

Perhaps even more concerning is how the overgrown garden is refusing to stay behind its walls, slipping its vines and spores deeper into the house with each passing day. As the family’s dark secrets unravel alongside the growing horror of their terribly alive, bloodthirsty garden, Evander needs to find out what he’s really inheriting before the garden demands to be fed once more.

TW from author at start: “I hope you enjoy the collision of magic and love and horror, but please be aware this story contains dark themes such as blood, gore, child abuse, medical abuse, ableism, eating disorders, and body horror.”

C.G. Drews does it again- and if you ask me, outdoes it, is more like it. While I definitely enjoyed Don’t Let the Forest In, I felt even more pulled into Hazlethorn. Once again, the atmosphere is next-level on point. I love when a book can pull you right into the setting so much you can truly almost feel it even though you’re sitting in your own cozy bed, and this one delivers without question. And of course, the characters were incredible! I felt for Evander from the very start- how could you not, knowing that he is so isolated and lonely, and the only guardian he has memory of is dead. And you know he’s pining for Laurie even if he also kinda hates him, which makes Evander all the more sympathetic (and relatable, frankly). When we meet the rest of the Lennox-Hall family, they add some wonderful absurdity to the mix. They’re not necessarily funny, because they’re awful, but they sure are entertaining!

The mystery kept me guessing, and I was pleasantly surprised that the paranormal parts that would usually ignite my inner skeptic absolutely did not bother me in the least! The author does an incredible job of introducing the paranormal bits in such a way that it just… fits. You accept it as part of the story because it just works with the story, and for me, that is the hallmark of a story well told. I flew through this story, not being able to put it down until I knew exactly what was going on. And the conclusion was absolutely satisfying, so no worries there!

Bottom Line: There is a reason that this book is everywhere. As it should be.

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Cathedral of the Drowned by Nathan Ballingrud
Series: The Lunar Gothic Trilogy #2
Published by Tor Nightfire on October 21, 2025
Pages: 144
Format:eARC
Source:Copy provided by publisher for review, via Netgalley

The sequel to Crypt of the Moon Spider, Cathedral of the Drowned is a dripping, squirming, scuttling tale of altered bodies and minds.

There are two halves of Charlie Duchamp. One is a brain in a jar, stranded on Jupiter’s jungle moon, Io, who just wants to go home. The other is hanging on the wall of Barrowfield Home on Earth’s own moon, host to the eggs of the Moon Spider and filled with a murderous rage.

On Io, deep in the flooded remains of a crashed cathedral ship, lives a giant centipede called The Bishop, who has taken control of the drowned astronauts inside. Both Charlies converge here, stalking each other in the haunted ruins, while a new Moon Spider prepares to hatch.

After loving last year’s Crypt of the Moon Spider, I was pretty excited to get to this sequel. And I liked it, just not quite as much as the first installment. The atmosphere is absolutely on point, and I still loved the whole idea of Roaring 20s space exploration. We (kind of) follow different characters in this story, though they’ll be familiar from the first book. I think that for me, they perhaps just didn’t quite hold my interest as much as Veronica’s story did. I did love the antihero vibes, and am still wildly curious about the world, so it is certainly a worthwhile addition to the series, and I will be very interested to see which characters we take the next journey with!

Bottom Line:  Such an incredibly unique world, the atmosphere was on point even if I felt a tiny bit less connected to these characters.

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The Sound of the Dark by Daniel Church
Published by Angry Robot on October 28, 2025
Pages: 400
Format:eARC, Paperback
Source:Copy provided by publisher for review, via Netgalley

In 1983 experimental artist Tony Mathias began work on a new installation – it was to be a collage of visuals and sounds collected at an abandoned RAF base called Warden Fell. Various stories and rumours swirled around the place but Tony was interested only in the echoes of history. But soon after visiting the site to tape-record the sounds there, he returned to the caravan where he was staying with his family and killed his wife, his two children and then himself. Another dark twist in Warden Fell’s history?

But the past reaches out. Decades later Cally Darker, gets the chance to investigate the terrible story and perhaps even solve the mystery – a fantastic exclusive story for her true-crime podcast.

Tony's actress sister Stella is desperate for the mystery to be solved before she dies will do all she can to help and passes on the tapes left behind by her brother. But before long, Cally realises that Warden Fell has a far older and darker story to tell. Be careful what you listen to…

The Sound of the Dark had a lot of very cool elements that piqued my interest. I really enjoyed main character Cally, the entire premise, and most of the execution. If I had one qualm (and I do, sorry), it is similar to what others have said: it just was a little too long. So the premise is this: Cally is sort of floundering in life, struggling with some mental health issues and a dead-end relationship. One of her interests is true crime, and she has a podcast devoted to it (which I kind of wished we’d got into a little more, but alas). She receives a message from some unknown listener about a case that she hadn’t heard about, but absolutely piqued her interest: Tony, a seemingly upstanding family man who was exploring an old military base before he went off the deep end, killing his whole family and setting them aflame back in 1983.

This sends Cally down a very twisted path where she encounters a lot of interesting folks- both in good ways, and in bad. She also finds herself wading deeper into the history of the base and Tony’s findings, including recordings and personal journals.  Obviously I don’t want to say too much because hello, mystery, but this was definitely a unique story for me! We also delve pretty deep into Cally’s personal life, including her relationships, her mental health, and her self-esteem. We also get a pretty close look into a lot of the side characters’ inner workings as well, which is helpful. There is definitely quite a bit of body horror, so take that into account as well. I also really liked the ending- it felt both appropriate and satisfying, so while the pacing was sometimes a bit slow, I found the whole thing to be quite worth it in the end.

Bottom Line: Come for the true crime, stay for the characters and bananas twists.

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The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow
Published by Tor on October 30, 2025
Pages: 311
Format:eARC
Source:Copy provided by publisher for review, via Netgalley

From Alix E. Harrow, the New York Times bestselling author of Starling House, comes a moving and genre-defying quest about the lady-knight whose legend built a nation, and the cowardly historian sent back through time to make sure she plays her part–even if it breaks his heart.

Sir Una Everlasting was Dominion’s greatest hero: the orphaned girl who became a knight, who died for queen and country. Her legend lives on in songs and stories, in children’s books and recruiting posters―but her life as it truly happened has been forgotten.

Centuries later, Owen Mallory―failed soldier, struggling scholar―falls in love with the tale of Una Everlasting. Her story takes him to war, to the archives―and then into the past itself. Una and Owen are tangled together in time, bound to retell the same story over and over again, no matter what it costs.

But that story always ends the same way. If they want to rewrite Una’s legend―if they want to tell a different story--they’ll have to rewrite history itself.

Oh wow so The Everlasting is officially in the running for one of my favorite books of the year! Like friends, I could not put it down! And when I had to because life, I was thinking about it! And even now after reading it, I am still thinking about it! I don’t even know where to begin. I’ll try. But honestly you should just read it. Here is why:

• The genre mashup is delightful. I mean. Time travel and fantasy and romance and I could go on. The fantasy part isn’t too heavy handed, which I loved, and the time travel part is so fun, especially since the main characters are from two different times.
• Speaking of the main characters, they’re kind of the best. Owen and Una could not be more different, but that is probably why they end up having so much chemistry. Oh, how I adored them, separately, together, however they were.
• So many emotions! I laughed, I cried, I raged, I swooned. Love that for me.
• The stories within a story worked really well. I don’t want to say too much, so I won’t.
• You’d think that reliving/retelling the same story would get dull. Reader, it does not. Not one bit.
• The writing is phenomenal, I think I highlighted quotes from half the book. From witty and funny quotes, to empowering quotes, to heartfelt quotes, the writing was just stunning.

Bottom Line: I just loved every last thing about this book. Full stop.

Have you read any of these books? Plan to? Let us chat about them!