Ivory’s life changes irrevocably when she discovers the body of Cabrina Brite on the sands of Cape Morning, along with a mysterious poem. How did she die, and why does it seem she was trying to swim to Ghost Cat Island, the center of so many local mysteries?
Desperate to uncover the answers surrounding Cabrina’s death, and haunted by her discovery, Ivory begins to see the pale ghost of Cabrina, only to shake it off as a mere hallucination. But Ivory is not alone. Cabrina’s closest friends have also seen a similar apparition, and as they toy with occult possibilities, they begin to unravel the truth behind Cabrina’s death.
Because Cape Morning isn’t a ghost town, but a town filled with ghosts, and Ivory is about to discover just what happens when you let one in.
GRADE: A-
REVIEW:
This isn’t your typical vampire novel – Piper brings new lore and a fresh take to the undead and I’m here for it. It’s visceral and raw as it explores the theme of identity. Cape Morning is a small island with not many residents. Tourists flock the island during the summer months, but in the winter the island is less populated. Ivory is a trans woman who lives by the sea, and one morning after swimming sees the body of Cabrina Brite. She soon finds herself enthralled by the mystery of what exactly happened to Cabrina and what caused her to die. The mystery is well done and what kept my interest throughout the novel. I really liked the chapters from Cabrina’s diary. Ivory pushes herself to the brink, endangering herself at times in order to seek out the truth. Then there’s Cabrina’s friends, who, grief-stricken will do anything to find out the mystery that surrounds her death too, even if it means tinkering with the occult.
There’s brutal violence, but told in a way that almost comes across as poetic. I loved how the vampires in this novel were linked to cats and the island Ghost Cat Island. This is a new vibrant take on the vampire lore, and if you love Gothic literature, the gothic vibes are at an all time high in this one. The pages are filled with a brimming rage – but will also break your heart in unexpected ways. A must-read if you love well-rounded characters, diverse horror, atmospheric horror, and can’t get enough of vampires.
*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
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In a world where innovation is critical to success, creativity plays a vital role in personal growth and professional progress. However, even the most inventive individuals can experience periods where inspiration fades, making it challenging to find new ideas. When this happens, the methods that once drove your creativity might start to feel limiting, prompting a need for fresh approaches. Fortunately, there are effective ways to reignite that creative energy. This article offers practical strategies, from rethinking your work environment to trying new experiences, aimed at revitalizing your creativity and helping you reach new levels of inspiration.
Transform Your Workspace into a Creative Hub
Creating a collaborative environment can significantly boost your team’s creativity and productivity. Designing a workspace with flexible layouts and modular furniture allows everyone to adapt the area to their specific needs. This adaptability encourages both solo work and group collaboration. Integrating natural light and greenery can also enhance creativity and overall wellness. Seamlessly incorporating digital tools for communication and planning ensures that your team can share ideas effectively, making the most of physical and virtual spaces.
Begin Your Day with Analog Inspiration
Starting your day away from screens can do wonders for your creative thinking. Dedicating morning time to analog activities like reading or journaling gives your mind the freedom to explore ideas without digital distractions. This practice enhances focus, lowers stress, and prepares you to tackle daily challenges with a fresh perspective. Establishing a tech-free morning routine can lead to creative breakthroughs and a more productive day.
Leap into Creativity with a Career Shift
Sometimes, a career change can provide the creative boost you need. Consider the benefits of a computer science degree online, which allows you to acquire new skills in IT and programming while maintaining your current job. This flexibility lets you apply new knowledge immediately, enhancing your expertise and career prospects. Embracing this dual engagement equips you to tackle modern challenges creatively and effectively.
Dance Your Way to Enhanced Creativity and Awareness
Dance offers a unique blend of physical exercise and artistic expression, which can rejuvenate both your mind and body. Whether you’re drawn to the grace of ballet or the energy of salsa, dancing connects your movements to your emotions, heightening body awareness and mood. Exploring various dance styles can reduce stress and boost cognitive performance, enriching your creative spirit through movement.
Fuel Imagination with Daily Reading Adventures
Allocating time each day for reading can significantly enhance your imagination. Engaging with literature allows your mind to visualize worlds and characters, fostering creative thinking and empathy. This daily habit improves language skills and mental agility, equipping you to solve complex problems with innovative solutions. Even a short, focused reading session can transform your imagination and open new possibilities. Visit The Inkblotters for ideas on your next read!
Discover Fresh Ideas at Cultural Festivals
Attending cultural festivals is a fantastic way to experience diverse artistic expressions. Events like local music or film festivals offer unique insights into different perspectives, inspiring new creative endeavors. By engaging with various cultural outputs, you return home with fresh ideas and renewed inspiration that enrich your personal and professional life, broadening your worldview and sparking creative reinvigoration.
Creativity is the vibrant thread that weaves new patterns into the fabrics of our experiences. By daring to shift paradigms and embrace the unfamiliar, you open doors to infinite possibilities where innovation flourishes. Let this journey be a canvas for rediscovery, where each brushstroke marks a glorious intersection between ambition and imagination. Trust in the transformative power of creativity to sculpt your path, knowing that you forge a legacy of brilliance, resilience, and boundless potential with every step.
Discover captivating book excerpts and spotlights at The Inkblotters, and immerse yourself in a world where stories come to life!
Guest blog post by Stephanie Haywood, read her previous guest blog post HERE and HERE or visit her website: MY LIFE BOOST.
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Nothing is what it seems when a twisted one-night stand spirals into a serial killer’s vicious murder spree.
This movie is phenomenally dark and chaotically twisty. And Kyle confirms himself as the Horror King. Go in blind and enjoy the crazy ride!
Long Legs
FBI Agent Lee Harker is assigned to an unsolved serial killer case that takes an unexpected turn, revealing evidence of the occult. Harker discovers a personal connection to the killer and must stop him before he strikes again.
Oz Perkins may be one of my recent fave directors. Every movie of his has been a major hit for the horror genre, and with Long Legs you get the bonus of Nickolas Cage and Horror Queen Maika Monroe.
Oddity
After the brutal murder of her twin sister, Darcy goes after those responsible by using haunted items as her tools for revenge.
For a shoestring budget, this movie packs a brutal punch and has the best jumpscare in a long time. You may want to check out Damia McCarthy’s previous film Caveat.
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THE NIGHT OF KAMILAH VEGA AND LIAM KANE’S FIRST ENGAGEMENT PARTY
LEO VEGA ALREADY KNEW WHAT WAS IN STORE FOR HIM WHEN HE knocked on the door in front of him, but he did it anyway. The situation was too important for him to ignore.
“What?” the grumpy voice said from the other side.
“It’s me,” he said.
“I know who it is. I have a camera doorbell.” Leo could practically hear the eye roll. “What do you want?”
“We need to talk.”
“I’m not really in the mood to talk.”
Leo knew that he had two options if he wanted to be let in: be annoying or be cajoling. There was a fifty-fifty chance with either option. It all depended on whether the person on the other side of the door was more pissed or more hurt. His best guess was pissed because of the hurt. He went for cajoling, praying it worked. “Come on. Open the door. I just want to check on you.”
There was noticeably less anger when the voice responded, “I’m fine.”
“I need to see you with my own eyes.”
A snort slash growl. He moved close and put his forehead against the door. “Please, bombón,” he said in a deep murmur. “Let me see you.”
A hiss of annoyed breath filtered through the door, but it had obviously worked.
He heard the locks being disengaged and he stepped back when the door swung open. There she stood, still in the body-hugging dress she’d worn to his sister’s disastrous engagement party. She looked almost as perfect as she had when she’d first walked in and nearly caused him to stroke out on the floor, except for one thing. All the immaculate makeup on her face was gone and her eyes were swollen and red rimmed.
He knew there was a good chance she’d push him away, but he couldn’t stop his response. He stepped into the apartment and palmed her damp cheek. “Come here.” He pulled her into a hug and was mildly surprised when she let him. “Ay, mi Sofi.”
Sofi didn’t respond, she just buried her face in his neck and squeezed him.
He tightened his hold on her and firmly told himself to ignore the way her body felt against his, but it was impossible. It always was. It had been since they were teens. Sofia Santana just did something to him on every single level. To attempt to ignore her was like trying to ignore being tased. Even if he managed to shut his thoughts down, his body wasn’t going to let him not react to the inundation of sensation.
“What happened?” he asked after a few minutes of silence. “All I could understand from a blubbering Kamilah is that you left because you’re mad at her.”
Sofi pulled back. A scowl appeared on her face. “Of course it’s all because of me, right?”
Leo frowned. “I didn’t say that. I’m just trying to understand what happened.” It was hard for him to believe that she hadn’t known about this whole fake engagement stunt either. He’d figured that she had to be in on it too. Kamilah and Sofi did everything together from the moment they met. It was often annoying to him just how close they were.
“She lied to me,” Sofi said.
“She lied to all of us,” he pointed out. He was angry about that too, but Sofi wasn’t the type to get so upset about something like this. At the end of the day Kamilah and Liam faking an engagement to keep their grandpas from selling the family businesses they wanted to run didn’t really affect Sofi that much. It wasn’t like she had a stake in either business, not like Leo did.
Sofi pushed away from him. “Not about that,” she scoffed. “I knew about that stupid shit with Liam. I warned her about that blowing up in her face, but she did it anyway.” Leo suddenly remembered something else that had come up. Something that had affected Sofi. “You didn’t know she’d turned down the scholarship in Paris,” he concluded. Kamilah and Sofi had planned to move to Paris together after high school, but when their abuela got sick, Kamilah lied to everyone and told them she hadn’t gotten the scholarship that would have made the move possible.
Sofi actually growled in anger. “Can you believe that bullshit?” She stalked down the short hallway into her living room. “Not only did we say we were going to do that since middle school, but we had plans. Firm plans. I had a school lined up! We were looking at apartments!”
Leo could understand how that would be frustrating at the very least, more likely heartbreaking. “Why didn’t you just go anyway?”
Sofi let out a bark of unamused laughter. “Have you met my mother? You think she was going to be okay with me going to Europe by myself? She didn’t want me to go even with Kamilah, but once Kamilah wasn’t an option…”
Leo knew Sofi’s mother pretty well and Alicia Santana was not someone you ignored when she put her foot down. However, she wasn’t an unreasonable person and she trusted her daughter. “I don’t know, bombón. I think she would’ve come around eventually.”
“You don’t get it, Leo. Once Kamilah said she wasn’t accepted, everything changed for me. I had to—” She cut herself off. “Forget it. That’s not the point. The point is that not only did she lie to me, she kept this a secret for twelve years.”
Leo wasn’t exactly as upset about the situation as he could be. The truth was that he’d been keeping a secret from his sister for longer than that. So had Sofi. “I understand how learning all this would upset you, but Sofi, come on.”
She spun on her heel and gave him a look that said, You’d better not be saying what I think you’re saying, while her mouth said, “Come on, what?”
He gestured between the two of them.
Sofi arched a brow.
“Are you really going to make me say it?”
She crossed her arms and looked him up and down. “I guess you’d better because I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He gave her a look. She couldn’t be serious.
“Sofi…” She pursed her lips. Leo sucked his teeth. “Sofi, we’ve been together on and off for how long now? Since you were like fifteen?”
“First of all, we kissed once when I was fifteen and then nothing happened again until much later. Second of all, we have never been together, we have sex when we are both single, bored, and horny, which is not the same thing.”
Leo didn’t let the hurt that statement caused distract him. “Yet, never once did you mention it to Kamilah and you forbid me from telling anyone about it, because you don’t want it to get back to her.”
“I don’t want you telling everyone and their momma about it, because who I sleep with is nobody’s fucking business but mine.”
Leo had to roll his eyes at that. She was so weird about people “knowing her business.” She tended to think that her life was so interesting that it was some sort of gossip fodder. It was ridiculous. She worked at her father’s company, went grocery shopping with her mom every week, and liked to go dancing with her friends on the weekend. Her life was not that different from plenty of women he knew. Shit, their secret relationship (because it was a fucking relationship) was probably the most interesting thing about her life. “You never want her to find out, because you know she’ll be upset about you lying to her. Sort of how you’re mad now.”
“Are you really throwing this in my face right now?”
“All I’m saying is that it’s not easy to tell people stuff you know will hurt them, so maybe you should give her a break.”
Her eyes widened. “Give her a break,” she murmured to herself. When she looked at him, there was anger and shock in her expression. “You really are standing in front of me not only defending her, but trying to guilt me out of feeling my own emotions right now.”
“I just think given the circumstances we both owe her—” “I. Don’t. Owe. Her. Shit.” She accentuated each word with a clap of her hands then paused, screwed up her face, and shook her head as if disgusted. “I don’t owe you shit either. Why am I even having this conversation with you?”
“Sof—” “I should’ve known that at the end of the day you were going to pick her side over mine.”
“How do you figure?”
“Because, Leo, that’s how your family operates. Y’all are all open and friendly and welcoming until something happens. Then you close rank like a bunch of elephants circling around the weakest members of the herd. It happens every time Big Sam and your tía Iris break up. It happened when Chase left Kamilah. Y’all still barely talk to your tía Alba’s husband after he said Puerto Rico should become a state.”
“Not true,” Leo argued. “He said that Puerto Ricans on the island wouldn’t be able to run a country without the US, so they needed to be a state which is different than just saying that Puerto Rico should be a state. And we hardly liked his conceited and low-key racist ass before that. Plus, you were just as mad about that as the rest of us were!”
“That’s not the point, Leo!” she yelled at him. “Then what is your point,” he yelled back. “Because you aren’t making any fucking sense.”
“My point is that I’m done. I have no interest in doing this with you, your sister, or anyone else in your family.”
Leo froze. His body going cold. “What does that mean?”
“That means that I’m not making up with Kamilah. I’m not coming around El Coquí anymore.” She paused and looked him right in the eyes. “I don’t want you coming here anymore either.”
Leo scoffed. “You always say that and then you text to ask me what I’m doing and tell me to come over.”
She passed by him to open her door. “Yeah well, why don’t you go home and wait for that message?”
“Sofi,” he began.
“Bye, Leo. Have a nice life.” Leo growled. He hated when she pulled that dismissive shit with him and she knew it. “You have to be the most stubborn person I’ve ever met,” he called.
“Didn’t I already tell you goodbye?”
“One of these days, you’re going to push me too far and I’m not going to come back.”
“Maybe I’ll be lucky and today will be the day.”
Annoyed that she was being so stubborn and unreasonable, Leo stormed out the door. It closed with a snick behind him and Leo fought the urge to flip it off. Instead he stomped down the stairs to the front door of the building. He hated that Sofi did this to him. She’d push him away just to prove that she could. But she didn’t actually want him to go anywhere, which was why she always called him back. She’d do it again this time too. He knew she would, because—no matter how much they fought—they couldn’t live without each other.
This was not an ending. It was only an intermission.
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This wasn’t your usual horror movie – it has body horror, but it’s not horrific until you begin to hear the shriek the monster emits. Hunter Schafer is seventeen-year-old Gretchen who has recently lost her mother and had to relocate with her dad and his new family. She’s not keen on this, especially when they start living in the German Alps and she’s far from her US friends and the life she had there.
Dan Stevens plays the odd, Herr Konig (her dad’s boss) who fixates on her deaf sister Alma. He also offers Gretchen a job at his resort, but insists that she doesn’t work the night shift. Obviously, since this is a horror movie, we find out why when her co-worker asks Gretchen to cover her nightshift.
The movie is a mix of 70’s giallo but as the film progresses and Gretchen acquires more and more wounds, you begin to wonder how she’s going to final girl her way out of this predicament when she looks absolutely massacred. The unease that the characters feel in the movie due to the monster can be felt by the audience. When the monster shrieks, the audience cringes too as the sound is so offputting that you want it to stop. When the characters get stuck in a time loop, the audience feels just as disorientated, trying to figure out if the loop is going to continue or it’s going to end.
Cuckoo isn’t your typical horror movie, and it may not be the type of movie one might enjoy if your flavor of horror is Blumhouse horrors. But if you enjoy weird horror movies that are doing something interesting with the genre, then this might be up your alley.
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It started with the cheerleaders. It ends with the football team.
PLOT SUMMARY:
It was the deaths of five cheerleaders that made the town of Sunnybrook infamous. Eleven years later, the girls’ killer has been brought to justice, and the town just wants to move on. By the time Hadley moves to Sunnybrook, though, the locals are more interested in the Tigers, the high school’s championship-winning football team. The Tigers are Sunnybrook’s homegrown heroes–something positive in a town with so much darkness in its past.
Hadley could care less about football, but shortly after she gets assigned to cover the team’s latest championship bid for the school newspaper, one of the Tigers is poisoned at a party, and almost immediately after, Hadley starts getting strange emails warning her to stay far away from the football team.
GRADE: C
REVIEW:
I was very excited to read a sequel to The Cheerleaders because at the time that I read it, I absolutely loved it and was so invested in the book. The Champions didn’t live up to the hype. I think the main issue was that there was no thriller aspect to it, but was more of a mystery and the mystery wasn’t that interesting. Not to mention that a murder didn’t even occur until 70% in the novel and by then all the football players have the same personalities that you really don’t care what would happen to them. That’s another issue with this book, is that the cast is very large and you can’t tell them apart aside from the major characters. And speaking of the main character, Hadley was the least interesting MC there could be, not to mention that she had a crush on one of the football players and when he went into a coma she had no real reaction to it (you’d think she would’ve been sorry about it). She was more interested in who was going to get editor in chief at her school newspaper than her crush being in the hospital. It was very odd. The chapters were also incredibly loooong.
The whole book just reinforced stereotypes of football players being awful people to young teens and how they can get away with anything because the whole town worships them. I was really hoping the novel would’ve gotten better at some point, but it never did.
This book can be read as a standalone novel so if you’ve read The Cheerleaders, you really don’t need to read this sequel, as it doesn’t add much to the first book’s plot, other than having cameos from some of their characters.
*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
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What It Does: Conceals dark under eyes and blemishes. Evens skintone out.
Active Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and peptides.
Verdict: This concealer is for those who love their makeup to also be skincare. The concealer isn’t drying and doesn’t crack, not even after hours of wearing it. It looks and feels like your own skin, and is very lightweight. 81% of the concealer is made up of serum, so the coverage is between light to medium. If you need extreme coverage, I don’t think that this concealer would work for that, but if you want a concealer that feels like skin and is crease free for up to twelve hours, then this will work perfectly. I love the doe-foot applicator because it has a slight curve that fits perfectly along your undereyes. I have genetic dark undereyes and this concealer does conceal it somewhat (not entirely but the fact that it still looks like your skin is a plus because a lot of concealers that do conceal the darkness feel chalky). This concealer is very dewy, so my suggestion is to apply it and keep it on for a few minutes prior to blurring it into your skin with a sponge, as it will maximize the coverage. If you start to blend it out while it’s too watery, it made not give you the same coverage. I don’t think this is the best concealer to use for blemishes or zits though, as I can’t see it being able to conceal severe redness. This concealer is excellent if you need medium coverage and love your concealer to also have skincare benefits.
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Hanna is no stranger to dark thoughts: as a young child, she tried to murder her own mother. But that was more than sixteen years ago. And extensive therapy—and writing letters to her younger brother—has since curbed those nasty tendencies.
Now twenty-four, Hanna is living an outwardly normal life of domestic content. Married to real estate agent Jacob, she’s also stepmother to his teenage daughter Joelle. They live in a beautiful home, and Hanna loves her career as a phlebotomist—a job perfectly suited to her occasional need to hurt people.
But when Joelle begins to change in ways that don’t suit Hanna’s purposes, her carefully planned existence threatens to come apart. With life slipping out of her control, Hanna reverts to old habits, determined to manipulate the events and people around her. And the only thing worse than a baby sociopath is a fully grown one.
GRADE: B-
REVIEW:
This novel is the highly anticipated sequel to Baby Teeth. When we left Hanna at the end of the first book, she was sent to an institution for troubled girls – when we meet Hanna as an adult she’s a phlebtomist, where she uses her job as a means to exact pain whenever she feels stressed on her patients. One day she meets a widowed father with a young girl and soon she marries him and becomes a stepmother. Hanna lives a very structured and mundane life, but she’s happy, until her stepdaughter becomes pregnant. This event triggers her to the point that her past sociopathic tendencies reemerge. While I found this novel very fast paced and I did like adult Hanna a lot, I kind of expected more. What I mean is that child Hanna was way more deranged than adult Hanna, and I know that adult Hanna was trying to avoid ever having to go to prison, but I kind of wished that she would’ve been more dangerous if that makes sense? I did like how the novel ended – Hanna deserved to get rid of all those terrible people in her life.
If you read the first book you might like this sequel, although this book can be read as a standalone. I don’t know if this book was much of a thriller, so if you’re into thrillers where you’re worried about any of the characters dying, this isn’t that sort of thriller. I do enjoy Stage’s novels overall, but do feel that she fills her novels with too many mundane events and details that don’t really add to the story.
*Thank you so much to NetGalley & Thomas & Mercer for the digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
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Set during the early years of Lebanon’s fifteen-year civil war, We Walked On immerses readers
in the landscape of war, weaving political unrest into everyday life. With Hisham, a thirty-year-
old Arabic teacher, and Rita, his fourteen-year-old student, Chehade has created two richly
drawn characters who counter violence with the redemptive power of books and human
connection and find authentic hope in untenable circumstances. We Walked On is a timely
novel that examines the power of war to pervert our moral sense and asks if peace is ever
possible in an unjust world.
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