Thursday, January 30, 2025

Lightlark (Lightlark, #1) by Alex Aster
🎧 Narrated by Suzy Jackson

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Welcome to the Centennial. 

Every 100 years, the island of Lightlark appears to host the Centennial, a deadly game that only the rulers of six realms are invited to play. The invitation is a summons—a call to embrace victory and ruin, baubles and blood. The Centennial offers the six rulers one final chance to break the curses that have plagued their realms for centuries. Each ruler has something to hide. Each realm’s curse is uniquely wicked. To destroy the curses, one ruler must die.

Isla Crown is the young ruler of Wildling—a realm of temptresses cursed to kill anyone they fall in love with. They are feared and despised, and are counting on Isla to end their suffering by succeeding at the Centennial.

To survive, Isla must lie, cheat, and betray…even as love complicates everything.


I really enjoyed Lightlark! I wasn't sure about it initially, but after the first 100 pages or so I was invested in the characters and the story. Isla and Oro do wander around quite a bit looking for something, and that does eat up quite a bit of the book, but I think it was necessary for their relationship to develop naturally, and for us to understand more about the island. 

Isla is kept in the dark for most of the book, and I really liked discovering truths and new information when she did. She's one of the youngest rulers and doesn't have the centuries of experience and knowledge that everyone else has. Her guardians kept her locked away most of her life until the Centennial, and were largely what shaped her as a young adult. However, none of that could have really prepared her for what Lightlark would be like once she was there. I also didn't like the expectations they placed on her, despite her role as their ruler. She should have been able to have books, if she wanted them, or the ability to leave her room whenever she wished. 

I wasn't overly shocked by the ending, although I did enjoy seeing how everything played out. There were some surprises with a love interest I definitely didn't see coming, and I hope we get more of that story in the next book. I agree with Isla that he did a bad thing, but I can also see it from his side where he thought he was doing it for the right reasons. He should have trusted her with the truth and allowed her to make her own choices, and removing someone's ability to choose is never the right path, especially when love and trust are involved. 

The romance was also something I wasn't on board with at the beginning, especially since both potential love interests are significantly older, but that's easily overlooked when you think about how long the Centennial is and when you're given new information at the end. Isla's relationships and friendships had time to develop organically and I appreciated that. Someone seeming to insta-like her is explained later on as well. 

I'm really hoping we get more of the character's backstory in the second book, because I think they've all been through a lot and have interesting tales to tell. I also want to know more about Lightlark itself and how it works. The audiobook for this one is amazing, and I think Suzy Jackson did a phenomenal job. I'm definitely going to pick up Nightbane soon! (★★★⋆☆)

Wednesday, January 29, 2025

DNF&Y [45]

DNF&Y is used to explain why I gave up on certain books, and what about them just didn't work for me. What I disliked about a book might be something you love, so it helps to share your thoughts even when they're negative!

Strong Like the Sea by Wendy S. Swore

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Featuring a secret ocean code with a hidden message for YOU to decipher!

Even though twelve-year-old Alexis was born in Hawaii, she won’t surf or swim with her friends—not since the ocean and its hidden creatures swept her out to sea. Instead, she grabs her best detective hat and decodes her mom’s latest challenge

Alex’s mom works in counterintelligence and leaves codes, ciphers, and puzzles behind for Alex to solve, always with a “treasure” at the end. It’s a brilliant game between them, and Alex loves figuring out her mom’s puzzles—especially the tricky ones—but when an emergency at sea puts her mom in possible danger, solving the next one suddenly feels far more urgent.

Friends help as Alex races to decipher each clue before time runs out, but when the trail leads to grumpy old Uncle, his enormous dog Sarge, and a sea turtle unlike any other, the challenge changes into something bigger than any before. With storms on the horizon and lives on the line, Alex must face her fears to solve Mom’s challenge and save those she loves. With her ohana to help, she must be strong like the sea.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

It's been almost four years since I started this book and I still haven't picked it back up. Recently, I tried skimming through what I'd read, and while it did jog my memory, I just didn't care enough about the characters or the story to start over or continue. I had previously jotted a few thoughts down on sticky notes, so I'll share what those were at least.

1) Glasses. The main character makes a huge deal - several times if I remember correctly - about needing her glasses; however, they're not portrayed on the cover. This has nothing to do with the story, I know, but it was a small detail that stood out. It honestly felt like they were brought up at least once every few pages, so it just seems like something an artist would want to include in their depiction of the character. 

2) Mom obsession. Unhealthy perspective/comparison. "If mom got a clue like this bottle at her job, she'd probably be done already and on to her second clue by now. 'If I could figure out how to think like her, I'd be faster.'" It would have been nice if the main character had her own way of doing things instead of only wanting to be like her mom. Idolizing a parent, especially as a young child, is expected. This just felt like more than that. 

3) Um...why? "'Pfft. And the wind doesn't blow. Fo' reals!'" Some of the language and dialogue used in this book was super cringey and felt weird when it was attributed to adults. 

I do remember liking the Hawaiian setting and the descriptions of places the main character visited. At the end of the day, it simply wasn't a book I wanted to finish, and it was time for it to come off my "Currently Reading" shelf. (★★☆☆☆)

*I put the date I finished it as December 31, 2024 so it didn't count towards any of my 2025 challenges!

Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Top Ten Tuesday [6]

 
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together!

This week's topic: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2024

1) Debbie Cassidy
2) L.J. Andrews
3) Kaydence Snow
4) H.D. Carlton 
5) K.A. Knight 
6) Jordyn Alexander
7) Jo Segura
8) Travis Baldree
9) Lauren Roberts
10) Harper L. Woods

When Monsters Lie (The Monsters Among Us, #1) by Debbie Cassidy
Demon Throne (Demons of Morningstar, #1) by Debbie Cassidy

The Ever King (The Ever Seas, #1) by L.J. Andrews
Variant Lost (The Evelyn Maynard Trilogy, #1) by Kaydence Snow
Haunting Adeline (Cat and Mouse, #1) by H.D. Carlton
Den of Vipers by K.A. Knight

War Queen (The War Brides of Adrik, #1) by Jordyn Alexander
Legends & Lattes (Legends & Lattes, #1) by Travis Baldree
Powerless (The Powerless Trilogy, #1) by Lauren Roberts

What Lies Beyond the Veil (Of Flesh & Bone, #1) by Harper L. Woods
The Coven (Coven of Bones, #1) by Harper L. Woods

Sunday, January 26, 2025

The Sunday Post [68]

 
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly at the Caffeinated Reviewer! It's an opportunity to share news, post a recap for the previous week, showcase books, and highlight what's planned for the week ahead.

News:

It's been a slow week for me. My daughter - or possibly a coworker - got me sick. I'm finally feeling human again and getting back to my daily activities. I probably went through three tissue boxes last week, lol. I've sneezed more times than I can count, and seriously considered adult diapers for a minute (moms will understand this πŸ˜…). I will say that being sick did force me to relax, but now I feel like I have soooo much to do and catch up on around the house.

Previous Week on the Blog:

Sunday: The Sunday Post [67]
Monday: Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi *review + giveaway
Wednesday: πŸ’«
Thursday: πŸ’«
Saturday: πŸ’«

What I'm Currently Reading:
🎧 Lightlark (Lightlark, #1) by Alex Aster
A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson
Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier

Same as last week! I should finish all three in the next day or two though. I jumped ahead to She Doesn't Have a Clue to try and finish it before its pub date, but I struggled with it and ended up posting my review a few days after its release.

What I Plan on Reading Next:
The Encanto's Daughter (The Encanto's Daughter, #1) by Melissa de la Cruz
We Would Never by Tova Mirvis

What I'm Watching:

My husband and I started playing Diablo IV and have really been enjoying ourselves! I don't like that you have to play it online though. I wish we could play on our own without worrying about a stable internet connection. It's so frustrating to be disconnected when you're in the middle of a task. Unfortunately, most new games seem to be doing this. We're no longer paying to own a game, but we're paying to participate in them instead (something my husband said). 

We've also been watching Blue Lock and Haikyu!! Both have been great! We've been watching Blue Lock with the kids, since it's supposed to be appropriate for their age. However, in the newest season there have been some questionable characters that say and do things I don't feel are appropriate for young children. I think most of those references have gone over their heads, but now my husband and I need to watch them ahead of time. It sort of ruined the family fun we were having. Haikyu!! is one we watch on our own since it's subbed and the kids can't read fast enough to follow along.

Challenge Updates:
I'm setting my Physical TBR and NetGalley goals to 50! I hope I'm able to make a dent in both this year.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway for Boys in the Valley!

Friday, January 24, 2025

She Doesn't Have a Clue by Jenny Elder Moke

Synopsis (via Goodreads):  With a colorful cast of characters and a cellar full of wine, anything can happen―from murder to a second chance at love―in Jenny Elder Moke's half mystery, half romance adult debut set at a lavish destination wedding.

A high-end wedding on a private island off the coast of Seattle sounds like something out of a magazine. But for bestselling mystery author Kate Valentine, it’s more like a nightmare.

Why Kate agreed to attend her ex-fiancΓ©’s wedding is its own enigma, but she’ll plaster on a fake smile for two nights, with the aid of free champagne, naturally. And because the groom happens to be her editor, she’ll try to finish a draft of her latest Loretta Starling mystery as a wedding gift. But when the bride is poisoned and Kate stumbles across a dead body, she finds herself in a real-life mystery that eerily echoes the plot of her latest novel. And the only person who seems willing to help Kate catch the killer is Jake Hawkins, aka: the Hostralian; aka: Kate’s biggest romantic regret.

As the wine flows and the weather threatens to hold every guest hostage, bitter resentments and long-held grudges surface amongst the colorful crowd. Anyone could be capable of murder, it seems. What would Loretta do? Unfortunately, Kate doesn’t have a clue.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.


She Doesn't Have a Clue was messy. The main character, the plot, the everything. It felt like a bad game of Clue. Honestly, this book might have been more enjoyable had everyone been playing a game instead of trying to solve an actual murder. Then the cutesy rom-com aspect would have made more sense. As it stands, the romance in this one felt forced and happened at the most inopportune moments. Don't even get me started on their "fights" and the lack of communication for 98% of the book.

It was also impossible to take anyone seriously. The characters were so over-the-top and exaggerated, I couldn't believe they were real people. Again, their personalities would have been better suited to characters and people acting out a game. The author was also trying too hard with the list of suspects, so it was obviously the least obvious person. The only reason I didn't DNF this one halfway through is because I wanted to see if I was right (I was). 

There were also things that just didn't make sense:

"Kate could barely put her arms out with Jake wedged in the space, though, much less feel her way around for a secret latch or hidden release."

"He grabbed her thighs and lifted her up, wrapping them around his waist as he gently pushed her back against the opposite wall, bracing her on a cross beam that put her mouth on a level with his."

Where did all that room come from? They went from barely being able to move in a super confined space (Kate even mentioned being claustrophobic and needing to scream), to having plenty of room for sexy time??

Also, why did she keep touching dead bodies?? If she doesn't want to be accused of murder, she should stop leaving her DNA and fingerprints all over the place. Furthermore, no one should be that calm when finding a body. Yes, she writes murder mysteries or whatever, but that doesn't mean she's chill as a cucumber when it happens in real life.

I also understood the Loretta comparisons, but thought that entire aspect of the book detracted from the story. Kate would end up thinking like her character, or playing out scenarios in real life as if she were in one of her books, and it just didn't work for me. She was too scatterbrained and very much the "bumbling idiot" she's compared to later on. Kate herself lacked substance and didn't have much of a personality, which made her hard to relate to as the main character.

Kate honestly didn't have the brain cells to solve anyone's murder, and the clues just happened to fall in her lap whenever she needed them to. She also found herself in the strangest predicaments and somehow managed to get herself accused of being the murderer on several occasions. Despite this, everyone seems to carry on with their personal lives and only hash out problems when the author needed to move the story along. It was all too convenient.

She Doesn't Have a Clue has an interesting premise, but I think it would have worked better as a lighthearted rom-com. They should have been taken to some rich person's island for an eccentric game of Clue - complete with fake murders - and the focus been on developing a realistic and authentic relationship between Kate and Jake. One without the dreaded miscommunication trope. (★★⋆☆☆)

Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Top Ten Tuesday [5]

 
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together!

This week's topic: The Ten Most Recent Additions to My Book Collection (or to your to-read list!)

1) I'm trying not to buy any more books until my physical TBR and NetGalley ratio are under control, but I made an exception for Onyx Storm (which still hasn't arrived yet). Hopefully I'll get to read it before I see any spoilers. 🀞


2) I also added one more book on NetGalley because I couldn't resist the synopsis. πŸ˜…


Salt Bones by Jennifer Givhan: "For fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic and Ramona Emerson’s Shutter: a gripping retelling of Persephone and Demeter in the Mexicali borderlands

At the edge of the Salton Sea, in the blistering borderlands, something is out hunting. . .

Malamar Veracruz has never left the dust-choked town of El Valle. Here, Mal has done her best to build a good life. She’s raised two children, worked hard, and tried to forget the painful, unexplained disappearance of her sister, Elena. When another local girl goes missing, Mal plunges into a fresh yet familiar nightmare. As a desperate Mal hunts for answers, her search becomes increasingly tangled with inscrutable visions of a horse-headed woman, a local legend who Mal feels compelled to follow. Mal’s perspective is joined by the voices of her two daughters, all three of whom must work to uncover the truth about the missing girls in their community before it's too late.


Combining elements of Latina and Indigenous culture, family drama, mystery, horror, and magical realism in a spellbinding mix, Salt Bones lays bare the realities of environmental catastrophe, family secrets, and the unrelenting bond between mothers and daughters."


Doesn't that sound like it's going to be amazing??

3-10) The rest are books I've recently added to my Want to Read shelf on Goodreads:

The Library at Hellebore by Cassandra Khaw
The Scorpion Queen by Mina Fears
Infinity Alchemist (Infinity Alchemist, #1) by Kacen Callender
Caught Up (Into Darkness, #2) by Navessa Allen

Rewitched (Rewitched, #1) by Lucy Jane Wood
His Face Is the Sun (Throne of Khetara, #1) by Michelle JabΓ¨s Corpora
House of Blight by Maxym M. Martineau

Monday, January 20, 2025

Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi
🎧 Narrated by David Aaron Baker
[+ an arc giveaway]

Synopsis (via Goodreads):  St. Vincent's Orphanage for Boys.Turn of the century, in a remote valley in Pennsylvania.

Here, under the watchful eyes of several priests, thirty boys work, learn, and worship. Peter Barlow, orphaned as a child by a gruesome murder, has made a new life here. As he approaches adulthood, he has friends, a future... a family.

Then, late one stormy night, a group of men arrive at their door, one of whom is badly wounded, occult symbols carved into his flesh. His death releases an ancient evil that spreads like sickness, infecting St. Vincent's and the children within. Soon, boys begin acting differently, forming groups. Taking sides.

Others turn up dead.

Now Peter and those dear to him must choose sides of their own, each of them knowing their lives — and perhaps their eternal souls — are at risk.

The Exorcist meets Lord of the Flies, by way of Midnight Mass, in Boys in the Valley, a brilliant coming-of-age tale from award-winning author Philip Fracassi.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

“Some, I can tell, even find it exciting. As if it were a game, all this murder.”
The beginning of this book gave me chills. I had actual gooseflesh along my forearms as I was listening to Boys in the Valley, and thought my anxiety might send me over the edge. I don't like scary stories or movies, so I tend to avoid them, but I was curious about the religious undertones and its comparison to Lord of the Flies. Unfortunately, I think that comparison was a bit of an exaggeration. I haven't seen The Exorcist or heard of Midnight Mass, so I'm not sure if those are more accurate. 

I decided to listen to the audiobook since I was in the middle of a puzzle, but ended up disliking the narrator quite a bit. The adult men sounded okay, and I thought he did Johnson's voice really well, but the kids sounded too high pitched and there wasn't much variation between them. Their voices felt unrealistic, so their parts were a little off putting. It was hard to take the content seriously when the kids sounded - and I'm agreeing with another reviewer on this one - like Mickey Mouse. I think the spookiness of the book would have been better had I decided to read it instead. 

Speaking of Johnson, his character was my favorite. It's not because he was a good guy, or because he grew the most as a person, but because I felt his story was the most believable. He's not perfect or even nice, and he isn't at St. Vincent's because of religious reasons or a desire to seek forgiveness. He's basically there to do the head priest's dirty work, a person I absolutely hated for the entirety of the book. I can't remember what the kids called him, but he was an awful man that had no business being in charge of children at an orphanage. He's "redeeming" moment just made me hate him more.

I think Father Andrew was supposed to be his opposite. A kind man that cared about the children and their needs, but he was a spineless coward when it came to standing up for them against the head priest. He does have some commendable moments throughout the book, but I wish his character had been more bold. The religious themes only added to the direness of their situation, although I think those aspects could have been expanded on a little more.

The kids are all there because they have nowhere else to go. Most of them have witnessed or done things no child should have to, and we can see how those experiences shape some of their personalities and relationships within the orphanage. A few of them really stood out, while others tended to blend together in the background, especially once things took a turn for the worse. 

Overall, Boys in the Valley was a deeply chilling story that made my heart race. The initial scenes that set the tone of the book left me feeling anxious and hovering on the edge of my seat. There are some very descriptive scenes with blood, gore, and other gruesome details that some might find it hard to stomach. It added to the creepiness of the book, but sometimes it was difficult to listen to. (★★★⋆☆)

Giveaway Rules:

This giveaway officially starts on January 20th and ends on February 3rd at 12 AM. The winner will be announced on February 4th on this post within the Rafflecopter form, and also notified via email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond or I will have Rafflecopter select another winner (read my full giveaway policy here).

International friends -- your giveaway will be a little different! Instead the book mentioned above, you can choose one book (up to $15) from Amazon! Just make sure they ship to you. I know it's not the same thing, but I don't want to leave anyone out! If this happens, another winner will be selected for the ARC of Boys in the Valley. Good luck!


Sunday, January 19, 2025

The Sunday Post [67]

 
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly at the Caffeinated Reviewer! It's an opportunity to share news, post a recap for the previous week, showcase books, and highlight what's planned for the week ahead.

News:

Ahhh, it's so good to be blogging again! I've been consistently carving out time for it and it's made me ridiculously happy this week. I've met a couple of new bloggers and started following a lot of you on Bloglovin'. If you like my blog and content, please interact! Books are so much better when you have people to share them with.

We recently moved to Colorado! Its been a few months and we've settled in for the most part. The kids really like their new school and I'm enjoying my new job. They've had so much fun playing in the snow (we've never lived anywhere with snow before), and get so excited when there's enough for them to go sledding or tubing down the hill by our house. We're currently experiencing an artic storm and I could do without the negative temperatures. πŸ₯Ά

We also have chickens now! As luck would have it, we ended up with seven hens and one rooster. It's so hard to tell what they'll be as baby chicks, so I'm definitely happy with how things turned out. We have two Rhode Island Reds, two Mystic Onyx, two Olive Eggers, and two Assorted Sapphires. For those of you who have seen Avatar: The Last Airbender, our rooster's name is Iroh. We weren't expecting eggs until the spring, but we've gotten several in the last week or so.

The hens are named Sarai, Clementine, Fire, Bellatrix, Luna, and The Acorns (they were two similar as chicks to tell them apart, but they also looked like acorns, lol). One of the acorns we now call "mohawk" because she has a little mohawk on the top of her head. 

Previous Week on the Blog:

Sunday: πŸ’«
Saturday: πŸ’«

What I'm Currently Reading:
🎧 Lightlark (Lightlark, #1) by Alex Aster
A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson
Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier

I'm about halfway finished with the audiobook for Lightlark and I'm really enjoying it so far! I definitely still have questions, but I'm hoping those get answered before the end. I'm 10% into A Language of Dragons and I'm not sure I'm going to like the MC. This one is an ARC I'm reading on my Kindle. Things We Do in the Dark is my Book club book that I need to finish asap (which I'm also not very far in 🫣). 

What I Plan on Reading Next:
She Doesn't Have a Clue by Jenny Elder Moke
The Encanto's Daughter (The Encanto's Daughter, #1) by Melissa de la Cruz

What I'm Watching: 

I'm still watching One Piece and I'm currently in the Wano Country Arc. I plan on Starting Demon Slayer soon! I finished Goblin Slayer but it was a little too dark when it came to the content and what the goblins wanted women for. 

Challenge Updates:
I'm setting my Physical TBR and NetGalley goals to 50! I hope I'm able to make a dent in both this year.

Friday, January 17, 2025

The Monsters Among Us series by Debbie Cassidy

Goodreads synopsis for When Monsters Lie (The Monsters Among Us, #1): 

The world went to shit the day I was born.

They say fire rained from the sky for seven days signaling the arrival of the monsters.

They say humanity fought hard to beat them.

They say the celestials saved us.

They say a lot of things.

Me? I deal in the present. In scouting for useful things and keeping my team alive outside the protective walls of our base. I might not have a fancy monster-killing blade like the Sweepers do, but I’ve avoided getting my face eaten off so far, so I call that a win.

But when my base is taken by monsters, my scout skills are the only thing standing between imminent demise and survival.

Sanctuary lies across the deadlands—monster infested territory, unmapped and uncharted even by the celestials. It’s the only route, and I have no choice but to navigate my people through it.

I’m a scout, a survivor. I got this.

Until I haven’t.

The last thing I expect is to be relying on three monsters for protection. But fate obviously has a sense of humor. Shemyaza and his scouts are intelligent, deathly, and lethal, and turns out they’re the only ones who can lead us to safety.

Only problem is, their aid comes with a hefty price.

Me.

Action, sizzle and multiple love interests for our lucky heroine in this paranormal fantasy romance.

*this is going to be a review for all five books in the series 

I devoured the first 4.5 books in a single day! I would have finished the entire series but sleep won out and I had to stop. The Monsters Among Us series was exactly what I was looking for. It starts off with a bang, has a lot of action, world building, and story development. The characters were decently fleshed out and didn't get on my nerves, AND there's a reverse harem situation happening (although I would have liked a little more from that). 

My only other complaint would be the length of the books. They're pretty short and I think the story could have benefitted from more character development (particularly with some of the secondary characters) and more time spent on exploring the world and relationships. I think Cassidy wrote something amazing, but I also think it could have been more than it was. Rue's love life is happening alongside the world ending, so a few aspects felt rushed, but it was still enjoyable to read about. 

As for the reverse harem situation... I feel like calling it that is a stretch. It's almost like she rotates between several different males as things happen to others. πŸ˜… Rue's love life definitely isn't boring, lol. I was also a little frustrated that one of my favorites didn't really get any attention until the last book, and even then it was short and sweet. I would have preferred for the MC to have established relationships and dynamics throughout the books and not just have them tossed in seemingly on a whim. A budding bromance between some of them would have been nice also. They're all very different and don't really like to share. 

I also liked the last book, When Monsters Fight, less than the others. It didn't have the same feel to it and the story felt rushed to its inevitable conclusion. There's all this build up and then... semi-cliffhanger. I was left feeling unsatisfied with it overall, despite having an absolute blast reading the books up until then. The dystopian aspect, the world ending, monsters, demons, celestials, other worlds - there's A LOT going on in this series.

Rue is a likable MC that fights for her friends and the people she cares about. She also feels responsible for the other humans that are out there just trying to survive for another day. Despite failures and setbacks, she keeps pushing forward. She jumps from one thing to the next (and from one male to another) until the story's conclusion, so you're constantly left wondering what (or who) is coming next. πŸ˜‰

Definitely not a deep or profound series, but one I enjoyed immensely and had a lot of fun with. What was it you said, Sam? Brain candy? That's exactly what The Monsters Among Us series was for me. 🧠🍭 (★★★★☆)