morbid courtosities

  • The Awkward Out-of-Sync Half-Life of Funk | Book Review

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    Halfway through the month and I’m finally getting back to blogging. This year has been extremely interesting for me, which definitely has taken a slight toll on my blog posting habits, but I’m certainly going to try and keep these exclusive book reviews coming with some great reading recommendations!

    As I’ve mentioned before, I love getting an opportunity to read and review advanced copies, and share them with you via this blog, so that I can connect all you horror book lovers out there with some seriously talented authors (who will definitely scare the socks off you…)

    Please refer to my Ratings + Review Policy to see how I evaluate my reading experiences on my socials.

    To tease a bit of this novella without spoiling anything (because you want to go in as naive as possible):

    If you are into those mind-bending, reality-questioning scenarios that will mess with your sense of perception and time, then I think you’ll dig this one…

    And when Nick Brewster himself summoned me and asked if I would read his upcoming novella, my morbid curiosity simply could not resist diving into the story!

    The Awkward Out-of-Sync Half-Life of Funk

    by Nick Brewster

    A Novella

    Genre: Cyberpunk Sci-fi

    Goodreads book description

    This mind-altering, Cyberpunk Sci-fi novella releases today and is available immediately on Amazon Kindle Unlimited!

    Check to see if it’s available on KU in your region:

    Go to the eBook

    I.M.👻.O 💭

    In My Personal Opinion

    Rating: 💀💀💀💀💀

    How was the writing style and pacing?

    If you can, this fast-paced novella is easily consumed in a single reading/sitting and will have you completely immersed within the first few chapters!

    Don’t be fooled or scared off at first…

    Stick with it…

    Were different perspectives or narrators used to tell the story? Did it add to the complexity or confusion of the plot?

    We mainly follow the story through the perspective of Funk, our main character, and are introduced to a few other strong side characters (Renny and Maya) throughout the story.

    The connections and complexities that Funk experiences outside of his time at Sync is when the story really begins!

    Did you enjoy the reading XP?

    Because I had no idea where things were going, and the way that ending hit me solid in the chest, it was seriously an intense reading experience! I am definitely a sucker for those types of “mind-bending” reads and thought that the execution was super solid here.

    Were you surprised or shocked with twists and turns in the plot? Did you see them coming or were you caught off guard?  

    Absolutely… and I’m not going to spoil anything about the ending, so you must read it for yourself 👀

    Would you recommend this book to others?

    Yes!!!

    Especially if you’ve ever worked in the Technology/User Testing field (like myself) and know some of the real horrors that can live in our digital realm…

    It gave me the same existential dread that the episode Playtest (S3, Ep2 of Black Mirror) did…

    Make sure you haunt your inbox with more book reviews…

    Are you a Horror 💀 INDIE author looking for a honest review of your upcoming book?

    My creepy heart and soul becomes so full when authors reach out and are so excited to talk about their upcoming books. I love connecting horror lovers with horror authors, so getting a chance to read and review early copies with my honest thoughts for the horror community feels extremely impactful!

    Please summon the attention of this ghostly presence via the form (on my Contact page)

    Thank you Nick Brewster for summoning and gifting me an advanced copy of The Awkward Out-of-Sync Half-Life of Funk to read in exchange for my honest review…

    And last but not least,

    Happy Release Day! 🍾

    I also want to thank you, Boils and Ghouls, for taking the time out of your day to read my honest book review of Nick Brewster’s latest sci-fi novella.

    Let me know if you’d read this book in the comment section below…

    Until we meet again,

    + Creep The Backrooms

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  • Canadian Indie Bookstore Day ’26

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    I seriously can’t believe it’s been over an entire year for us, boils and ghouls, when I began this website and wrote one of my first blog posts for http://www.morbidcourtosities.ca 😱

    📚 CIBD ’25

    Celebrating Canadian Independent Booksellers Today (and everyday!)

    Creep 👀 the post

    For Canadian Independent Bookstore Day last year, my haunted spirit visited two local bookstores in the Halifax area (Trident Booksellers & Bookmark Halifax) and I walked away with a handful of paperbacks, plus so much love in my heart & soul for our local book community in Halifax, NS!

    CIBD ’25 Purchases
    The goods just as you walk into Trident 🔱 Booksellers Cafe
    I love a good cover calling me in the Sci-Fi section 👽
    Stranger than Fiction 🙈 at Bookmark Halifax

    And now here we are, over a year later…
    and still morbidly curious AF about horror and weird literature!

    So to follow through with sacred traditions and rituals as this ghoul would, I went out again this year for Canadian Independent Bookstore Day.

    On a crisp Saturday, April 25th, I planned my own “hot ghoul bookstore walk” around town with four local bookstores to visit and the goal to score at least one to two books per shop (we’d had a hard cap of three because we need to save $$$ this year…)

    + make sure to be Subscribed for updates on the latest blog posts

    CIBD ’26 Bookstore Crawl 🚶‍♀️

    CIBD ’26 book display at Bookmark Halifax, Spring Garden Rd.

    First stop 📍

    King’s Co-Op Bookstore

    Nestled inside Dal campus in the basement of King’s College, you are bound to discover a book you’re itching to read. And if you’re lucky, you might even score a signed copy…

    Not only did I get a signed copy of milktooth by Jaime Burnet, but I also scored a signed copy of Carnalis since Tiffany Morris herself stopped into the store earlier that morning and signed a handful of copies!!!

    What an amazing gift for readers in the area to grab for CIBD!

    Second stop 📍

    Bookmark Halifax

    Possibly the location my soul haunts the most for my horror and weird book needs!!!

    And of course where I scored three more paperbacks on my CIBD ’26 shopping list…

    ~ Walking home for a lunch break ~

    ~ Once hydrated & recharged, ready for part deux ~

    Third stop 📍

    Egghead Books

    Newly opened and located in the north end of Halifax, off adorable Agricola Street is this sweet, cozy little bookshop that gives off the warmest vibes!

    I’m really glad I got to stop in and spend some time there during CIBD, and walk out with two epic horror paperbacks.

    Final stop 📍

    Trident Booksellers & Cafe

    The first of my stops last year, yet the final stop for my ’26 CIBD book crawl. The time I choose to browse last year was probably the same time everyone else wanted to, because it was too crowded to even browse…

    This year I went a bit later, closer to the evening hours, and I had better luck with being able to take my time and bask in the energy of this delicious spot. And, I even walked out with a book this year from another local horror author!

    The skies even cleared enough to capture this beautiful celestial being…

    keep scrolling if you want to see the haul…

    The ’26 CIBD Final Book Crawl Haul 📚

    If I did my math correctly, I was absolutely victorious on my CIBD ’26 Book Crawl with my final haul:

    Walking away with eight paperbacks, two of which are signed by local authors that I’m just itching to meet IRL (and another unsigned copy I’d love to get signed…) I think I absolutely scored some serious goods this year during my bookstore crawl!

    What books did you end up buying last Saturday for CIBD?

    Share them in the comments!

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  • A Dozen Disturbing Horror Reads

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    If you have an insatiable appetite for dark & disturbing literature, then I believe that tonight’s blog post will truly allure your morbid curiosity…

    The saying might be curiosity killed the cat but, when did exploring a dark, depraved and disturbing book ever hurt anybody?

    Okay… Fair enough.

    I’ve had my fair share of nightmares from reading a number of truly horrific horror novels throughout my lifetime, and will always disclose TWs in my book reviews, but it’s never really stopped me from continuing on my quest to discover all the truly morbid literature to exist…

    So, I’d rather enjoy the saying:

    The horrors persists… but so do I.

    I’ve been consistently using Canva.com to make digital art ever since I started to make monthly images for the Morbid Curiosities book club to endorse and promote the upcoming books on socials. I find the mobile application user friendly and with cross platforming abilities, it’s been such a useful creative tool to help make art for the blog.

    And lately, I’ve been discovering so many creatively curated recommendation posts on #bookstagram that have inspired me to do the same on my own feed!

    If you are new to the blog and also possess a rather
    morbid curiosity…

    ☝️ become a subscriber & curse your inbox with blog updates

    Just before we begin tonight’s post, I wanted to share that I’ve started updating some stuff BTS with the Morbid Courtosities blog (and some other unannounced projects in the works) so I’ve felt that the time has come for me to humbly endorse some crowdfunding to keep our presence haunting the internet for centuries to come…

    100% optional and not required to enjoy the blog, by the way!

    or consider becoming a morbid creeper (for $6 CAD/month) to receive exclusive content & other member perks while helping support the blog’s online presence…

    Sign me up to be a morbid creeper!

    & no matter your subscription status, your presence is always welcomed here… Remember that!

    Ghoulish Goods 💎

    If you’re curious, I recently updated my ratings & review policy page to include more in-depth visuals on my evaluation process, especially my rating criteria, to show the variance between a 2 star vs. a 5 star reading experience (in my phantasmic opinion)

    For my Ghoulish Goods project on curating a “disturbing dozen” horror treats for you to consume, based on my personal horror gems, I broke them down into two sub-categories (which are loosely based on my mood reader states) to describe how I engaged with each.

    Half of the books I put into a category I called savored and the other half, I put in one called devoured, with a little more context on why in a moment…

    The First Half

    Let’s define savor.

    “…to fully enjoy, appreciate, and relish a taste, smell, or experience, typically by taking one’s time. It involves deeply appreciating a moment, such as a meal or a victory, to make it last longer.” Merriam-Webster Dictionary

    I was able to savor the reading experiences with these half dozen horrors, especially with the shorter novels and novellas, so that I could deeply appreciate the writing style, plot and character development within these deeply unsettling & thought-provoking books.

    Itch! by Gemma Amor

    The audiobook, also narrated by Gemma Amor, was truly a harrowing listening experience with Gemma’s captivating narration and intensely visceral descriptions of atrocious bodily horrors.

    Readers discretion is advised!

    Get your copy
    Or listen

    Futility by Nuzo Onoh

    After being captured by The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim, when I stumbled upon this book cover art on NetGalley last year, I knew I had to read it!

    It’s a slow-burn pace to start, which can throw off some, but when you get to the intersection of the story, the velocity just increases so quickly and boy, talk about female rage & sweet, sweet revenge.

    Get your copy

    Hell Pulp by Matias YlikAngas

    The book cover alone for Hell Pulp is enough for anyone to grab it off the shelf… but it will be the clever writing, that setting in eternal damnation and the immersive character building that will get you to stay and savor the whole experience!

    Get your copy

    The Only Safe Place Left is the Dark by Warren Wagner

    I’ve heard a lot of book pals adding this one to their TBRs recently due to Eric LaRocca’s endorsement, btw!

    As this one was quite short (the novella is under 100 pages) I really wanted to savor the time spent with this one! Especially given some of the sensitive LGBTQ+ topics discussed throughout the story and the gripping writing style.

    Get your copy

    Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito

    Did you know this particular book cover glows-in-the-dark? Try it, if you own the US Hardcover…

    Shocking yet darkly comedic and all-consuming, the wit and depravity was something to truly savor with this hilariously twisted historical horror.

    Get your copy

    I Gave You Eyes and You Looked Towards Darkness by Irene Sola

    What can I say, I love a deliciously witchy book cover and this one really takes the cake.

    Another shorter read that is under 200 pages that I wanted to savor, with the folklore magical realism vibes and the intoxicating story!

    Get your copy

    The Second Half

    Now, let’s define devour.

    “…to eat hungrily or quickly, to destroy completely, to read quickly and eagerly, to be totally absorbed by a powerful feeling.” Oxford Dictionary

    In rather the opposite manner, yet still complimentary to these authors, I completely devoured these half dozen scares either in a single session or within a couple days!

    Come Closer by Sara Gran

    Another immersive and haunting audiobook experience that truly terrified me to my core!

    Probably not the best idea to listen with headphones after midnight either…

    Get your copy
    Or listen

    Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk

    One of the first books that made me fall for Chuck Palahniuk’s writing… and another glow-in-the-dark book cover!

    This collection of short horror stories, fitting perfectly within the context of the meta story, which follows several authors on a writing retreat as they share their stories with each other just grabbed me from the moment I opened the book.

    Oh… do you have the guts to read Guts?

    Get your copy

    A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay

    Found footage horror is probably my favorite sub-genre of horror! 👀

    And I know of this as I consumed this book in an entire day, on my 32th birthday. It was a great birthday gift… to myself!

    Get your copy

    Earthlings by Sayaka Murata

    Once you begin reading this one, you are done for… just hooked and cooked by the shocking progression of events! The subject matter discussed in this book may trigger some readers…

    Warning: This one is NOT for the faint of heart!

    Get your copy

    Maeve Fly by CJ Leede

    CJ Leede is one of my favorite writers & just the absolute Queen of disturbing & captivating horror stories — her debut novel, Maeve Fly, possibly altered my brain chemistry and turned me into a forever-fan of her books!

    Get your copy

    The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim

    Voted in as the second Morbid Curiosities book club pick back in the winter of 2024, this one quickly became a serious horror gem in my eyes (no pun intended) with the graphic & squeamish vivid descriptions involving eyeballs… enough said.

    Not only is Monika Kim a talented Horror writer, but how she is able to incorporate shocking societal topics many would shy away from speaking about in her stories, in a truly empowering manner, made this book really hit feels for me while reading.

    Get your copy

    Have you personally read any of the 12 horror books mentioned in tonight’s blog post?

    Do you agree with classifying them as horror “gems”?
    What would you consider to be the horror gems in your collection?

    Comment below ⌨️
    & let’s talk more about the disturbing and dark horror literature we can all morbidly enjoy!

    Until we meet again,

    + Creep the Backrooms

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