Happy Saturday, Boils and Ghouls, and welcome back to another exclusive book ARC review.
I do hope you’re enjoying these little preview treats into some delicious upcoming horror delights! Feedback is always encouraged and welcomed 💬
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Advanced Reader Copy Review
A Novella
Genre: Horror
Goodreads book description:
This Horror Novella releases on (September 16, 2025.)
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graphic made using Canva
Rating: 💀💀💀.5
I.M.P.O 💭
in my pǝssǝssod personal opinion
What did you think of the stories?
“Cop Car” is an interesting novelette to open this book, yet I feel I didn’t connect with it as much as I would have liked to, based on the Goodreads description:
It was the inspiration behind this book (and understandably so, given the novella’s title) but it didn’t click with me as I hoped it would. The story, to me, felt like it was about how trying to control an “absolute power source” truly corrupts, absolutely, (which is a very intriguing concept) but the structure, length and pacing felt off to me.
Second story, “Your Next Best American Girl” was more my speed–especially given the grotesque body horror “David Cronenberg” elements mixed in with those nostalgic “Drop Dead Gorgeous” Pageant Queen vibes. That one novelette alone would have made this book a holy cow! “5-skulls” read for me, personally…
And the third “Red Skies in the Morning” gives me “The Ring” meets “It Follows” vibes… and I really enjoyed the reference to an old saying I’ve used my entire life to determine the weather…
“Red skies at night” Selene said, “sailors delight.”
Jim cocked his eyebrow at her.
“Red skies in the morning,” she continued, “sailors take warning.”
Did the book live up to your expectations?
I’m not sure that I truly had any expectations to meet when reading this one. It was my first BookSirens ARC and I was honestly really drawn in by the beautiful cover art, so I went in open and mindful to anything, but I did feel the choice of ordering the three stories impacted how I read, and committed myself to this book, which I can talk more about.
How was the reading XP?
Again, IMPO, if the second story had been the one to introduce the novella (or had been in another collection of stories or it’s only novelette), I think I would have approached the book a little differently.
I felt to have that horrific gem of a beautiful Body Horror story, sandwiched in-between some very important and heavy thought-provoking societal topics found within the other stories, really took away from the true impact this novella may (and should) have on the reader.
While it fits perfectly with the themes this novella wishes to address (i.e., revisiting old standards and challenging new norms to bring about great change), I was just sad to find it hidden in the back corners of this well-written collection…
Also, please do not get me wrong–I did like the other stories found in this book, I just was really captivated by that body horror in the second novelette (and a touch of that same feel in the third story 🙈)
Would you recommend it to others?
(Y)/N
Yes. This was a truly beautifully-written collection of Horror fiction that addresses the real horrors found in our society today…
Please go and add this book to your TBR to be notified of when it becomes available on Kindle/Amazon on September 16.
Are you a Horror writer/author looking for ARC feedback on your upcoming book(s)?
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I want to thank you, Boils and Ghouls, for taking the time to read my honest review of Nadia Bulkin‘s upcoming novella Issues with Authority and thank you to BookSirens for allowing me to have access to this advanced readers’ copy!
Keep your eyes peeled for the release this September 👀
Until we meet again,
Thanks for reading!
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