Release date: April 22nd 2025
Publisher: Titan Books
Pages: 288
Find it: Goodreads Waterstones
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review
Rating: 3.75/5 stars
Synopsis
A twisted, tangled story about workplace love-affairs, and plants with a taste for human flesh
Review
Eat the Ones You Love is a unique and compelling horror tale from Sarah Maria Griffin. The story follows Shell, a young woman who has moved back home following a split from her boyfriend and the loss of her job. She sees a sign advertising a job in the local florist. Shell takes the job working for the beautiful Neve in the local shopping mall. But Neve isn’t all that meets the eye – she belongs to Baby the orchid that grows in the heart of the mall and Baby’s hungry, hungry for human flesh.
This has got to be one of the most strange and unusual stories I’ve ever read. This is my second book from Sarah Maria Griffin and it was a really enjoyable read. I really liked Griffin’s prose and I thought she did a brilliant job of describing this dilapidated shopping mall that’s slowly rotting away. Griffin also builds the tension really well and I loved the tense, unsettling atmosphere in this story, particularly in the chapters from Baby’s perspective.
The characters were well crafted and I really enjoyed Shell’s story. She’s quite lost and unsure at the start of the story and develops into so much more. I also liked the way Griffin developed the relationship between Shell and Neve as the story progressed. Eat the Ones You Love is well paced and the story ended in a way that I definitely didn’t expect. This unique, slightly unhinged tale is definitely unlike anything I’ve read before so if you love creepy plants or horror books that will stick with you long after reading, you definitely need Eat the Ones You Love on your reading list.
Cade and his band of wonderists are back, and things are about to go from bad to worse. The Lords Celestine and Devilish are finally about to have the battle they’ve been itching to have for centuries, and they’re going to do it in the mortal realm. Cade and the Malevolent Seven have to do everything they can to stop this war and they might just have to kill a whole lot of people to do it.
The Burial Witch is the second novella in The Language of Magic universe and this beautiful tale takes place between the events of Threadneedle. In this story, we follow a member of the covens – Miranda Richardson – who discovers a box in her parent’s attic that she cannot seem to open. What could the box possibly contain?
The Vengeance is a swashbuckling fantasy adventure that follows Morgane, daughter of the pirate captain Anna-Marie. Her ship is the Vengeance and they are known to attack and destroy ships from the Four Chains Trading Company at any opportunity. When Morgane’s mother is fatally wounded during one such attack, she reveals the truth to Morgane – she is not her mother but her aunt. This sets Morgane on a quest to France, to find her real family and what happened to them. What Morgane finds will be darker and more dangerous than she ever thought possible.
The Pawns of Havoc is a gripping fantasy novella that follows mercenary Cork as he’s sent on another job – but this one isn’t his typical kind of job. He’s been tasked by the Winn to find a convoy in the Frozen Lands, destroy it, and leave only one survivor. Cork might be Winn himself, but he knows he can’t trust them. Forced to team up with an archer named Arabella and a criminal named Nessa, Cork must find a way to complete the job, stay out of the Winn’s political games, and keep Arabella and Nessa in line – what could possibly go wrong?
Damned is the third and final book in Genevieve Cogman’s Scarlet Revolution series, which follows former English maid Eleanor on her adventures the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel. In this installment, Eleanor must assist the League in rescuing Lady Marguerite, the Pimpernel’s wife, but that isn’t the only threat Eleanor must face – the vampires are doing everything they can to take over the country and the League might not be enough to stop them.
Kill Creatures is a dark and addictive YA thriller that follows Nan, a young girl grieving the loss of her three best friends who disappeared a year ago in Saltcedar Canyon. She’s done everything she can to process her grief and is finally ready to move on when one of them returns alive. The whole town is shocked and overjoyed – except Nan, because she’s the one who killed them.
The Order of Masks is an utterly compelling YA fantasy tale that follows two women in their quest for power in the deadly Ravalian court. Mira has spent most of her life on the run, though she has no idea why, she hopes to compete in the Trials and win herself a life at court, but it be everything she hopes? Meanwhile, Scarlett is the daughter of the Emperor, but she is cast aside by her half brother’s and their quest for power. When Scarlett sees an opportunity to seize some power of her own, she’s determined to take it, but at what cost?
Incidents Around the House is the dark and compelling new horror novel from Josh Malerman, author of Bird Box. The story follows Bela, an eight year old girl and her family. When the family are targeted by a dark entity known as “other Mommy”, the creature is desperate to go inside Bela’s heart. Bela knows the more she refuses the more her family will pay, but Other Mommy is growing restless and time is running out.
The Bibliophile Chronicles 