Tell Me Something Tuesday: 09.19.2023 (New To Me Authors)

 

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I'm pretty sure all the books I've read this year are new-to-me authors! I've been trying hard to expand my reading list and engage with new genres and authors. 

Some of my notable new-to-me authors this year are: 

• Lily Meade -- I absolutely loved her debut novel, The Shadow Sister.
• Josh Berk & Saundra Mitchell -- Their Camp Murderface duology was tons of fun.
• R.F. Kuang -- I devoured her book, Yellowface, and will more than likely reread it at some point. 
• Julie Murphy -- I found her newest book, Camp Sylvania at a thrift store and loved her writing style.

What new to you authors have you discovered this year? 

Who should I check out?

Kara's Book Cravings: Camp Murderface -- Doom in the Deep

 

If you want to go read my thoughts on the first book, Camp Murderface, you can go HERE to do so. Go ahead... I'll wait...

All set? Good!

So, Camp Murderface: Doom in the Deep is the second book in this series. I think it's the last one, too, which is kind of sad because I'm really invested in these characters now!

This story picks up almost immediately after the first one ends, and we're once again alternating points-of-view between Corryn and Tez. I thought a lot happened in the first book, but this one... whoa! So much stuff happens, and it's all very chaotic in a very good way. There are missing counselors, snake-people, a creepy lake that's trying to kill the campers... Like I said, so much going on. 

I enjoyed this book a lot more than the first one, which is rare for me. Maybe because I knew the characters better or the setting and relationships were already established. Either way, I devoured this book in a matter of two days -- oh and this one is longer than first, too, coming in at over 400 pages! 

There was a twist at the end that I really didn't see coming, and I *almost* stopped reading because I was mad, but thankfully, another twist came out of nowhere and then I was happy again. 

Have you ever read a sequel that you thought was better than the first book? 

Kara's Book Cravings: Camp Murderface

 

Anyone who knows me, or has ever peeked at my #MSWL for Anaiah Press knows that I have a soft spot for books set at camp. I don't care if it's summer camp, Bible camp, fat camp, or a family camping trip -- I just absolutely LOVE the setting and the atmosphere of being in the woods and "roughing it." So much can go wrong, and there's so much room for conflict and danger. So, when I found this book, I snatched it so dang fast.

CAMP MURDERFACE by Josh Berk and Saundra Mitchell is a middle grade story set at a summer camp. Told in 1st person alternating points-of-view from the two main characters, Tez (male) and Corryn (female), this is a delightful tale that blends contemporary and paranormal when our two characters have to solve the mystery of Camp Sweetwater, which they nickname Camp Murderface. Missing girls, strange happenings, creepy camp counselors, screaming faces in the bonfires... A lot happens in this book, but none of it ever felt like too much. The pacing was good, despite this book being just over 300 pages -- which seems rather long for an MG book, but I think the market has been trending toward longer books lately. 

My only complaint with this book, and this is really very minor, was that at times, it felt like the adults writing this book tried a little too hard to sound young and cool. Though, this book is set in the 80s, and I was just a baby back then, so maybe I'm completely off base here. lol. 

Either way, I enjoyed this quite a bit, and I've bought the sequel and am happily diving into that next. 

Anyone else read this book yet? What did you think? 

Do you have any good recommendations for books set at camp?