Three Literally Dead Bookclub Books

Welcome to Smitten For Fiction! My name is Amanda and this blog is all about books. I mainly share spoiler-free book reviews and sometimes other bookish things. Not every book is my cup of tea – and that’s ok. Even if I didn’t like it, I try to find readers that would. Thanks for visiting. Let’s get Smitten For Fiction.

In this post, I’m going to do a short review of three Literally Dead Bookclub Books that I read in 2022. After that I just need to review Babel then I can finally put together my favourite reads of 2022. I’ll be talking about The It Girl by Ruth Ware, You’re Invited by Amanda Jayatissa, and House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson. I listened to all three as audiobooks.

The It Girl: nominated for Goodreads Best Mystery & Thriller 2022

You’re Invited: “Absolutely addictive…it’s like Agatha Christie meets Crazy Rich Asians. Amanda Jayatissa is an author you want to watch.”—Brad Thor

House of Hunger: nominated for Goodreads Best Horror 2022

About The Book 📚

Title: The It Girl

Author: Ruth Ware Narrated By: Imogen Church

Publication Date: July 2022

Publisher: Scout Press/Simon & Schuster

Suggested Reader Age: PG-13 Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Genre: Mystery, Thriller

Pages: 423

Content Warnings: pregnancy, murder, death, grief, violence, stalking, drug use, alcohol, gun violence, infidelity, kidnapping, medical content, sexual assault, panic attacks, suicide

Review

› The It Girl is told in two timelines with chapters entitled “before” and “after”. Before, “it girl” April Coutts-Cliveden is the first person Hannah meets at Oxford. They have many good times with their friend group Will, Hugh, Ryan and Emily during the first semester. Then April was killed at the end of the second semester. After, it’s ten years later. Hannah and Will are expecting a baby, and the man who was convicted of killing April has died in prison. When a journalist contacts Hannah showing new evidence that proves John Neville’s innocence she becomes obsessed with finding April’s killer.

“Afterwards, it was the door she would remember. ‘It was open’, she kept saying to the police. ‘I should have known something was wrong.’”

› I use the CAWPILE method to rate books.
0-3 Really bad
4-6 Mediocre
7-9 Really good
10 Outstanding

› Characters: 5
I wanted more backstory, didn’t understand some character motivations, and some of the side characters were boring. I had a good time hating all of the characters.
April – disliked her the entire time
Hannah – disliked the entire time
Will – disliked the entire time
Do you see a pattern? hahaha
The only character I liked was Hugh.
› Atmosphere: 6
I needed more description, had a hard time picturing the settings and didn’t really feel emotion.
› Writing Style: 7
Love the audiobook. Excellent performance. The phone voice for Hannah’s mother was a nice touch. I enjoy the audiobook more when I speed it up to 1.5.
› Plot: 4
The beginning was boring, but the middle was the best part. I felt bored at times and I didn’t enjoy the pacing. The time jump was a little weird. The ending felt a little muddled and rushed.
› Intrigue: 8
Definitely wanted to know who killed April.
› Logic: 9
Some weird plot baiting/plot holes.
› Enjoyment: 6
It was just okay for me.
Average 6.4

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★★

The Woman in Cabin 10 ★★★★★
The Turn of the Key ★★★
The Death of Mrs Westaway ★★★★
The It Girl ★★★

About The Book 📚

Title: You’re Invited

Author: Amanda Jayatissa Narrated by: Shimali De Silva, Deepa Samuel, Soneela Nankani

Publication Date: September 2022

Publisher: Berkley Books

Suggested Reader Age: R (Restricted)

Genre: Suspense

Pages: 384

Content Warnings: self-harm, misogyny, domestic abuse, toxic relationship, gun violence, murder, emotional abuse, death, classism, pedophilia, sexual content, mental illness, death of a parent, panic attacks, alcohol, pregnancy, addiction, homophobia

Review

You’re Invited is a suspenseful story about culture, class, wealth, secrets, lies and manipulation. The danger builds gradually and the reader knows information that Amaya does not know. She’s unexpectedly invited to her ex-best friend and ex-boyfriend’s wedding (and for some reason spends a lot of money to attend) and decides she must stop the wedding. Amaya’s ex-best friend, Kaavi goes missing and everyone suspects Amaya. There’s lots of drama as we discover more about the other guests and their intentions.

“No one seems to understand that real loss never eases; we just become more adept at carrying a weight that settles deeper in our chests, smiling through it, pretending like we are totally fine whenever someone mentions them.”

› Characters: 5
Amaya is selfish, however, I think she’s suffering from anxiety, OCD, and maybe other mental health afflictions. I don’t understand her goals or motivations. The characters are ruthless.
› Atmosphere: 4
I loved the setting and descriptions of Sri Lanka, but I didn’t feel the appropriate emotions and didn’t enjoy the mood.
› Writing Style: 6
I don’t like the mental health struggle unreliable narrator trope and the writing is repetitive. I love the back and forth, flipping timelines and hearing the interviews. I’m listening on Audible. I loved reading about Sri Lankan culture and traditions.
› Plot: 4
It took me a minute to get into this one. I didn’t enjoy the pacing. It was slow-moving and I felt bored.
› Intrigue: 2
I finished it because it was a book club book.
› Logic: 5
Some confusion, plot holes, and elements that didn’t make sense.
› Enjoyment: 4
It was just okay for me.
Average 4.3

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★

About The Book 📚

Title: House of Hunger

Author: Alexis Henderson Narrated by: Jeanette Illidge

Publication Date: September 2022

Publisher: Ace Books

Suggested Reader Age: R (Restricted) Contains profanity, violence, drug use, or nudity.

Genre: Horror, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery

Pages: 304

Content Warnings: toxic relationship, blood, gore, violence, death, murder, body horror, torture, emotional abuse, sexual content, drug use, cannibalism, confinement, physical abuse, self-harm, animal death, chronic illness, classism, addiction, alcohol, drug abuse, incest

Review

Marion lives in the slums. When she sees an ad in the paper looking for bloodmaids she decides to leave the only life she knows for a better life of wealth. Her closest friend Agnes doesn’t want Marion to take the train north to be a bloodmaid, but Marion is tempted by the money she could make. Countess Lisavet hasn’t left her house in seven years. She has a chronic illness and requires blood from four bloodmaids a day to stay alive.

House of Hunger is about sacrifice, sex, and secrets. It’s about the value of freedom, the danger of greed, and the hunger for blood. It’s about sex, belonging, truth, trust, love, and power. In a way, this reminds me of The Last Unicorn. King Haggard kept the unicorns captive, claiming they keep him young. It also reminded me of The Shining by Stephen King.

“WANTED – Bloodmaid of exceptional taste. Must have a keen proclivity for life’s finer pleasures. Girls of weak will need not apply.“

10s across the board! Incredible characters, setting, description, world-building, atmosphere, writing, plot, and intrigue. I didn’t want to put it down.

My Rating ★★★★★