Wednesday Reading Meme
What I Just Finished Reading: Not as successful this week. Finished off the Under The Breaking Sky series, read one crackified short fic in Tantrum by Rachel Eve Moulton, and then spent four days trying to get into Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson before giving it up as a lost cause. Reviews below.
What I'm Reading Right Now: I just gave up on that Stevenson book, so I haven't picked up another yet.
What I'm Planning to Read Next: I need a comfort read, so it's back to David Rosenfelt and The More The Terrier.
41. Blind Hate by Nick Clausen
Big happenings in the penultimate novel.
Clausen paid homage to the master, Stephen King, by naming his deaf character NIck in honour of King’s hero from The Stand. And he uses another King technique to trim the fat in a really tense, lengthy sequence of chapters in this book. He kept the pace frenetic, kept me on edge, and yet layered in some really nice emotional moments. Well done.
We’ve got some more info about the bad guys, and our heroes only have one more book to tie up all the loose ends and give us a hopeful ending. Not sure how he’ll manage it in 200 pages, but I’ll give it a go.
Date Read: March 18, 2026
Page Count: 188
5 out of 5 stars
+ Lost Challenges Countdown - Prompt 8 - read 8 books from the same genre (06/08 - 41/55 total)
42. Blind Evil by Nick Clausen
The conclusion of the Under The Breaking Sky series.
There was a lot to wrap up in the series, and I can’t say the author fully succeeded. But he did bring things to a fairly cohesive close for all the main players. I was particularly happy with fitting and satisfying ends for some characters (Tommy, Anton), less satisfied with other (Mark), and some felt forgotten altogether (Alicia). The overall “this is happening worldwide” arc certainly didn’t get a conclusion, but there’s an epilogue pointing things in a hopeful direction.
On the bad side overall: far too much sexual assault trauma in the backgrounds of the female characters. It’s a cheap and easy device, and readers should expect better. The way to get rid of the ghosts seems sanctimonious and preachy, and still doesn’t align with who the bad guys are, which was really never completely explained.
On the plus side overall: really good action sequences and ability to maintain the tension. The book has quick, short chapters with cliffhanger endings, which is good at keeping the reader wanting to get to the next chapter. But when Mr. Clausen gives himself time to breathe and lets the action expand, it’s much more effective. That’s when the great emotional beats happen.
Date Read: March 19, 2026
Page Count: 201
4 out of 5 stars
+ Lost Challenges Countdown - Prompt 8 - read 8 books from the same genre (07/08 - 42/55 total)
43. Tantrum by Rachel Eve Moulton
What in the ever-lovin’ hell was that?
Thea is a mom of three who is convinced her new daughter is a monster. This appears to be true when the 13-week-old starts walking, talking, and takes a bite out of her brother with her full set of teeth.
So then other things happen, that I can’t really talk about with spoiling. But trust me when I say that things just get more and more bizarre. It turns out that Thea had an abusive childhood and has a lot of repressed rage. So I’m assuming all the weirdo stuff that happens is supposed to be a metaphor for her trauma and feminism and taking back her power and being reborn and blah blah blah, and it all reads like a pretentious women’s lit creative writing project that should have been graded a C.
Stay far away.
Date Read: March 20, 2026
Page Count: 192
1 out of 5 stars
+ Around the Year in 52 Books - Prompt 36 - primary character who is female 40+ (36/52)
+ Lost Challenges Countdown - Prompt 5 - read 5 books that are standalones (04/05 - 43/55 total)
+ Crazy Challenge Connection Potluck - New to Me Author (01/50)
.
What I'm Reading Right Now: I just gave up on that Stevenson book, so I haven't picked up another yet.
What I'm Planning to Read Next: I need a comfort read, so it's back to David Rosenfelt and The More The Terrier.
41. Blind Hate by Nick Clausen
Big happenings in the penultimate novel.
Clausen paid homage to the master, Stephen King, by naming his deaf character NIck in honour of King’s hero from The Stand. And he uses another King technique to trim the fat in a really tense, lengthy sequence of chapters in this book. He kept the pace frenetic, kept me on edge, and yet layered in some really nice emotional moments. Well done.
We’ve got some more info about the bad guys, and our heroes only have one more book to tie up all the loose ends and give us a hopeful ending. Not sure how he’ll manage it in 200 pages, but I’ll give it a go.
Date Read: March 18, 2026
Page Count: 188
5 out of 5 stars
+ Lost Challenges Countdown - Prompt 8 - read 8 books from the same genre (06/08 - 41/55 total)
42. Blind Evil by Nick Clausen
The conclusion of the Under The Breaking Sky series.
There was a lot to wrap up in the series, and I can’t say the author fully succeeded. But he did bring things to a fairly cohesive close for all the main players. I was particularly happy with fitting and satisfying ends for some characters (Tommy, Anton), less satisfied with other (Mark), and some felt forgotten altogether (Alicia). The overall “this is happening worldwide” arc certainly didn’t get a conclusion, but there’s an epilogue pointing things in a hopeful direction.
On the bad side overall: far too much sexual assault trauma in the backgrounds of the female characters. It’s a cheap and easy device, and readers should expect better. The way to get rid of the ghosts seems sanctimonious and preachy, and still doesn’t align with who the bad guys are, which was really never completely explained.
On the plus side overall: really good action sequences and ability to maintain the tension. The book has quick, short chapters with cliffhanger endings, which is good at keeping the reader wanting to get to the next chapter. But when Mr. Clausen gives himself time to breathe and lets the action expand, it’s much more effective. That’s when the great emotional beats happen.
Date Read: March 19, 2026
Page Count: 201
4 out of 5 stars
+ Lost Challenges Countdown - Prompt 8 - read 8 books from the same genre (07/08 - 42/55 total)
43. Tantrum by Rachel Eve Moulton
What in the ever-lovin’ hell was that?
Thea is a mom of three who is convinced her new daughter is a monster. This appears to be true when the 13-week-old starts walking, talking, and takes a bite out of her brother with her full set of teeth.
So then other things happen, that I can’t really talk about with spoiling. But trust me when I say that things just get more and more bizarre. It turns out that Thea had an abusive childhood and has a lot of repressed rage. So I’m assuming all the weirdo stuff that happens is supposed to be a metaphor for her trauma and feminism and taking back her power and being reborn and blah blah blah, and it all reads like a pretentious women’s lit creative writing project that should have been graded a C.
Stay far away.
Date Read: March 20, 2026
Page Count: 192
1 out of 5 stars
+ Around the Year in 52 Books - Prompt 36 - primary character who is female 40+ (36/52)
+ Lost Challenges Countdown - Prompt 5 - read 5 books that are standalones (04/05 - 43/55 total)
+ Crazy Challenge Connection Potluck - New to Me Author (01/50)
.