Horror Aficionados discussion

Mary by Nat Cassidy is the winner for our May Group Read.
This looks like a horrifying story perfect for keeping us all up late at night with the lights on.

Remember to use spoiler tags where needed.
Have a scary good time.

I bought this on my kindle last year and haven’t gotten to it yet. Thanks for giving me the excuse I’ve needed!

This was an amazing read! I'll gladly read it again.

I always found this cover to be so striking, I've been a reading turtle lately, more like a pair of turtles lol but I will see if I can squeeze one of these wins in, love how the same author won, wild! :D

Agree on the cover! I have a glass of red wine right now, in a glass just like hers. Perhaps a bubble bath is on order as well. Lol

Erika wrote: "Agree on the cover! I have a glass of red wine right now, in a glass just like hers. Perhaps a bubble bath is on order as well. Lol"

And that's where it stops lol :P This made me laugh, gosh you guys are the best.

Erika wrote: "Agree on the cover! I have a glass of red wine right now, in a glass just like hers. Perhaps a bubble bath is on order as well. Lol"

I'm having a white wine night. Cheers!

I read NESTLINGS, but not this one yet!

What an honor!! Thank you for reading--I hope you enjoy it!

Nat wrote: "What an honor!! Thank you for reading--I hope you enjoy it!"

Thank you for writing books we're excited about and want to read. :)

Kasia wrote: "I always found this cover to be so striking, I've been a reading turtle lately, more like a pair of turtles lol but I will see if I can squeeze one of these wins in, love how the same author won, w..."

I never seem to get to the winning books until AFTER the month is over. But this looks like another interesting one. Something about the cover intrigues me as well.

If anyone here is an audiobook lover this one is great on audio.

I agree, Heather! I discovered Nat last year and listened to the audio of Nestlings. It blew me away! I quickly followed that up with the audio of Mary and I enjoyed that one too. I am hoping that everyone enjoys these as much as I did.

Nice to see you here, Nat!

Need to check it out

Just started listening on Audible. Excited for this read!

Just picked it up and very excited!

Ash wrote: "Kasia wrote: "I always found this cover to be so striking, I've been a reading turtle lately, more like a pair of turtles lol but I will see if I can squeeze one of these wins in, love how the same..."

Maybe I will have to grab it on audio. I am always looking for well- read horror books on audio. So many of them seem dryly read to me.

You guys are gonna love this book! I can't wait to re read it with you.

Mary was one of my favourite books of last year! ☺️ can’t wait to see all your opinions of this! 🖤

Starting tonight!

Just finished it last night and I'm still thinking about how amazingly written Mary the character is! I can't wait to get into Nestlings too.

love how this creates horrifying imagery in broad daylight

Kasia wrote: "Erika wrote: "Agree on the cover! I have a glass of red wine right now, in a glass just like hers. Perhaps a bubble bath is on order as well. Lol"

And that's where it stops lol :P This made me lau..."

Lol :P

And (a late) cheers to you and Wendy!

Just read the first 14 pgs. Holy hell! What an opening!

Wow! Started earlier and am already hooked!

Kimberly wrote: "Wow! Started earlier and am already hooked!"

I just might need some wine to get through this book.
How about you?

WendyB wrote: "Kimberly wrote: "Wow! Started earlier and am already hooked!"

I just might need some wine to get through this book.
How about you?"

You read my mind! LOL!

Nadine is a crotchety piece of work and curses constantly. The narrator on audible is incredible to do Mary’s voice and Nadine. I probably couldn’t get this book finished anytime soon without audio. So much internal dialogue rambling. I understand why it’s been compared to “Motherthing”

clementine wrote: "love how this creates horrifying imagery in broad daylight"

So Midsommar, fan of that too.

Erika wrote: "Nadine is a crotchety piece of work and curses constantly. The narrator on audible is incredible to do Mary’s voice and Nadine. I probably couldn’t get this book finished anytime soon without audio..."

Ahahah you made me laugh, I think I get crotchety by 3pm every day as a mom so I related to that for a moment.

Kasia, I can relate, I definitely have my moments too! :P

The narrator does a great job with Nadine’s voice (the old aunt who Mary goes to help). Part of me is impatient at the pacing (I’m on Chp 21) but I’m intrigued enough to keep listening Lol

Ooof I forgot what I had written above & repeated myself about the narrator in my last two comments. I’m immersing myself into old lady Nadine!

Erika wrote: "Kasia, I can relate, I definitely have my moments too! :P

The narrator does a great job with Nadine’s voice (the old aunt who Mary goes to help). Part of me is impatient at the pacing (I’m on Chp ..."

I just got to 62% last night (couldn't sleep). (view spoiler)[Wow, have things "changed"! (hide spoiler)]

Kimberly wrote: ".I just got to 62% last night (couldn't sleep). [Wow, have things "changed"! (hide spoiler)"

Nice. That's a good use of insomnia! Can't wait to listen more tonight and learn more about her crazy transformation!

74% in on audio

Current mood about it: omg this is droning on and on and on but I love/hate Nadine's character being so nasty. She spices it up

The cult leader and how the narrator performs has me laughing. I often feel confused but I'm staying with it because it has been giving me the feelings of T.Kingfisher's A House with Good Bones which I love

I can tell the author lived in AZ for a while... the mentions of how big the sky looks here, the smell of the desert and the heat (even in April) and the use of an umbrella as a shield from the sun.
Yep, that's Arizona.

I absolutely loved Mary! My only advice is to take breaks every now and then because it can get tense being with a character like Mary for too long. The gore was great and the humor really balanced things out. Nadine! A character you love to hate, she really grew on me, especially towards the end.

I'm going to crack open Nestlings later tonight but I already have a feeling (even though it's pretty damn early in the year) that Mary will be in my Horror Top 3 for 2024.

I just finished listening to “Mary” on Audible. The narration was excellent. What an incredible read—and ride!

Pg 152 (view spoiler)[ Sorry not sorry about what happened to the little rat dog (hide spoiler)]

I’m finished with it. Unfortunately there were times I felt like I was staring into space in a gaze and had to snap myself out of it & backtrack several times in the latter half. Maybe this author’s writing style just wasn’t good for me right now(?) It was long….

Have any of you read Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey? I really liked it & the themes in this book came to mind a few times during my Mary listen. Just Like Home is a mother daughter dynamic.

I’m on the waitlist for Nestlings and hope to start it soon!

Just got this from the library today! Can’t wait to start reading!

Just finished chapter 10, and now I feel the need to take a shower with a clean towel.

I just looked and I don't think "Just Like Home" has been read as a group here. I would definitely read or listen to it again. I plan to find a way to nominate it here sometime for a theme it fits into.

I keep overthinking Mary, Lol. Sorry to bring up another book within this thread, but the similarities in theme and plot are so intriguing to me! The simplest way to explain why I think "Just Like Home" is better is because it's far more cohesive writing and story telling. I just wanted to mention it as a recommendation for others who liked (or didn't like!) this current group read.

Kat wrote: "Just finished chapter 10, and now I feel the need to take a shower with a clean towel."

This book makes me want to shower every time I pick it up but I feel like I should throw some holy water in the shower first! LOL

WendyB wrote: "Kat wrote: "Just finished chapter 10, and now I feel the need to take a shower with a clean towel."

This book makes me want to shower every time I pick it up but I feel like I should throw some ho..."

Haha agreed. Maybe just throw a priest in first to be safe?

Hi guys, my first time texting here, but I decided to join this month’s read and it totally didn’t disappoint. I just finished Mary, and I loved it!!!

Ok, so I thought this book was ok. It definitely wasn’t terrible but it didn’t “wow” me either. I don’t regret reading it though.

I've got to find more time to read so I can finish. I'm at pg 243 and Mary is just figuring out (view spoiler)[who she might be and learning about the cult in town. (hide spoiler)]

Finished! I like it.
A bit twisted but... it is about a serial killer so it's to be expected.

Glad you liked it, Wendy!

The author mentioned there's a connection to "Carrie". I've read a few reviews on GR where people are mentioning they don't see it. Do you all see any connections?

I think it's the overarching theme of feeling like an outcast because Mary often mentioned feeling invisible. Mary was going through a specific mid-age phase of womanhood, much like Carrie who went through the beginning phase. Both women had dramatic experiences related to "body issues" that should otherwise be accepted as a natural process, not shamed for. I'm not sure why some people are saying they don't see a comparison between Mary and Carrie.