Love in the Time of Pokémon is clearly either a translation or was written by someone whose first language is not English. Some phrases are clumsy and interrupt the flow. Despite that, this is a thought-provoking collection of poems that shows real potential. The imagery in these poems invokes the sweaty claustrophobia of far-off places. […]
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Book Review: First Rhyme Mom: A poetic journey through pregnancy and early motherhood. by Leanne Stoneley
CATEGORY: babies, bibliophile, book, book review, book whore, children, motherhood, National Poetry Month, parenthood, poem, poetry
First Rhyme Mom is an emotional roller coaster ride through pregnancy, landing with a splash in the crazy pool of motherhood. I’m not a mom myself (I like to keep all my toys to myself, thanks! Lol.) so I won’t pretend I can identify with all the sentiments but I certainly enjoyed the poems. (And, […]
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Book Review: Vampire Addiction (The Vampires of Athens #1) by Eva Pohler **SPOILERS AND SNARK**
Gertrude (Gertie) Morgan is a stinking-rich kid being forced into a year of study abroad. Who should she meet on her very first day in Greece but a vampire and a demigod? (Start where you mean to go on, they say. ) The vampires of Greece are called tramps (there is some relevant translation in […]
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Book Review: Nocturnal by Wilder Poetry
Nocturnal (available on Kindle Unlimited) is visually stunning. The artwork is evocative of a kind of quiet torment warring with throat-clogging hope that the collected poems fall a mile short of embodying. While the book is impressive to look at, the poetry itself is reminiscent of the kind of angsty ramblings a teenager might scribble furiously […]
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Book Review: Just Friends (Friends #1) by Monica Murphy
I don’t read much straight-up romance because, as you know, I prefer my love… bitey. After the disappointment of Just Friends, I don’t see me rushing to change that any time soon. The writing is decent but the novel is dotted with minor typos & grammatical errors and the tenses get muddled in places. There’s […]
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Book Review: Ignite (Midnight Fire: Book 1) by Kaitlyn Davis
Ignite by Kaitlyn Davis (and now available free for the Kindle) is the first in a series of books that follow Kira, a normal teenage girl who learns she’s anything but normal. Kira is a vampire hunter with magical abilities – and not just any vampire hunter… she’s a hybrid that should never have existed […]
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Movie Review: The Final Wish (2018)
CATEGORY: adaptations, cinephile, film and tv, film review, horror, horror movies, movie review, The Final Wish
The Final Wish (2018) is a modern retelling of The Monkey’s Paw that falls painfully short of realizing the story’s horrific nature. Visually, the film can’t be faulted. It’s grim and gloomy, with a Midwestern gothic feel that sets the scene for what should have been a tremendously spooky film. I mean… come on! It’s […]
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Book Review: The Selection (Sapient Salvation #1) by Jayne Faith
The Selection (Sapient Salvation #1) by Jayne Faith is the first book to surprise me this year. I won’t lie… when I downloaded it, I fully expected it to be a half-assed rip-off of Kiera Cass’s The Selection. While there are similarities (even the covers have similar feels), Jayne Faith’s The Selection is a darker, […]
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Movie Review: Selfie from Hell (2018)
CATEGORY: adaptations, film and tv, film review, horror, horror movies, modern horror, movie review, short film, technology
“Selfie from Hell” was a 2015 short horror film that won all kinds of awards – and deservedly so. It scared the pants off me the first time I watched it. (And, uh, just now when I re-watched it.) As a short, “Selfie from Hell” is extremely effective. As a full-length movie? Not so much. […]
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The Annual Critters Readers’ Poll is OPEN!
The Annual Critters Readers’ Poll has come around again. Last year, I landed a spot in the top ten for three categories: Best Author, Best Anthology, and Best Horror Short Story. 2017 was a pretty crazy publishing year for me! Although 2018 was a bit slower on that part due to some pretty gnarly mental […]
About Me
Wondra Vanian
Author/Writer
disabled sausage mama, childfree antifa aunty, shameless fangirl, pansexual witch, horror addict, uppity feminist, and neurodivergent author |-/
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