Before I begin, I know I have let this blog go extremely to the wayside. I know it sounds like I’m making excuses when I blame mental health, or self esteem, or even just good old writer’s block. But those were all the things I’ve been facing since 2020. Thoughts of ‘who cares about my thoughts?’ or ‘I really liked this, but I don’t have much to say about it.’
I have several drafts sitting in the virtual trash bin to show that I’ve been trying to post something, but the words just wouldn’t come out right or the words would just stop altogether. Then the self-doubt creeps in and before you know it I’m off to play a game or look at more books.
However, this year I want to make a change. I want to not only read books that leave me with the need to share them, but I want to get back into the habit of writing reviews for those books. No matter how long it takes me to write said review.
My goal is to read 50 books this year. This is an annual tradition that I’ve been doing for several years, ever since Goodreads pushed the “reading challenge” idea. However, starting last year or in 2023, I’ve started adding some mini goals to my reading challenge i.e. ’10 books that are already on your tbr (to be read) shelf’ or ‘read 10 nonfiction books’. For this blog, it’s a simple goal, to write 5 book reviews. I tried starting at 10 last year, but that felt like too much. So this year, I’m going to start off small and start with 5 blog posts and go from there.
So there’s my book-related goals for 2025! Hope you had a happy and safe New Year, and stay tuned! I might have something in the works soon!
We all want to believe. The truth is still out there. The X-Files have been reopened. IDW Publishing and series creator Chris Carter have authorized new investigations into the weird, the strange, and the mysterious. New York Times Bestseller and multiple Bram Stoker Award-winner Jonathan Maberry brings together some of today’s top storytellers for a series of anthologies featuring all-new case files from the X-Files. Scully and Mulder continue their journey into darkness as they face aliens, monsters, shadow governments, and twisted conspiracies.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
I know it’s been awhile since I’ve posted a review and since I revisited the X-Files extended universe. However, I was reorganizing my bookshelf and since I have a few X-Files books of my own, I thought I’d revisit the anthology collections. I think a show like X-Files is best in that short-form content, however like anything else not all of these stories I thought were that good. None of them were ‘bad’, I just found them kind of middle of the road ‘meh’. So enough preferences, let’s open the old case files and talk about X-Files: Trust No One!
“Catatonia” by Tim Lebbon – 5/5⭐ Starting this collection off with a bang! This story delves into the mystery of a group of teenagers who have gone comatose until “angel music” blasts through the town and the teens rise to feast on others blood. References to the Nephilim, and I liked that. Story had a fair ending.
“The Beast of Little Hill” by Peter Clines – 4.5/5⭐ Heartwarming story. Seemingly two different alien species get frozen in the same small town. It’s good to know that the act of domesticating animals may not strictly be a human hobby.
“Oversight” by Aaron Rosenberg – 4/5⭐ This story involves Supervisor Skinner and I liked getting to see some stories with his perspectives. He seems to take some of what Scully and Mulder do seriously. Story had a solid ending.
“Dusk” by Paul Crilley – 3.5/5⭐ Here we get to see the X-Files duo poke fun at the whole Twilight craze amongst teens. I did like the symbolism mentioned, but it started feeling like a giant ‘back in my day’ rant. Justified ending.
“Loving the Alien” by Stefan Petrucha – 3.5/5⭐ This story is being told from Scully’s point of view. Most of her inner dialogue is her worrying about not being able to find Mulder who went on a solo alien hunt. I mean it’s nice that we get the fan service that she does care about him, but I believe we get more than enough of that through the context of the show.
“Non Gratum Anus Rodentum” by Brian Keene – 5/5⭐ Another story led by Director Skinner. I liked that we got to see what we went through during the Vietnam war, it made me crave a monster story that takes place during a foreign country during wartime.
“Back in El Paso My Life Would be Worthless” by Keith R.A. DeCandido – 4/5⭐ This was an interesting look into how the other agents view Scully and Mulder. I don’t think they deserve to be disrespected outright, but maybe that’s because I’m biased. The other agent got his just desserts in the end, and I think it was well deserved.
“Paranormal Quest” by Ray Garton – 4/5⭐ I loved seeing the X-Files duo getting to poke fun at the ‘paranormal reality TV’ genre. The bad guy was an interesting take, just someone who has powers that they are eventually unable to control. No menace or harm intended.
“King of the Watery Deep” by Tim Deal – 3/5⭐ I originally had this rated a 3.5/5, but I decided to lower it. I did like how we got some Arabic/Muslim/Cultish lore. Always fascinating to me about how similar legends can be. Ending was kind of meh to me.
“Sewers” by Gini Koch – 5/5⭐ We have an X-Files take on Killer Croc from the DC Comics Universe! I liked how the author was able to explain how the same creature kept popping up every so often without making it too complicated. In my opinion, the best X-Files stories are the ones where the monster/alien/government creep just melds into the background.
“Clair de Lune” by W.D. Gagliani and David Benton – 3/5⭐ This was a lukewarm werewolf story that takes place in the backwoods of Canada. Nothing much to add here.
“It’s All in the Eyes” by Heather Graham – 3/5⭐ I don’t know why I feel lukewarm towards this story too. It has all the trappings for a fantastic X-Files story. Maybe this needed to be in a longer form story or something. It just felt like after the initial hook the story just started going through the motions.
“The House on Hickory Hill” by Max Allan Collins – 3.5/5⭐ Curse my notetaking abilities or lack thereof. I had to think awhile to remember what this story was about. All I have in my notes is that this was a good story, but the ending felt rushed. Good old fashioned haunted house story though.
“Time and Tide” by Gayle Lynds and John C. Sheldon – 4.5/5⭐ This story reminded me of old school creepypastas. Creepypastas are basically myths and legends written by those on the Internet. It has been fascinating to watch a new way we tell each other stories/myths/legends evolve and develop. For this story however, you just got to enjoy the ride. Don’t think too hard about the finer details.
“Statues” by Kevin J. Anderson – 4/5⭐ This story offers an intriguing answer on how these peoples turned into lifelike statues. Mystical water in these ancient cave systems originally discovered by the Anasazi.
Well, there you have it! My review of X-Files: Trust No One! I hope you liked it and I hope to be returning to writing this blog soon. For now, I’m still going to be taking things kind of slow until I can get back into the habit of writing.
So 2022 is here, and I thought I’d like to take a moment and focus on some things I have hopes for in the coming year.
As always, I have my reading goal of 50 books for the year, including graphic novels, manga, and audiobooks.
I am going to also challenge myself to clear out some books on my ever growing TBR (to be read) list.
I am hoping to put some love and attention back into the blog. Updating old posts, and keeping information and links up to date.
I am also going to remind myself to only take these tasks in pieces. Not to get overwhelmed with everything I want to do, but just small and easy tasks.
My biggest one is to get back into being on social media to interact with authors, and readers alike. I started a TikTok account in December, and even if it turns into the dormant social media account like all the others I have, I can at least try to reach new people here.
Well looks like that’s what is going in the works for this new year. Let’s hope this year will be better than the last, and just try and stay positive and keep moving forward!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone from Elisha’s Book Review! Hope all of my readers have a safe and happy holiday! I hope you follow me into the New Year where there will be plenty of books, movies, TV shows, and Mental Health talk.
**This novel contains descriptions of magic, blood, gore, and violence. Rated for 14+**
Tess Matheson only wants three things: time to practice her cello, for her sister to be happy, and for everyone else to leave her alone.
Instead, Tess finds herself working all summer at her boarding school library, shelving books and dealing with the intolerable patrons. The worst of them is Eliot Birch: snide, privileged, and constantly requesting forbidden grimoires. After a bargain with Eliot leads to the discovery of an ancient book in the library’s grimoire collection, the pair accidentally unleash a book-bound demon.
The demon will stop at nothing to stay free, manipulating ink to threaten those Tess loves and dismantling Eliot’s strange magic. Tess is plagued by terrible dreams of the devil and haunting memories of a boy who wears Eliot’s face. All she knows is to stay free, the demon needs her… and he’ll have her, dead or alive.
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 2.5 out of 5.
When I found this novel at my local library it sounded like an interesting premise. Haunted library, demonic possession, and chaos all around; sounds fun right? Well, I tend to be picky about my Young Adult fiction sometimes. When I read a novel, I am more of a ‘don’t beat around the bush and say what you want to say’ kind of person. This whole ‘oh he has to hate me for my simple mistake’ and ‘she doesn’t want me. She wants boy X,Y, or Z.” When they are both clearly into each other is annoying and aggravating. Maybe that’s just me getting old, or maybe I’m not much of a romantic.
This novel is Ms. Bovalino’s debut novel, and I have a difficult time just completely tearing down this book. It has it’s good qualities and it’s bad qualities. My complaints lay with things I consider to be a major factor in my enjoyment of reading. Those being character dialogue and character development.
Now, I can tell that she put a lot of love and care into Eliot. I clearly understood his motives and his backstory. Tess on the other hand, I never fully understood her motives, even though she kept repeating them at least once a chapter. Maybe Tess and I got off on the wrong foot in the beginning, and I’m blowing this out of proportion.
If you wanted peace, you wouldn’t wear the devil’s face.
The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino
Tess’s reasons for going to this boarding school revolve around her parents being bad with money and making poor business decisions while the economy is struggling. She is giving up her dreams of going to her dream college just to make sure she can protect her little sister Natalie. I felt that not only keeping Natalie, who’s 13, in the dark about everything is naïve. I think a 13 year old has the capacity to understand that her parents made bad financial decisions. However, her older sister will still be there for her when she needs someone to talk to.
Tess throughout the story is so concerned about paying for this prep school, surely she would qualify for financial aid or scholarships because of her parents’ financial situation. If she discussed that I must’ve missed it because doing so would’ve helped ease the stress a bit.
Now with Eliot, his parents are wealthy enough he could’ve gone to any school he wanted. However, he goes to the one where his dad used to be on the school board, even though he is closer with his mother. He wants to learn more about the magic he shares with his mother, even though he is the reason he and Tess unleash a demon into the world he is still more than willing to help Tess destroy the book and the devil right along with it.
Overall, I thought this book was okay. The premise was promising, but the execution of the characters and their dynamics wasn’t my cup of tea. If you enjoy YA romance with their paranormal activity then I’d say give this book a shot. Just because it isn’t my cup of tea doesn’t mean you shouldn’t borrow it from a friend or local library.
Elisha's Book Reviews 
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