We Should Have Left Well Enough Alone: Twenty Haunting Stories by Ronal Mali

(Thank you Titan Books for providing me with a copy of this book!)

about book: (summary from Goodreads)

A new mother is pursued by mysterious men in black. A misguided youth learns the dark secrets of the world from an elderly neighbor on Halloween night. A housewarming party where the guests never leave. A caretaker tends to his rusted relic of a god deep in the desert... 

In his debut short story collection, Bram Stoker Award finalist Ronald Malfi mines the depths and depravities of the human condition, exploring the dark underside of religion, marriage, love, fear, regret, and hunger in a world that spins just slightly askew on its axis. Rich in atmosphere and character, Malfi's debut collection is not to be missed.

my thoughts:

I'm a huge fan of Ronald Malfi's novels. They are creepy, thrilling, and unputdownable. So, I was thrilled to get a copy of his short story collection, We Should Have Left Well Enough Alone. The book was originally published in 2017 and has be re-released by Titan Books today - January 27th, 2026. How exciting! 

Grabbing a huge cuppa, I settled down in a cozy spot, and dove right in. Right from the start I was hooked. How could I not be? A woman with a baby trying to make dinner, all the while wondering about the men in black outside her house, and a horrible smell that she can't seem to figure out - suffice it to say, that first story was disturbing, intriguing, riveting, and unforgettable. Wow! Oh, and there's a story about a married couple on a vacation who go out on a boat. Sharks abound and that is all I will say. Just know that you are in for a spooky treat with this gem - We Should Have Left Well Enough Alone - is a definite must-read!

I would happily recommend this book to fans of Malfi and anyone looking for their next horror book - you are going to LOVE this one to bits! Make sure to grab a copy ASAP! 

Thank you Titan Books for providing me with a copy of this book!

JLC19 - The Village Beyond the Mist by Sachiko Kashiwaba, translated by Avery Fischer Udagawa

(Thank you to Restless Books for providing me with a copy of this book!)

My first read for the JLC19 is Sachikio Kashiwaba's marvelous book, The Village Beyond the Mist. I was feeling rather low and decided to give this lovely story a full go. I had started it a few days earlier, but couldn't seem to focus so I had set it aside. And now, here I was on 'blue Monday' picking it up and finally immersing myself in it. Talk about the perfect remedy for uplifting me from my current gloomy mood. 

A tiny village hidden behind a misty forest chock full of quirky characters and whimsical shops. How fun does that sound? Especially when you have a character like, Lina, a sixth-grade girl who is sent into this magical place for her summer break. She soon finds herself living in a dream room with a host of people that pique her interest. Well, except for Ms. Picotto, who Lina can't seem to befriend. Truthfully, no one seems to be on Ms. Picotto's good side. Regardless, Lina winds up enjoying her stay and working for the shops in town as a way to earn her keep. She gets caught up in a variety of unusual situations that push her to work hard, think of others, and lend a helping hand. It's fun, exciting, and sweet to read all about. Plus, the illustrations by Miho Satake were a highlight of the book. I loved turning the page and finding a drawing of Ms. Picotto - who is described as a 'stain' on the couch by Lina. Children really do say what's in their heads, eh? 

I won't share much more, because this book is a definite must-read. Make sure to grab a copy and dive on in - you are going to love it. I know that I did. Plus, I thought it was fun to learn that the book was the 

inspiration for the film Spirited Away. Written in 1975, The Village Beyond the Mist, was re-released by Yonder, an imprint of Restless Books in May of 2025. And, I'm so happy and grateful for this, because I absolutely fell in love with this book. I've only read one other book by Kashiwaba - The House of the Lost on the Cape - which I adored. So, I am definitely looking forward to reading more of her work. 

Thank you to Restless Books for providing me with a copy of this awesome book!

My Friday Five...

1. Decluttering. I've finally started. I'm going through my old journals and tearing up the ones that I don't want to keep. There are so many that I would not want to reread, because they are filled with all my anxiety and depression. So, I've been tearing them up and it feels so good. I'll probably wind up keeping one box of old journals in the end. 

2. DVDs. I've started to go through the massive collection we have - or at least it feels massive to me. I still use a DVD player, so I'm not going to get rid of all of them. However, I am getting rid of most of them. 

3. 100 Day Project starts February 22nd and I need to start thinking of what I want to work on for 100 days. If you have any ideas, please let me know. Thank you!

4. Journals. As I decluttered I put them all in piles according to the year. I could see how I started with one journal for one year and it increased to ten and then twenty based on how badly I was struggling with my anxiety and depression. Talk about eye-opening. Yikes!

5. Sleep. I need more of it. I'm hoping to sleep in this weekend. Wish me luck.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Happy reading!

Three Things...

1. Vertigo sucks. Woke up with it this morning thanks to anxiety and a night full of bad dreams. Ugh. I freaked out for a minute or five and then remembered to take a breath. I knew what was happening, so I knew what to do. That helped so much. I need to always remind myself of how far I've come, even if I still get hit with panic attacks and vertigo. I can handle it. 

2. Started a new book:

I'm a fan of the Helen Grace series and this is book #13. So far, I'm hooked! Love it!

3. Banana Bread and Brownies. I'm baking today. Banana bread for my mom and favorite aunt. Brownies for me - it was a rough morning. Plus, the winter weather calls for baked goods. 

Wishing you all lovely day. Happy reading!

Leyla's House: A Novel by Zülfü Livaneli

(Thank you to Other Press for providing me with a copy of this book!)

 

Love, love, love the cover of this wonderful book. You can see the history and beauty of such a grand home - the way it must have looked once upon a time. Of course, you can see how loss and neglect have left the home forgotten and uncared for. And yet, an elderly woman named Leyla resided in the space - a connection to her aristocratic heritage - until she was thrown out of it and made homeless. So, what happens next?

Well...

"Evicted from her Istanbul mansion, an elderly aristocrat forms surprising new connections across class and culture.

A colorful, nuanced novel about old and new money, the Ottoman Empire and modern Turkey, from the internationally bestselling author of Disquiet.

The last living member of a great Ottoman family, the refined yet sheltered Leyla finds herself homeless and vulnerable when her house is sold by the bank to a business tycoon and his ambitious wife. Forced out of this historic mansion on the bank of the Bosphorus, Leyla is rescued and taken in by Yusuf, the son of her family’s former gardener who has become a journalist. She follows him to a modern, cosmopolitan district of Istanbul where she discovers a world of artists and outcasts alongside Yusuf’s partner, Roxy, real name Rukiye, a hip-hop singer. Despite initial hostility, a real friendship gradually develops between these two very different women.

When Leyla’s former home is emptied of its furniture, a hidden family history resurfaces thanks to the discovery of a photo revealing the old lady’s uncanny resemblance to a British officer. Could Leyla be the product of an illegitimate union between an Ottoman woman and an Englishman?

With a marked sense of romance, this vibrant novel displays all the layers of a society where social classes as diverse as the former Ottoman aristocracy, the nouveau riche, and the Turks who returned after immigrating to Europe coexist." (summary from Goodreads)

How fascinating does that sound? Exploring what home truly means, along with the history and romance that houses can foster and carry. This book sounds like a definite must-read for fans of historical literary fiction. Plus, reading about Turkey and its history - talk about armchair travel at its best! I'm excited to dive in deep with Leyla's House and lose myself in her story.  And, I'm happy to recommend you do the same - grab a copy and read it up. I just know you'll fall in deep with this book - I'm looking forward to doing the same. Happy reading!

Thank you to Other Press for providing me with a copy of this book!