Reading Update: Spooky Season, Mysteries, and Yarn

Kill Creek by Scott Thomas

Title: Kill Creek

Author: Scott Thomas

Page Count: 432

Rating: B

Format Read: Paperback

Genre: Horror

Keywords: Hauntings, Authors, History

Kid Appropriate: Teens and older

A group of horror writers are invited to do exclusive interviews for a horror website. The interviews will take place in a creepy house on Halloween. Everyone thinks it's just a gimmick. Something to get views up. Something to increase sales. But Finch House is more than just a house. 

I read this book for my long distance book club with my boyfriend and we both agreed that it was worthy of four stars. As a fan of the horror genre I did really enjoy seeing a lot of elements that I have come to love over the years: locked in mystery, a monster no one can see, hauntings, creepy old houses, gore, and a book about writers that while fictional mirror real life authors quite well. 

My hopes were pretty high after an emotional first chapter. Thomas wrote the emotion and horror of the first tragedy to befall Finch House very well and I was drawn in instantly. This ability continues throughout most of the book with only snippets of action being shown at a time to drive up the anxiety and expectation of an unveiling. 

Our characters mirror real life authors that I have read before and it was fun to tease out aspects of their lives that were similar as well as those that deviated. Our main character is Sam, a down on his luck writer experiencing the dreaded unending writers block. We see a good deal of his history and get hints of his inner demons nicely but this is sometimes lacking in our other author characters and they can feel a bit flat at times.

As far as the style of horror, this one is not downright scary. There were no crazy nightmares or sleeping with the lights on from this one. Nor was the gore particularly high. Anticipation and the tenseness that comes from it were more the style of this tale.

Where this one fell just shy of being truly great is that all of a sudden the story fizzles out and we are left with a wholly unsatisfying ending. Is it worth the read? Yes. Is is the best horror book ever? No, there are others that have a more consistent pacing and a satisfying ending.

Check out my video review below and happy reading!

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling

Title: The Luminous Dead

Author: Caitlin Starling

Page Count: 432

Rating: B

Format Read: Kindle

Genre: Science Fiction

Keywords: Horror, Spelunking, Zombies

Kid Appropriate: Teens and older

Gyre is a twenty-two year old living on a desert planet that survives off of caving, the dangerous occupation of wandering into unmapped caves in search of precious minerals and massive profits. If she just does two or three jobs she will have enough to follow her long gone mother to a new world. When a mysterious company is offering insane amounts of money, a high tech suit, and an expert team to monitor and assist her, Gyre lies about her qualifications to get the job. Once alone in the cave, Gyre comes to the startling realization that the expert team is really one girl: Em. Facing possible zombies, giant worms, and a cave trying to kill her, Gyre fights to just survive.

This book is a delightful mashup of horror and science fiction. Obviously our science fiction elements comes from this being a mining expedition on a different planet and there is frequent mention of life on other planets in the system. While we only get vague hints of the world outside of Em's cave, there is a lot of potential for Starling to expand this world. I was definitely intrigued to learn more. The research components of Em's company and the suits mentioned throughout that protect cavers from the elements is also intriguing. 

Our horror is not a downright disgusting or nightmarish scare-fest. Instead Starling slowly amps up the suspense and a creeping feeling of dread. Gyre is unfurling a decades long mystery as she stumbles through the dark and her life is continually put at risk by lapses in Em's judgement, her own inexperience, and the dangers of the cave that has already claimed dozens of lives. Up until the last page you're not sure if the monsters are real or if Gyre is just losing her mind. This is definitely for fans of the unreliable narrator.

What felt really weird is the romance aspect of this novel. Gyre slowly begins to develop feelings and an attraction to Em. While by the end of this book it feels far more natural, when it was first introduced it just felt really forced. Almost like the author felt the need to add a romance for the sake of doing it. Gyre does not trust Em whatsoever, even despises her at times, and yet she is looking at her on a video screen and thinking how gorgeous she is? I just wasn't buying it. But I will admit the pairing did eventually grow on me.

If you're looking for a tense, fun read full of creepy suspense and a good dose of spelunking adventures then this is the one for you. Check out my video review below. Happy reading!

On My Shelf: Writing Books

Check out my latest YouTube video covering the five writing books I've read on my journey to becoming an author! And check back tomorrow morning for a new written review and spoiler free video on The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling. Happy reading!

eReaders Throughout the Years-Kindle Oasis

My Oasis w/o ads on lock screen

Today we are continuing my look at the eReaders I have tried throughout the years. To see my intro to this series click here. To see the first post about the Kindle Fire you can click here. We are moving on from the multifunctional and budget friendly Fire to talk about the ultimate dedicated eReader: the Kindle Oasis.

This is by far the fanciest of the Kindles with its ouch worthy price tag and weird shape. This baby starts at $249.99 and goes as high as $349.99. I was gifted the second generation of this Kindle in 2017 for Christmas as an upgrade to my trusty Fire. I will cover the pros and cons of this generation, explore the changes that were introduced with the third generation, and ultimately answer the question of is this machine really worth the price tag.

What is a dedicated eReader?

A dedicated eReader is a tablet with limited capabilities. The previous review covered the Fire that allows you to watch movies, play games, email, read, play music, etc. This is not the case with a dedicated eReader. These devices are strictly for reading. You can access the Kindle and Audible stores but they do not have internet browsers and do not support movies. You can listen to audiobooks and read books, comics, or magazines. The screens are e-Ink technology so there is no color. The white background has a roughly paper looking appearance while the words appear printed in black ink.

These are great if you are looking for distraction free reading time. You can't be interrupted with a notification or be tempted to check an email or webpage. When you pick up this device you are committing to reading. If that is your intent then these are fantastic. However, if you are looking for an all in one I recommend going back to the Fire.

My Oasis experience:

What originally drove me towards the Oasis was that I was having massive eye strain from working at a computer all day and needed something waterproof. The Kindle Oasis had just been introduced as the first ever Kindle to boast an IPX8 rating. This basically means the reader can be submerged in up to two meters of fresh water for 60 minutes without damage. The adjustable dimness, font, and e-Ink display all meant that the Oasis would be gentler on my eyes than the Fire.

My Fintie Case

Overall, I do like my Kindle Oasis and it still works nearly three years later without any major concerns that make reading impossible. I have pool tested it with rowdy toddlers and bath tested it with submersion and splashing without any ill effects. It has been dropped more than once from my couch or out of my hand and other than a minor scratch here and there it has proven to be sturdy.

Audible integration is a convenient feature that is featured in most Kindles now, including the Oasis. When I got mine it was a new feature and only available on the Oasis from what I remember. At the time I still had my Audible membership and wanted to free up my phone from the app. First, you must connect the Oasis to either a Bluetooth speaker or headphones in order for it to work. There are no onboard speakers. Connecting the device is easy and I never had any issues with this aspect. Where the Oasis became glitchy is if I changed the speed I was listening at. On my phone I change the listening speed frequently to 1.5X or 2X speed. When I try to do this on my Oasis the audio is not smooth by any means. The narrator's voice becomes almost robotic with noticeable hesitations and skips. If you like listening at normal speed, it does just fine. If you like to listen faster like myself then you might experience similar issues.

Another feature that is wholly unique to the Oasis is the presence of page turn buttons. I missed the feature terribly from my very first Sony eReader and was excited to have it again. You can customize which button is forward and which is back if you have a preference. I did mine so that the top button would always be forward and the bottom backwards. A majority of the time the feature was great. However, after having the Oasis for a while I started to notice that sometimes I had to push the button multiple times to get it to turn the page, a definitely distracting annoyance that only got worse the longer I had the device. This problem persisted even when using the touch screen to turn the page. Another thing to note is that the buttons have an audible clicking sound when used. So if you are looking for a quiet reading experience, be aware that it can be heard across a quiet room.

The ergonomic shape does balance nicely in your hand while reading. The Oasis is a touch heavier than the Paperwhite but the bulkier grip part of the device and the thinner screen balance nicely in your hand with minimal strain. And not to worry if you are a lefty. The screen autorotates depending on how you are holding so you can switch between both hands as you read.

The square seven inch screen did well in all reading environments. I had no issues in dark rooms, able to turn the backlight down quite a ways, as well as the option to invert the text to white writing on a black background. It is a bit odd at first but this did help with some of my eyestrain. It performed just as well in full sunlight. There is also a sensor that allows the device to auto adjust its brightness to your environment. Sometimes I accidentally would cover that sensor and the screen would get noticeably darker. This feature can be turned off.

Two major points had me not loving the Oasis as much as I expected. The biggest issue was the battery life. I read a lot of pretty long fantasy novels. Reading longer material on an eReader saves your wrist the pounds of paper of a print book, but I found myself having to charge the device every couple of hundred pages. After doing some digging I found that the only way to get a slightly longer lasting charge was to turn the device to airplane mode and turn the brightness down. Even then it only lasted a bit longer. If you don't mind charging your device daily and are more of a casual reader this would not be overly irritating. Total charge time is only a couple of hours anyways. However, if you are a voracious reader this will quickly become annoying.

Back of my Oasis

My second annoyance is definitely more of a personal preference. Most Kindles have a softer rubberized backing that provides a grippy texture. While prone to fingerprints, it feels nice in your hands. The Oasis is a luxury model so it instead it has a metal backing that feels sturdier, looks sleeker, and is shaped to be held ergonomically in one hand with the weight balanced nicely. Overall, it was easy to hold with the shape but in winter the metal back was often times pretty cold to the touch and more than once it slipped out of my hand.

The Price

The Kindle Oasis has a $100.00 range in possible pricing. Some features that cause the difference in price include your onboard storage, connectivity, and presence of ads. First up, let's discuss storage.
For storage capacity you have two options: 32 GB and 8 GB. If you are strictly reading books then there is not a real need to upgrade to the 32 GB, but if you plan on downloading a lot of picture heavy material like magazines and comics or adding tons of audiobooks then you might need to up your selection to the larger storage. If you're torn on which to get I would recommend the 8GB since all of your Amazon content is stored in the cloud. You do not have to have everything downloaded onto the device itself to keep it. I usually only have what I am currently reading and a few favorites to go back to if I know I won't have connection to download. If you choose the 8GB the starting price is $249.99. If you upgrade to the 32GB the starting price is $279.99.

The Oasis has a nice feature when it comes to connectivity. All of my other Kindles are strictly connected via Wi-Fi. For me this means I only download things to the device when I am home. However, the Oasis has the option of Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi + Free Cellular Connectivity. There is not a recurring charge for the cellular and pretty much wherever you have service you can shop and download new items. If you travel a lot this is a nice option and it worked well for me. Unfortunately, this option is not a cheap one. You must have the 32GB model to select the cellular connectivity and you will have to search for it specifically...and it will cost you $349.99.

Now for the presence of ads. First, the ads do not interfere with your reading experience. I opted not

Sample of ads on lock screen 

to have the on my Oasis but I do have them on my Paperwhite. They are primarily ads for books (mostly from Kindle Unlimited) that only really show when your Kindle is asleep on the lock screen. Once you open your Kindle they go away, sometimes showing on a banner at the bottom of the screen when you are scrolling through your library. But they are never open when you are reading. It can get a bit weird at times since a lot of the books advertised are romance novels or erotica. So if you are easily embarrassed or don't want to see that, maybe opt for ad free. Choosing to not have ads will increase your price by $20.00.

Note that the most expensive model caps at $349.99. This includes the cellular connectivity, being ad free, and 32 GB of storage. Your cheapest model at $249.99 will be 8GB, WI-FI connectivity, and have ads. If you travel a lot the cellular may really be a game changer. But if you are primarily going to be near your own WI-FI network regularly and don't mind the ads, the cheaper option is probably the better deal in my opinion.

Part of the reason the Oasis costs more than the Paperwhite is that the build is different, and not just in shape. Paperwhite is so light because it is made from plastics. Oasis is aluminum and glass. Include the page turn buttons and the price goes up.

New Generation

So my Oasis was the second generation and at the time of writing this, Amazon has released the third generation. There is not a whole lot different but they did add one new major feature and people seem to be responding more positively to this model overall.

The biggest upgrade I have noticed from the second to the third generation is the introduction of

From Amazon.com-demo of warm light

warm light options, a feature the Kobo eReaders have had for some time now. This feature allows you to choose between the normal cool lighting option that older models and all other Kindles have or switch over to a more yellow based light. For some this might mean absolutely nothing, but there are multiple articles out there saying that switching to warm light at night helps promote better sleep as well as reduce your eye strain. And checking through the reviews, this is a feature that a lot of people are huge fans of.

Some common complaints that carried over from the previous generation include: the battery, charging, and weight. Many people complained that the battery was not lasting nearly as long as advertised. This I agree with from the previous generation. You must have all connectivity turned off and your backlight turned down considerably to get close. Some were frustrated that the charger is still a micro-USB. While this doesn't bother me whatsoever, if you are a techier person it is a consideration. Finally, the weight is greater than the Paperwhite. The weight is balanced nicely with the shape but your arm will eventually fatigue. This was especially prevalent with individuals experiencing arthritis.

Is it worth it?

From Amazon.com-Champagne Gold

One major point that might not matter to some but still loses it points against the Fire or the
Paperwhite is the lack of options for individuality. While the others have at least four unique colors to choose from the Oasis only has two: graphite and champagne gold. Mine is the graphite. Both are sleek and modern looking but if you don't love a rose gold looking metal or grey then you are out of luck.

So, is the Kindle Oasis worth it's luxury price tag? It depends. For me I could see spending a bit more than the Kindle Paperwhite to get these added features, but overall I do not think it is worth $350.00. Most of the features that made the Oasis unique initially can now be found in the Paperwhite for a fraction of the price. But, if you are into a sleeker design and have the money to spend it is a solid reader that should perform nicely for you.

Happy reading and check back soon for my review for the Kindle Paperwhite!

Reading Update

Hello! Today I am working on finishing up my Kindle Oasis review to get it up by tonight. In the meantime check out my reading update video below! I talk about all of the books I am currently reading, the final results of my attempt to crochet a cardigan, and knitting.

Happy reading!