If You Like That... Read These (Sleepy Hollow)

 

Hey Bookdragons! Fall is Coming! (although let's be honest, September 1st is the beginning of the fall season to me.) I don't know about you, but I have plans to read all kinds of thrillers, mysteries, and spooky books to get the feeling of the season. And one of my favorite classic books and it's movie adaptation is the perfect fall read...

Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is the quintessential fall read and if you love it as much as I do you'll want to devour all the retellings. Retellings you say? Yes!! Retellings aren't just for fairy tales! There have been quite a few amazing Legend of Sleepy Hollow retellings and I'm here to tell you about them. Each of these are unique takes and reimaginings of the classic story. There's a little something for every reader. Most of these I've read and loved but there are a few that are still on my to-be-read list...

The Hollow (The Hollow Trilogy Book 1) by Jessica Verday

The Hollow trilogy by Jessica Verday is the first Sleepy Hollow retelling I read. It also blossomed my interest in perfume making. 

Wake the Hollow by Gaby Triana

While not my favorite Sleepy Hollow retelling, I did really enjoy this book. It's a standalone, so no cliffhanger endings. It also brings in one of my favorite female authors, Mary Shelley. Diversity alert: The main character Micaela is half Cuban. 

The Lantern's Ember by Colleen Houck

I almost don't want to include this book on this list since it was a near DNF for me but it is supposed to be a Sleepy Hollow retelling... before the author got sidetracked maybe? Anyway, I see some people on Goodreads liked it so I guess it's hit or miss. Like I always believe, you need to be the judge. You may love what I dislike and I may dislike what everyone else loves.

Crane (The Legends Saga Book 1) by Stacey Rourke

Crane is the most recent Sleepy Hollow retelling I've read and it's my second favorite after the Hollow Trilogy. Ireland is a spunky lead and I love that Stacey incorporated Washington Irving and Rip Van Winkle into the Legend's origin story. P.S. the second and third books bring in Edgar Allan Poe and H.G. Wells so if you love classic gothic lit you must read these books!

Before I move on to retellings I haven't read here's some Shameless Self Promotion...

Headless by Taylor Fenner

Headless is my new adult debut and much sexier than any of my other books. As for the retelling part, our heroine Cora is the Headless Horsewoman taking vengeance on the men of modern-day Sleepy Hollow. 

Grab a Copy!

The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel by Alyssa Palombo

This one sounds like an interesting historical fiction retelling and one of the few retellings I've seen set during the actual time period which The Legend of Sleepy Hollow takes place. And Katrina turning to witchcraft? Sign me up!

For all these books and more including tv show and movie novelizations visit:

Goodreads Listopia - Sleepy Hollow Retelling

Book Review: The Lantern's Ember by Colleen Houck

The Lantern's Ember by Colleen Houck

Blurb:

Welcome to a world where nightmarish creatures reign supreme.

Five hundred years ago, Jack made a deal with the devil. It’s difficult for him to remember much about his mortal days. So, he focuses on fulfilling his sentence as a Lantern—one of the watchmen who guard the portals to the Otherworld, a realm crawling with every nightmarish creature imaginable. Jack has spent centuries jumping from town to town, ensuring that nary a mortal—or not-so-mortal—soul slips past him. That is, until he meets beautiful Ember O’Dare.

Seventeen, stubborn, and a natural-born witch, Ember feels a strong pull to the Otherworld. Undeterred by Jack’s warnings, she crosses into the forbidden plane with the help of a mysterious and debonair vampire—and the chase through a dazzling, dangerous world is on. Jack must do everything in his power to get Ember back where she belongs before both the earthly and unearthly worlds descend into chaos.

My Review:

To start off, I was really excited about this book when I first heard about it. The author described it as a retelling of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow (which I love!) but to be honest... I've read better reimaginings of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. This book just kind of fell flat for me.

It has a gorgeous cover, don't get me wrong, but the story inside is just kind of ... meh. I didn't care for our naive heroine, the fact that all of the male characters were in love with her, the steampunk themes, and I guess I was expecting something a little spookier.

Overall, this book was not for me. Maybe it would appeal to somebody younger, I don't know. I really wanted to love this one but I just couldn't. I'm left feeling disappointed.

My Rating:

🌟

1 of 5 Stars!