Book Bites: Cave Mountain

Cave Mountain: A Disappearance and a Reckoning in the Ozarks by Benjamin Hale
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Cave Mountain spins a true crime tale connecting the brief disappearance of a young girl in the Arkansas Ozarks and a murderous doomsday cult arrested nearby some 30 years prior. Hale's book began life as a piece for Harper's and often reads like a padded-out essay. The text attempts to interweave the 2001 disappearance of Hale's cousin Haley, a doomsday cult that in 1978 murdered a young child, Ozark religious extremism, and an atheists' questioning approach to Christianity; only the weft and warp never quite mesh. Cave Mountain works reasonably as a true crime book, but its nonlinear storytelling and wide thematic net make for a text that often feels jumbled.

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Book Bites: Spread Me

Spread Me by Sarah Gailey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Spread Me is a wry, winking spin on John Carpenter's "The Thing" centering on a desolate desert outpost, its virus-obsessed captain (is there a term for those sexually attracted to viruses?), her motley crew, and a strange new lifeform attempting to seduce its way into host bodies during a sandstorm. Our limited cast of characters are vibrantly drawn. The text is a hard R bordering on NC-17; Gailey excels at writing erotica that doesn't feel smutty. The sex is natural to the story and the science feels believable. The only downside here, especially given Spread Me's slim wordcount, are problems with pacing and tension. Middle chapters feel like a plateau rather than a ratcheting up. Those game for body horror and sex should tear through this in no time.

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Book Bites: Slipstream

Slipstream by Madge Maril
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Slipstream is like good takeout; delivers what you expect, goes down easy, and could probably do with a little more spice. Our protagonists Lilah and Arthur are well-drawn and easy to root for. The plot is a little convoluted and the bad guys are cardboard cutouts that show up only to get knocked over, but Maril's writing is sharp and the action moves as smooth as well-tuned F1 car. The romance is definitely a slow, simmering burn. There are some minor issues with Lilah's characterization; her neurodivergence feels like it walks a tightrope between empowering and othering (people with better knowledge can weigh in on that one) and her queerness seems to float in the periphery in a way that makes me think ex-boyfriend Max was ex-girlfriend Max in earlier drafts. Overall, Slipstream is a fun, flirty ride through a sun-drenched summer of F1 racing. Definitely a worthwhile poolside read.

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