Review: The Deep by Nick Cutter

Title: The Deep

Author: Nick Cutter

Genre: Adult, horror

Publication date: January 2015

Published by: Gallery Books

Source: Purchased paperback

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Synopsis: A strange plague called the ‘Gets is decimating humanity on a global scale. It causes people to forget—small things at first, like where they left their keys, then the not-so-small things, like how to drive or the letters of the alphabet. Their bodies forget how to function involuntarily. There is no cure.

But far below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, a universal healer hailed as “ambrosia” has been discovered. In order to study this phenomenon, a special research lab has been built eight miles under the sea’s surface. But when the station goes incommunicado, a brave few descend through the lightless fathoms in hopes of unraveling the mysteries lurking at those crushing depths…and perhaps to encounter an evil blacker than anything one could possibly imagine.

My rating: ★★★☆☆

What if the devil unleashed a perfectly unexplainable plague on humanity? If so, isn't it equally possible that God created the perfect, if inexplicable cure?

I've always been a mood reader, but in recent years, my mood has been asking for more and more super niche subgenres. One such subgenre is aquatic horror, aka horror that takes place in/around water. Lol. I don't know what it is, but sometimes I'm just in that very specific mood. Lol. Thus, this book. I had seen this book around quite a bit when I was looking for books to read in this subgenre. And it ended up being just... fine.

Review: The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

Title: The Woman in Me

Author: Britney Spears

Genre: Adult, nonfiction, memoir

Publication date: October 2023

Published by: Gallery Books

Source: Borrowed from library

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Synopsis: The Woman in Me is a brave and astonishingly moving story about freedom, fame, motherhood, survival, faith, and hope.

In June 2021, the whole world was listening as Britney Spears spoke in open court. The impact of sharing her voice—her truth—was undeniable, and it changed the course of her life and the lives of countless others. The Woman in Me reveals for the first time her incredible journey—and the strength at the core of one of the greatest performers in pop music history.

Written with remarkable candor and humor, Spears’s groundbreaking book illuminates the enduring power of music and love—and the importance of a woman telling her own story, on her own terms, at last.

My rating: ★★★★★

Singing bridged reality and fantasy, the world I was living in and the world that I desperately wanted to inhabit.

I loved Britney growing up—I listened to her music a lot! And even now I still listen to it every now and then. And I did follow the legal proceedings of her conservatorship semi-closely thanks to Emily D. Baker who broke down all the legal stuff. Everything she’s been through has been horrific, but we heard a lot of it secondhand, so I am very happy that Britney was finally able to tell her story. Going into this I was excited but also approaching the book with a bit of trepidation because I knew that whatever lay inside was going to be heartbreaking. And I was right.