Laurie Nguyen (Author of The Dead and the Dying)

Laurie Nguyen is now friends with Stella Voskan
Nov 06, 2026 04:31AM · like
Laurie Nguyen joined the groups Free Books & Kindle & ARC & Beta Readers & Giveaway and Authors & Reviewers
Nov 06, 2026 04:31AM
Laurie Nguyen rated a book 10 Reasons Why Ethan Parker Vanished by Lilith Alba Carmin (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for a review. 10 Reasons Why Ethan Parker by Lilith Alba Carmin is a dark M/M academia novel that recreates a social problem that has long plagued America. Ezra Ashford captains the Lionsveil University sports ...more
Nov 06, 2026 04:30AM · 1 like · like · see review
Laurie Nguyen rated a book it was amazing All Hallow's Eve at Senaire Woods: a cosy and magical paranormal Sapphic romance novella by Juniper Skye (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I received this book in exchange for a free review. All Hallow’s Eve at Senaire Woods by Juniper Skye is a cozy autumn novella about falling in love with your heritage, in more ways than one. Charlie Stolar is a corporate drone who arrives in Senaire W ...more
Nov 02, 2026 01:24PM · like · see review
Laurie Nguyen made a comment in the group Authors & Reviewers — Look for Reviewers for Horror Novella topic " Good morning, I'm interested in having folks review my horror novella, The Dead and the Dying. Below is a blurb: "You'll always love me," the monster wh ...more "
Nov 02, 2026 09:28AM
Laurie Nguyen made a comment in the group Authors & Reviewers — Look for Reviewers for Horror Novella topic " Good morning, I'm interested in having folks review my horror novella, The Dead and the Dying. Below is a blurb: "You'll always love me," the monster wh ...more "
Nov 02, 2026 09:28AM
Laurie Nguyen made a comment in the group Goodreads Librarians Group — This book is not mine, please move it (part 21) topic " Hello, my name is Laurie Nguyen. I did not write these books and ask that they be removed from my profile. 1. Barren: https://www.goodreads.com/book/sh ...more "
Oct 31, 2026 03:15PM
Laurie Nguyen rated a book it was amazing The Wishing Man by Joshua Blackwood	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. The Wishing Man, by Joshua Blackwood, is a paranormal horror about how grief and anxiety can expose vulnerabilities that many hungry entities, real and imagined, can and will exploit. Thom ...more
Oct 30, 2026 08:26PM · like · see review
Laurie Nguyen rated a book really liked it Beautiful Prey: A Dark M/M Romance (Dynasty of Monsters) by Lola Malone (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for a review. Beautiful Prey, by Lola Malone, is a dark M/M romance about learning to rely on each other, all the while romanticizing the “fuck the rich” mentality. The Hunt is a seven-day spectacle in the Reac ...more
Oct 27, 2026 03:06AM · like · see review

Laurie Nguyen is now friends with Stella Voskan

Laurie Nguyen joined the groups Free Books & Kindle & ARC & Beta Readers & Giveaway and Authors & Reviewers

Laurie Nguyen rated a book

10 Reasons Why Ethan Parker Vanished
by Lilith Alba Carmin (Goodreads Author)

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I received this book for free in exchange for a review.

10 Reasons Why Ethan Parker by Lilith Alba Carmin is a dark M/M academia novel that recreates a social problem that has long plagued America. Ezra Ashford captains the Lionsveil University sports I received this book for free in exchange for a review.

10 Reasons Why Ethan Parker by Lilith Alba Carmin is a dark M/M academia novel that recreates a social problem that has long plagued America. Ezra Ashford captains the Lionsveil University sports teams and is the darling of the elites. He meets and falls in love with a certain boy who soon becomes the love of his life and the bane of his social existence. Despite their chemistry, Ezra stays with the elites, not caring who he has to hurt to maintain his image. What starts as a clandestine relationship morphs into a sorrowful game in which Ezra is forced to reckon with his and others’ mistakes, ones that upheld a system that rewards exploitation, violence, and, more poignantly, bystanding.

The main scene that haunts me is that phone call at the very beginning of the story. A 43-second phone call that could have changed the course of the story, and yet all Ezra could do was snuff it out. This action illuminates how much of a coward Ezra is, and the resilience Ethan displays when even the person he loves abandons him. It tells me why Ethan did what he did, and the suffocating blurbs from Ethan’s manuscript that he decides to chain the elites with. From then on, every silence is filled with a pregnant tension that, at times, almost veers towards psychological horror. Every scene that Ethan and Ezra are in is a stark reminder of the power imbalance between the two. In Ezra’s case, that decision came with certain chains and implications. The inequality is embedded in the setting of the University, as well as in the relationships that Carmin writes into the book.

There are a plethora of unfortunate real-world implications in this book. The Harvard admissions scandal caused higher education to come under scrutiny after it was found that the elites had bribed admissions officers from Harvard and other high-profile universities to secure a place for their children. Officials would alter the answers of wealthy children on college admissions tests. Parents bribed athletics staff and inflated applications.

And it all would’ve worked, had the parents actually filled their kids in on the plan.

It isn’t just that either. Although homophobia runs deep in America’s veins, just like any other prejudice, what ultimately trumps the violence is that the rich can, and will, get away with whatever they can. Colleges will shield their golden boys if it means bolstering their reputations. It’s what happened in movies like Promising Young Woman, and in real life, such as the Cornell “7’ Fraternity Scandal, the Baylor University Football Scandal, and the UNC Chapel Hill “Paper Classes” scandal.

And as the judge from Gilmore Girls puts, “If there’s one thing I have very little tolerance for, it’s rich, privileged children viewing the world as their private playground.”

There are times when the scenes border on melodramatic. There were also certainly areas I felt the book would benefit from more sensory details, especially when Ezra is investigating the victims. But despite its flaws, the book, like many of its predecessors, highlights an age-old tradition of the rich trying anything and everything to get away with their own brand of hedonism. The emotional knives are sharp, and while I don’t particularly like how cheerful the ending was, I’m glad Ezra and Ethan are happy all the same. As such, I would give this book 3.5 out of 5 stars, and would recommend it to those who enjoy the aforementioned movie, 13 Reasons Why, and Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass. ...more

Laurie Nguyen rated a book it was amazing

All Hallow's Eve at Senaire Woods by Juniper Skye

All Hallow's Eve at Senaire Woods: a cosy and magical paranormal Sapphic romance novella
by Juniper Skye (Goodreads Author)

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1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

I received this book in exchange for a free review.

All Hallow’s Eve at Senaire Woods by Juniper Skye is a cozy autumn novella about falling in love with your heritage, in more ways than one.

Charlie Stolar is a corporate drone who arrives in Senaire W ...more

Laurie Nguyen made a comment in the group Authors & Reviewers — Look for Reviewers for Horror Novella topic

" Good morning,

I'm interested in having folks review my horror novella, The Dead and the Dying. Below is a blurb:

"You'll always love me," the monster wh ...more "

Laurie Nguyen made a comment in the group Authors & Reviewers — Look for Reviewers for Horror Novella topic

" Good morning,

I'm interested in having folks review my horror novella, The Dead and the Dying. Below is a blurb:

"You'll always love me," the monster wh ...more "

Laurie Nguyen made a comment in the group Goodreads Librarians Group — This book is not mine, please move it (part 21) topic

" Hello, my name is Laurie Nguyen. I did not write these books and ask that they be removed from my profile.

1. Barren: https://www.goodreads.com/book/sh ...more "

Laurie Nguyen rated a book it was amazing

The Wishing Man
by Joshua Blackwood

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I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

The Wishing Man, by Joshua Blackwood, is a paranormal horror about how grief and anxiety can expose vulnerabilities that many hungry entities, real and imagined, can and will exploit.

Thom I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

The Wishing Man, by Joshua Blackwood, is a paranormal horror about how grief and anxiety can expose vulnerabilities that many hungry entities, real and imagined, can and will exploit.

Thomas is a romance writer who lives with his husband, Jason, and their beloved elderly dog, Reptar. With their hopeful future seemingly hanging in the balance, his career on the line, and his mental health in shambles, it’s all Thomas can do not to break when Jason announces that his mysterious, long-lost brother, Erik, comes to live with him. What starts off as familial love turns dark when Thomas realizes Erik is not who he seems. Thomas quickly spirals as Jason unknowingly pushes him to the edge.

Blackwood captures the stigma mental illness envelops all too well. Thomas’s pleas fall on deaf ears, despite the evidence that’s building against Jason’s well-intentioned actions. Thomas’s reliance reminds me of my own clients; I might not know what’s going on in their heads, but just because I don’t see it doesn’t mean it’s not real. For example, in my CBT for psychosis training, we were given an exercise to distinguish those who were experiencing psychosis versus those who weren’t. In the example, a woman had accused her husband of poisoning her. To my surprise, he was - he was just following the false belief that rat poison was going to help his wife. Even if the age-old idea of people clinging to mental illness to explain away a haunting is a bit overused, it worked well in this novel.

Moreover, it’s painful to read about the guilt Jason nurses towards his brother. To have someone you’ve desperately wanted to reach out to, only to realize they’ve disappeared completely. Even though Erik meant no harm in the end, it still almost cost Thomas and Jason their lives. The past sings a chilling song, one entities like the Wishing Man can latch onto.

I liked reading this story immensely. The character development was bone-chilling, the existential crises suffocating, and the amount of blood foreshadowed in the end was rather addictive. I like the idea of Reptar keeping some of the magic if only to protect his family. As such, I would give this book a 5 out of 5 stars, and would recommend it to those who enjoy Stricken by Andy Kumpon, and We Should Not Have Come Here by J.D. Mills. ...more

Laurie Nguyen rated a book really liked it

Beautiful Prey: A Dark M/M Romance (Dynasty of Monsters)
by Lola Malone (Goodreads Author)

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I received this book for free in exchange for a review.

Beautiful Prey, by Lola Malone, is a dark M/M romance about learning to rely on each other, all the while romanticizing the “fuck the rich” mentality.

The Hunt is a seven-day spectacle in the Reac I received this book for free in exchange for a review.

Beautiful Prey, by Lola Malone, is a dark M/M romance about learning to rely on each other, all the while romanticizing the “fuck the rich” mentality.

The Hunt is a seven-day spectacle in the Reach where the affluent and blessed can torture peasants for entertainment. They can choose the weather, the rations, and the shelters, and if you’re one of the ruling elite, you can even choose who wins and who loses. To help his sickly twin brother, Jade decides to participate. Though he’s only focused on survival, he unironically draws the attention of one of said ruling elite, Ash Cement the III. What begins as a romantic Hunger Games escapade turns into a brutally thrilling romance when Jade realizes how obsessed Ash is with him.

This would have easily been a horror movie had Jade not returned some of Ash’s feelings. I’m not a fan of being taken care of, nor is Jade, it seems. In fact, if I were Jade, I probably would’ve smacked the shit out of Ash before considering talking to him again. But that’s my privilege talking; after all, I’m not from a dying planet where resources are scarce and people either have to work together or die. I’m not Maren, forced to sell herself to survive another day. Even the rich are bound to those metaphorical chains; a cornered rat has no choice but to fight back if it has nothing left.

I also love the world that Jade was from. I like the idea of a planet stripped of its resources due to the upper class. It reminds me of what happened to the countries in Africa and Southeast Asia. I don’t know how much money Ash has, but for him to try to, at the very least, improve Jade and Onyx’s circumstances, especially when he clearly doesn’t owe Jade anything, means a lot. I’ve known men like Vasco, and I don’t think Ash was harsh enough with his punishments. The fact that Tempest’s exploitative culture was seen in Ash’s relationship with his father spoke volumes about how far Ash, as well as his cousins, would go for freedom. I take it that Jade and Ash are the same way.

I enjoyed this book immensely. while I do appreciate Jade’s world and background being fleshed out, I don’t think the story necessarily needed that. The Hunt was horrifying enough, and if Jade continued his resistance afterwards, say, going into hiding with his brother, then I felt it would’ve better suited the plot. Still, it was a good read. As such, I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars, and would recommend it to those who are fans of The Long Walk by Stephen King, any works by Chani Lynn Feener, and, interestingly enough, Star Wars. ...more