Such a fun sequel to Malice House! Definitely read that one first if you want the full picture. I think it's a great spooky season option and love the concept.

Midnight Showing is the sequel to Malice House. I rarely like a sequel better, but I loved this one.

We’re back with Haven and Kylie who are traveling the world to find out more regarding the Acosta family and cursemakers. They end up in LA at Rob’s Hollywood mansion.

All the characters are still here; Rafe and Uncle Arnold. Along with new and more terrifying monsters.

Read Malice House and then immediately go out and get Midnight Showing.

When I requested this book I did not notice that it was the sequel to Malice House. Midnight Showing brought back some of my favorite horror characters and brought in new people to enjoy. After the first book I was not sure what the next book would bring and I am so happy to say that it was an enjoyable sequel and I am looking forward to the next one!

I liked this book, but I thought that it wasn't a stand-alone. I think if I had read the first book in the series first, I would've been able to connect to it more. One thing I really enjoyed once I realized the reason behind them was the Sigil Pictures excerpts in the beginning of each chapter. I originally was really confused, but they make the story so much better.

I thought the character development could've been improved a bit. I didn't really connect with any of the characters, although I did notice that they had both had a few flaws. I think making a stronger connection would be helpful.

I would definitely recommend reading the first book before this one, but I think this could be a really good fantasy series!
If you like light horror books, and books about creations coming to life, I fully recommend this book for something enjoyable.

A bit slower than its predecessor, but overall a great read!! Perfect for heading into spooky season!

This sequel picks right up where Malice House left off. Haven and Kylie are on the run from their curse (their respective artwork comes to life) and trying to figure out the next step while alluding authorities and their monstrous creations. I was a huge fan of Malice House, and though I liked this one, the pace was a bit slow. However, I suspect there will be a third and I am very much looking forward to it. Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book!

When I requested this book I did not notice that it was the sequel to Malice House but I knew that I loved Malice House and wanted to read anything by Megan Shepherd. I was so pleasantly surprised when I started reading and realized that it was the sequel and immediately needed to devour it.

Midnight Showing brought back some of my favorite horror characters and brought in new people to enjoy. After the first book I was not sure what the next book would bring and I am so happy to say that it was an enjoyable sequel and I am looking forward to the next one!

This series is a perfect light horror, where there are moments that can be unnerving but not overwhelming. In this next book, we are again exposed to the mystery behind the family name and how Haven and her sister, Kylie, powers work in the creation of creatures. This book mainly follows this idea behind finding out the truth about the mysteries in their life. Yet again, this leads the girls to interact with Uncle Arnold and the horrors he has decided to hunt down.

If you like light horror books, and books about creations coming to life, I fully recommend this book for something enjoyable. Thank you for the chance to read and review this next installment in Shepherd's series!

4.5 stars. I love this series so much. This is the second book and it picks right up where Malice House ended. Haven and her newly-found sister, Kylie, are on the run from the events in Lundie Bay. Trying desperately to seek answers about the curse plaguing their family, and after displaying some disturbing behavior by Haven in Portugal, the ladies book a flight back to California. Once there, they end up staying with "Rob", Haven's dark web contact who turns out to be a movie producer. It seems some strange murders have been happening and once again Haven finds herself battling monsters that she helped create. PLEASE let there be more books in this series coming!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for this e-arc.*

This was okay in comparison to this first one. It was a lot slower but still gave me the spooks. Definitely worth the read but I wish it was a quicker pace.

I Love Megan Shepherd and she as usual has blown me away with Midnight Showing the sequel to The Malice House. Boh sisters have been working hard to keep their curse under control, they remind eachother constantly, don't write, don't draw. Haven and Kylie are struggling to keep themselves in check while also staying under the radar. Uncle Arnold is still looking for them and all it takes is a whisper to stop anyone in their tracks. Haven and Kylie must find a way to stop him before his evil is unleashed.

The Malice House Compendium is a fantastic read. I adored Malice House and Midnight Showing picks up right where Malice ended.
Big thanks to #Netgalley and #Hyperion for the opportunity to read #MidnightShowing.

This was disappointing. I loved Malice House--it was creepy and creative. Midnight Showing lacks the sinister house and the creative nuance of drawing these monsters to life. Rafe is a captivating character but even he couldn't save this book for me. Midnight Showing is slow and confusing. Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC

I like how this sequel started off in a new site, Europe. I just wished we had spent more time there. I am glad that when it moved back to the US it was not back to Oregon. I felt it help re-invigorate the story. The story took an interesting turn. Glad to have met Rob and see the interactions with her sister Kylie. Wish there had been more romance with Rafe though. The way it ended makes me wonder if there will be another book. I feel like more could yet be told.

** Thank you to Hyperion for offering me a free eARC in exchange for an honest review **'

rating: 3.5/5 stars

I have to say, this book did give a good honest try at being a sequel. To be honest, it's always hard to beat the first one and unfortunately, I wouldn't say that this one outshined the first book. It did create a great spooky atmosphere and I found it easy to read for the most part.

The characters were very similar to how they were in the first novel and there were plenty of times where I related to the MC, and times that I did not. The atmosphere and attitude in the first novel was unforgettable, but here, there were times where interactions fell short and I felt unsatisfied. But, that didn't totally ruin my experience with the novel. Like Shepherd's "Madman's Daughter" series, the first book started out very strong, but things start to dwindle as the series goes on.

Overall, I DO think that this is a good sequel, but it has its flaws that may differ from each person. I do recommend picking this up after reading the first book. Now this is a note to the publisher as to why it took me so long to review - I did receive a badly formatted PDF copy for the Kindle, and it took me a very long time to read because of that and school. That's one major critique I have, as I felt like the bad formatting disrupted the story flow at times.

Alright, stay spooky and happy reading!

Thank you Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Haven Acosta is a curseworker. When she draws, her drawings magically come to life. Her half-sister Kylie is the other side of the curse. When Kylie writes her writing comes to life. The two compliment each other, but the issue is it only works for monsters.

Haven and Kylie are on a mission to find out more about the curse, but they are avoiding a monster known as Uncle Arnold at the same time. It is realized really quickly that Uncle Arnold wants to hurt the two and he is close on their trail.

I liked this book, but I thought that it wasn't a stand-alone. I think if I had read the first book in the series first, I would've been able to connect to it more. One thing I really enjoyed once I realized the reason behind them was the Sigil Pictures excerpts in the beginning of each chapter. I originally was really confused, but they make the story so much better.

I thoguht the character development could've been improved a bit. I didn't really connect with any of the characters, although I did notice that they had both had a few flaws. I think making a stronger connection would be helpful.

I would definitely recommend reading the first book before this one, but I think this could be a really good fantasy series!

I didnt realize this was a sequel to Malice House (which I have not read yet) so this will have to wait.

Thank you @Netgalley for my advance copy!

"Malice House" by Megan Shepherd is one of my all-time favorite horror novels and "Midnight Showing" is a fitting sequel to that fabulous book. I was so excited to return to the world Ms. Shepherd created! We encounter many familiar characters (the terrifying Uncle Arnold is back!), as well as meet horrifying new ones. The monsters Ms. Shepherd creates are truly petrifying and will haunt a reader's dreams. As with "Malice House," the writing in "Midnight Showing" is very good and definitely better than most horror novels that focus mainly on the plot and less on character development and writing style.

"Midnight Showing" cannot be read as a stand-alone novel, as it picks up soon after the ending of "Malice House" and builds on its story of the Acosta family curse. Though it is a continuation of the previous book, the curse is presented in a fresh new way that keeps the reader engaged and guessing. This is not just a rehash of the first book in the series. I really hope there will be a third book in the Malice Compendium because I can't wait to see what form the curse takes next!

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book. Scheduled to release in early October, "Midnight Showing" is the perfect book to prepare readers for the spookiest time of the year!

I did not realize this was book 2 of the series, so I went back to read Book one. This book was okay nothing amazing, but a decent read.

I missed the first book, which is no doubt why I was completely confused by this one! It's got a good premise and the characters seemed intriguing but I was so lost that I opted to cut my losses and DNF. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. I'm betting Shepherd's fans will feel differently.

Well that was a riiiide. I loved the previous book in this series, Malice House, and this one just took it up another notch.
Haven and her sister Kylie are traveling around the west coast, dodging their past while doing a little investigation into their lineage. It all leads up to a serious battle and an entire crew of monsters. There is a ton of action and a cast of characters to remember, but it’s written so vividly you can see it happen as you read along.
I found myself skimming the paragraphs that were movie script, to get back to the real time action. Maybe that added to the story, maybe I missed some things, I couldn’t tell.
Definitely a contemporary horror series to get hooked on, I’m invested in seeing how the next one plays out because that ending was open ended and BONKERS.
Thanks to Megan Shepherd, Hyperion Ave and NetGalley for the advance readers copy!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for this ARC! I read Malice House last year by Megan and I really enjoyed it, so I was so excited for the sequel. Midnight Showing was even creepier than the first book and I loved it so much! Haven is such an interesting character and I enjoyed getting to know Kylie and Rafe more in the book. Midnight Showing was filled with movie references (albeit not real movies) and tons of monsters!

I can’t wait to read more form Megan in the future!

I came to this story fresh off of reading the first book in the series, which I loved, which is all to say I had high expectations. I enjoyed the overall story and the world-building, but wasn’t quite as wowed as I was by the first in the series.

We start off more or less right where the last book ended, which is great. But the first third of the book really felt like it was turning its wheels, a bit. In the first book we were learning about the main character, finding ourself deep in a mystery, and not knowing who or what to trust. In this book we start with the same characters that ended the last book, so we don’t have to spend any time learning about them, and we already know the mystery they are trying to sort out in the opening section. There were a few secrets to be revealed and obviously some plot points to set up, but it felt like it took a long time to get to the story that this book really wanted to tell. That said, I enjoyed spending more time with these characters. We are now following two main protagonists, but the story is still only told from one point of view. It really felt like a lost opportunity not to not switch back and forth between points of view across chapters. Certain secrets and revelations would have to have been written or explored differently, being inside both characters minds, but it would have given us a chance to really get to learn about our new addition, who we only understand form the outside in. It would have definitely made the first third of the book more compelling.

As before, the writing itself is great. While I thought the first third of the story not to be paced very well, each chapter was tight and well-paced, and each pulled you into the following chapter in a way that never felt like a gimmick or a manipulation. The dialogue all felt real and comfortable, and the primary characters felt genuine. Some of the new, ancillary characters that we met in this installment did feel a little bit cartoonish or convenient, and it was clear they were convenient for plot more than having rich inner lives. That said, they weren’t distracting and were fun to be around, and while they didn’t feel remarkably original they also didn’t feel bland, and they did help shape the narrative. I really liked the way the world opened up in this installment, taking something that was glimpsed at in the first book and multiplying it exponentially. Along with a much bigger world and interpretation of the curse/gift that is central to the story were a whole slew of new rules to this world, and some of those felt a little fuzzy around the edges. However, given our main characters’ lack of knowledge or experience that fuzziness is perfectly okay, though I do hope we, as the readers, can get a little more clarity in the next book, because it sometimes felt like things were introduced late not as natural blossoming of the emerging rules of this magic but rather as convenient for where the plot would be going. As a reader I don’t need hard and fast rules to the world’s magic, and I definitely don’t need our characters accurately understanding all of the rules, but I want to feel like the author has a clear understanding of the rules. Regardless, the expansion into cinema felt like a great natural progression for the story, and I did enjoy where it went.

I was satisfied with the overall story, and there were quite a few exciting, creepy action beats in the back third that were fun and well executed. This novel didn’t wow me as much as the first one, but I still really enjoyed it and if you had fun with the first novel then I think you will enjoy this one too. Importantly, it keeps a wide-open world begging for future stories, and I am excited to see where that goes. I would especially be excited to see future installments follow multiple points of view and multiple interwoven storylines, and there are enough interesting characters to make that possible. Even if we still just follow Haven, though, I am down for the ride. The world and magic are exciting, the ideas that are brought up about art and creation and responsibility are fun to think about, and the writing is a joy to read.

(Rounded up from 3.5)

I want to thank the author, the publisher Hyperion Avenue, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.