| Title | : | The Spider \u0026 the Storm |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Format Type | : | Kindle , Hardcover , Paperback , Audiobook & More |
| Number of Pages | : | - |
| Publication | : | Published July 19, 2024 |
Along came The Spider …
They called me a freak.
They called me a loser.
They tormented me and made my life a living nightmare when all I had ever wanted was to be left alone.
And five years ago, after a lifetime of being bullied and harassed, of enduring more pain and trauma than any man could handle, that’s exactly what I set out to do.
I left the only home I’d ever known to lock myself behind the cemetery gates and care for the only people who have ever given me the peace I craved—the dead.
But just as I’d started to feel comfortable, an unexpected stranger broke into my house and fell into my web of reclusive safety, and somehow, opened my eyes to love and the possibility that I just might have the strength to weather the storm after all …
The Spider \u0026 the Storm Reviews
-
Well that was depressing.
Whatever they told you about grief dulling with time was bullshit. You just got better at hiding it while its deep cuts opened over and over and over again, bleeding all over your broken heart.
Random thoughts review below.
This was like one of those artsy movies, or a poetry slam where people are snapping their fingers to pompous words meant to construe heavy meaning when it’s really just dressed up to sound highbrow.I dipped my head to bury my face in her neck, to breathe in the lavender she held in her hair and the cinnamon and black pepper she wore on her skin.
Black pepper? Is she rubbing herself in peppercorns?
Gothic-ish (tiny pnr element)
Grief, death, loss. Rinse and repeat
Physical and emotional childhood bullying
Substance abuse
Mental health issues
SA
This story was a word salad of sadness. How much can one guy handle? What exactly was his gift as a kid? Why is that never discussed again?
The alternating timeline each chapter was stressful, knowing his childhood flashbacks would be traumatic.
There were glaring errors in character consistency. For example, at 18 Charlie says he’s never been drunk before, but he was 13 one of the high school bullies forced him to get drunk.
The romance? Why do they like each other? He saves her from an attacker, and then she walks into his unlocked house. After one sleepover, he invites her to move in?
Sex isn’t really described. The emotional connection felt like a lot of words and not much actual character depth and intimacy.
She’s NOT LIKE OTHER GIRLS. Very unique in her high-top Chucks, dyed black hair, subdermal piercings, tattoos, and lots of attitude.
He’s covered in spider tattoos. What is his connection to spiders again?Spiders and storms. Two of the most common fears, and separately, we were the embodiment of them both.
But whyyyyyy? He’s a spider because they can get stuck in their own web? She’s a storm because of reasons? This would have been so much better as an actual spider monster romance.
But the last annoyance. There is no way that he couldn’t be found. That last twist of the story around 90% just felt ridiculous. Are you really telling me he doesn’t have work history? He hasn’t registered his car? He doesn’t pay taxes? Have a bank account? Did anyone really try to find him?
Poor Luke. His letter was really beautiful. He deserved so much more.
The ending just felt sad, which I guess is on par for the theme of this almost 700 page book. -
4.25 stars
Kelsey Kingsley is one of those authors who can bring the feels. This one had me crying into my pillow late last night. I read this book fairly quickly for how long it was because I couldn't wait to see what would happen next in Charlie's story. Let me tell you... it didn't go how I thought it would.
If you're looking for a light and happy romance this is not the book for you. It's full of heartache, trauma, and emotion. It does have some lighter moments and I would say the ending is happy as a whole, but there is a lot of heartbreak to get to the happy. It's not relationship angst, it's just Charlie's life story.
Charlie Corbin is a character I won't be forgetting any time soon. I loved him and his girl, Stormy. I was happy he finally found his special person, just like his brother said he would. If you've read 'Saving Rain' and 'Warrior Blue' there are some fun tie-ins and you get to see those characters again which was really cool. Overall I really enjoyed this one, just be prepared going in- you will cry! -
When a gifted wordsmith pours her heart and soul into her work, when the words are tinged with her blood and she leaves everything on the page the way Kingsley has done here, it requires nothing but unbridled honesty in return.
Did I love every word? No. Did I wish parts of it were different? Absolutely, yes. Did it make me feel anxious and frustrated, and unbearably sad? Most definitely. Did it ruin and wreck me? You bet it did. Was my heart ensnared and gripped by every scene? One hundred percent yes. Am I glad and grateful I read it? Eternally, yes.
Here's the thing. Love, when it comes to fallible humans, is messy. It's devastating and euphoric. It's heart-rending and hopeful. It's the most debilitating lows, the most exhilarating highs, and everything in between. And it is the essence of life. The reason. The purpose. Nowhere, in the thousands of romances I’ve read, have I seen that depicted quite like Kingsley does here.
Charlie Corbin may be the most complex and complicated MMC I’ve ever read, and I feel like I still won’t completely know and understand him after a dozen rereads. But my heart, oh how it wept for him, wishing I could wipe away all his pain. The synopsis barely scratches the surface and gives the impression Charlie was picked on. But it's so much worse than that. The cruelty he endured, the losses he suffered, well, a lesser man would have succumbed long ago.
Eventually Charlie leaves the town where his worst moments in life reside and moves to Salem, MA. You'd think he'd finally be at peace, working among people who no longer talk or even breathe. Except this is where the real trials and challenges begin for Charlie.
And when Stormy enters the picture? No, she doesn’t fix anything, but Charlie likes the idea that he's no longer alone. Her quiet strength, unbreakable friendship, and unwavering love are things he feels he doesn’t deserve, but he cherishes them all the same.
My only warning on this one is to get lots of tissues, because it's impossible to guard your heart. Dive in, immerse yourself, and let it captivate and consume you. Surrender yourself to it, because I suspect the person you are at the beginning is not who you'll become in the end.
When it's all said and done, this is a story about persevering through the impossible, healing a heart battered beyond recognition, and indestructible hope. It’s right up there with the works of Jennifer Hartmann and Tillie Cole, and it's easily the read of a lifetime. If you’re looking for a romance that makes you feel everything, that destroys your heart but leaves if full and satisfied, this is your next epic read. -
We're in Salem, Massachussetts.
Charlie is 38 years old and has been working as the cemetery caretaker for five years now. He's as happy as he can be.
He had to leave home years ago to get away from everything that happened there. His childhood was hell. He had great parents and a great big brother but Charlie just didn't fit into the 'normal people' world.
So much happened! And now here in Salem all alone he's kind of okay.
Until she comes along.
...
══════════════════
Oy! That was a LONG book!
And I loved it.
I almost kinda threw it out the window during the prologue when Charlie is talking about a spider he's watching. Ew. No. Just Ew.
But that was basically the only real spider we see in the book. *shudders*
Poor Charlie. We go back a lot to his childhood and teen years and ... I don't know. I think his parents just didn't find the right therapist for him. But they did their best.
And he was pretty okay ... only his brother's bestie Ritchie was the worst. He bullied him whenever they saw each other. Horrible kid! The parents should've noticed that and moved them all away from that place!
And in the present time. Poor Charlie is all alone in his little cemetery house. He doesn't want to connect with people. But then she shows up and he's ... awed. And so much more.
Adorable! And heartbreaking. You will cry a lot.
You will fall in love with Charlie and his forever ever after girl and all the others.
I so want to see this as a movie one day!
THE SPIDER + THE STORM was a heartbreakingly beautiful love and life story!
Sweet + emotional + sad + dark and ugh... just an amazing book! READ IT!
🕷🕸🕷🕸
CLICK
>HERE< TO BUY THE BOOK
if you can’t click on the buy-links below!
💜
💜
-
Had to come back and I finished and respectfully I’m never reading a book by this author again because I truly cannot handle it. This book made me sob like a baby and I just wanna give Charlie a hug😩
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Had to stop reading. Only got through a little over a hundred pages and somehow the author described my own anxiety to a t and I don’t think I can handle reading it.
Plus in just over a hundred pages we haven’t had like a conversation between the love interests in a romance book so it was a little slow for my liking.
It is definitely a hard stop right now but might pick it up again when I can handle crying. -
Take it. Take all the stars, every last one I have.
Listen to the author’s warning on this one, yall. Although, I’m not sure that she put me back correctly after all we went through.
Charlie’s story seriously shattered my heart. I feel like if I wasn’t already on depression medication, I’d need some to get through this. His story absolutely consumed me. Charlie, oh god, Charlie😭. I’m devastated and I feel like I want to throw up. My eyes hurt, my nose is stopped up and squeaking with every breath, like Jim Carey’s in Me, Myself, and Irene (who, coincidentally, was also named Charlie). This story is going to stay with me for a long, long while.
To fight the desire to sit here and sulk in Charlie’s horrible fucking traumatic life, dissecting every little heartbreak, I’m IMMEDIATELY jumping into something else.
That��s it. That’s the best review I have in me. If you decide to read this, make sure you have tissues, and… serotonin be with you. -
Okay, WOW! I just want to start out by saying Kelsey, you are such an amazing author. I absolutely love your writing. I get so lost in your stories. You really knocked it out of the park with this one!
I loved this book so much! OMG 🥹 this book made me an emotional mess. I cried several times. I felt so much for Charlie and everything he went through. I don’t even know what else to say, I’m at a loss for words. It was just so good! I’ll definitely be thinking about this story for a long time. It deserves more than 5 stars! -
Omg my heart 💔😭 this book has destroyed me! Such a beautiful love story about two damaged characters with horrible pasts who learn to heal together.
Told from the MMC POV & two different time lines (trust me - it works)
The romance takes a little bit of time to get there but I feel like hearing Charlie (MMC) back story it really helped with understanding how he was feeling in the present.
This might not be for everyone, but this book has my heart!! -
I am unwell. If anyone needs me, I’ll be processing this heartbreaking masterpiece till the end of time. I literally have no words. This book utterly destroyed my heart and yet, it healed it all the same. You’re going to need the tissues for this one.
You know the feeling in your gut that something bad is going to happen, that is how I felt the entire time I was reading this book. Life knocked Charlie down over and over again. My heart broke for him, each and every time.
𝐅𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐐𝐮𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬:
Charlie and Stormy’s story is going to be one I think about for a long time to come.
“And I'm glad that, of all the witches in this city, you chose to catch me in your web.”
“You just tell me what I'm fighting against, Charlie, and I'll go into battle with you.”
𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲:
• Dual Timeline
• Story from the male POV
• Angsty Romance
• Strong FMC
🌶️
Thank you Kelsey for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review. -
I have read all of Kelsey Kingsley's books, so I was excited about the opportunity to join her ARC team for TS&TS. I have never been on a team before. Having said that...
NO SPOILERS
TS&TS is beautiful. Painfully so. Charlie, Luke, Melanie, and Stormy- among others- are whole characters with well developed stories, as both main and side characters. I admire Kelsey's ability to write such rich storylines for so many people. Not only does each character make sense, they flow together perfectly!
I will admit to crying once in this book, and I definitely took a lot of breaks to avoid being overwhelmed. Was the story that rough? Not for me. My issue was how invested I was, how plugged into the story I became. I couldn't relate to much of the angst & themes in real life, but Kelsey plopped me down into my feels so hard, I FELT this book! I was Charlie. I was Luke, and Stormy... and when I finished, I was so PROUD of Kelsey and glad I read such a book of sorrow, loss, hope, redemption, and love. -
Jesus Christ. If i was line editing this book, I’d change a lot of dialogue leading up to the romance. However, i sobbed the entire last 150 pages. So despite being a little rocky building, it must have been effective enough because it still pulled on every heart string.
-
I had to sit with this book for a couple of days after finishing. Kelsey is a fantastic author, and the way she speaks about mental health from the perspective of the character is just phenomenal. I absolutely love the way she writes her male characters. If the minds of Noah Kahan and Hozier got together and created a love child, that would be the soul of Charlie Corbin. He is to be treasured and protected at all costs. This book is not an easy read, but I do think its an important one. I was an earlier reader of both Warrior Blue and Saving Rain, and I loved seeing all the tie-ins to characters I already knew and loved. While I would classify this book as a romance of sorts, it’s really so much more. This is a love letter to the human experience. To all the messy, ugly, beautiful, gritty, exhilarating, terrifying, threads that come together to form the colorful and complex tapestry of a person’s existence. Well done, Kelsey!
* I was provided an ARC by the author in exchange for an honest review.
-
I had to marinate on this one before I could even string words together to attempt a review.
This book is not for everyone, let's just get that out of the way.
It is CHARACTER DRIVEN, I'd even venture to say that it borders on literary fiction, but it is very much a dark romance. No list of tropes here. This is about grief, depression and anxiety, family, self-discovery, self-acceptance, forgiveness, centered around the idea that everything happens for a reason. The romance is this story can only be described as when you know, you know. Call it what you will but to me it's a love at first sight or even soulmates. It's beautiful
This book is not for those who need a heavy plot and the traditional structure of a romance. If you don't like alternating timelines/flashback chapters, this is not for you because that is how the entire story is told. If heavy focus on depression, anxiety, and intrusive thoughts is triggering for you, or too sad-this is not for you either. It is emotional and heavy, which seem to be the bulk of the points I've seen in most unfavorable reviews, so take that into account before picking this one up.
If you're like me and everything I just mentioned are things you love in a book, then I highly recommend giving it a go. -
Arc review
The Spider & The Storm
By Kelsey Kingsley
Welcome to Salem, Massachusetts
Where stormy meets a spider
💀Gravedigger MMC
💀Tearjerker
💀Angsty
💀Gothic Romance
💀Snarky Body Piercer FMC
💀Dark Elements
💀Suspense
I'm sitting here with my thoughts about this book. Kelsey always captures my attention with her Writing, making you feel so deeply and immersing yourself into the story.
God I wanted to jump into this story and tell Charlie it's going to get better. And give him a hug for every single time he thought less of himself.
Until stormy came into his life, he didn't want anyone to get close because of all the hurt and secrets he was keeping inside.
Spider and Stormy are the perfect, imperfect couple, learning together that your past doesn't have to define who you are.
Thank you Kelsey for allowing me to read an arc of this. Everyone reading this, go download saving rain first read it and five right into the spider and the storm. It's emotional, suspenseful, dark, and will have you up all night in too many ways to say.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶 -
Every single one of Kelsey’s books have completely gutted me and managed to put me back together again by the ending. She is an incredible writer and story teller. I absolutely fell in love with Charlie and Stormy’s stories. I especially love when other characters from her other works pop in. Seeing Blake and the crew from Salem Ink, as well as Soldier and Rain was one of the best parts of this book. The way these stories tie together makes it all the more worth the read.
And huge shoutout to the author for continuing to write about individuals struggling with mental health, trauma, and finding themselves. It’s refreshing to see these characters written with their flaws, and find out who they are and what they can overcome! Especially knowing that our mmc seek out professional mental health counseling (we love positive masculinity)!
This ARC read was HIGHLY anticipated as I’ve been a fan of Kelsey Kingsley’s work for some time. Check out this read, and DEFINITELY check out her others to see how the characters tie in. -
I have never rated a book 6 ⭐️s so fast. (Unfortunately Goodreads doesn’t provide that option though)
Such a heartbreaking story mainly about the love of two brothers desperate to make sure each other is okay after all that they’ve been through and trying to navigate how to find peace amongst love and loss.
Now onto the romantic aspect - I LOVED both of the MC’s Charlie & Stormy 🖤 the heartbreak, the plot twists, the trauma all of it was just *mwah* 💋 & the love omg 😭❤️
I really enjoyed the cameos!! The found family trope is one of my absolute favorites and I just think it’s so bittersweet and special 🥹🫶🏻
Ugh THIS BOOK is EVERYTHING! Kelsey kicked ass on this book and I wish I could reread it for the first time 😭🖤
I’m so honored to have gotten an ARC of this masterpiece 🥰 -
I have two rules for reading Kelsey’s novels:
1. Never start them late at night because I will definitely get sucked in and won’t be able to stop. Guess what? It’s 1 AM, and I’ve just finished one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking emotional roller coasters ever.
2. Review immediately after finishing because the longer I wait, the harder it gets to put my feelings into words. Right now, my heart is this raw, aching thing that won’t cooperate with my brain for the next week or so.
But let’s talk about the book. What can I say? It was beautiful, it was sad, it broke my heart, and then gave me a figurative “get well soon” balloon. Kelsey’s writing is phenomenal. Her characters always break you in the best ways possible, and she did it again with Charlie and his Stormy girl.
Honestly, if you’re looking for an emotional ride that leaves you wrecked but happy, this is the book for you. Just don’t start it late at night! -
Charlie is a boy who has a very rough childhood. He’s awkward, a little “different”, and gets picked on mercilessly by his brother’s friends.
Luke is Charlie’s older brother, who does his best to look out for Charlie.
Tragedy happens and forever changes both of their lives. When Charlie finally has enough and moves away, it changes the shape of his future again.
I don’t want to say too much about this book. Will you cry? Absolutely. Will you laugh? Not necessarily. But you will love every word and every second of this book. -
-Gothic Contemporary Romance
-Strangers to Lovers
-Spooky Vibes
-Male POV
-Found Family
-Mental Health Rep
I am so sad that this book is over like I just stared off trying to comprehend everything. I loved this story. I fell in love with the MMC and FMC and felt so connected to them. It was such an emotional rollercoaster and I felt everything alongside Charlie and Stormy. My heart hurt for Charlie and everything he had been forced to live through. I have never felt so many emotions while reading a book. The ending of the book surprised me in a good way.
**I received this as an ARC copy. Thank you so much Kelsey for access to this AMAZING book!!** -
cute
Very cute read. Good for the beach-vacation.
I enjoyed it. Lots of spooky moments-not scary just interesting. It would be fun for Halloween. -
Beta Read.
RTC.
I am so unwell. Kelsey Kingsley writes phenomenal stories. -
This is a long book and I felt like it took me forever to finish it, not because it wasn't keeping my attention though. No, this book gripped me from the very beginning and never let go. It took a long time to read though, because I couldn't just sneak in a chapter while I was at work or while sitting in a waiting room. No, I couldn't do that, because I never knew when emotion was going to overtake me from the words on the page and I'd find myself crying (sometimes sobbing) at the most unexpected moments. That's the type of book that this is.
Charlie aka Spider has not had an easy life. From a young age, he's known more loss, more torment and grief than most people know in a lifetime. Now that he's finally found the quiet that he's always craved, he finds a woman (or maybe she finds him) who doesn't do what everyone else has done. She doesn't leave. But is Charlie brave enough to stop running?
Charlie and Stormy's story is tragic and heartbreaking. It's infuriating. I was so mad for how Charlie was treated and for the things that Stormy had survived. I was heartbroken at the loss of innocence and unfairness of the life that all of these characters faced. I was intrigued by the direction that this story took, and in the end, I was left in awe of this author.
I was left in awe of the talent that it takes to bring so much emotion to a page. This was such an emotional read for me. I can't count the number of times that I'd find myself with tears just freely falling down my face. Other times, I'd just break down into full blown cries, and more than once, I sobbed uncontrollably. This book had me feeling every single emotion right along with these characters, and I don't regret a single moment of it.
Now, I still find myself thinking about this story, and I still want more. I want to see into the future just a little more. I want so see where some of these characters end up, and I really kind of hope that maybe there will be another book (or two) set in this world.
This will be one of my top reads of this year and it's a story that I won't soon forget. -
This story was amazing but it broke my heart at the same time. I couldn't help but feel for Charlie throughout the whole book. I liked how the book went back and forth between Charlie's past and present. It played out everything but in a slow burn kind of way. I hated what happened with Luke, it was sad but at least he got somewhat of a happy ending. One thing I loved about this book is how interconnected the characters are with ones from other books, like Soldier and Rain for example. I love getting to see more of previous characters lives. I loved the advice Soldier gives Charlie about telling Stormy what happened to him. The twist involving Luke and Ritchie with regards to Stormy was unexpected. The conversation between Luke and Charlie towards the end, back in their old house, was definitely unexpected too. I won't lie, it made me tear up reading that part. I loved what Charlie thought at the end of the book: The spider who hadn’t just weathered the storm, but watched it pass to make way for a sunny day and a brighter future. One where loneliness wasn’t an option ... and I was good with that. Some of my favorite quotes from the book:
“You act like I'm perfect, and I'm far from it.” “No, and neither am I. But I think, together, we make something that's pretty f*€king close.”
“And what about you? Will you love me forever?”
“Spider. My soul doesn't know how to not love yours. All I had to do was meet you to know that I had been put into this universe to hold you and protect you and shelter you from every terrible thing that had ever come your way until you were strong enough to face it on your own. And whenever that happens, if ever it does, my soul will stand beside yours, even while the rest of the world has been conditioned to run from us both.”
Thank you to Kelsey Kingsley for the advanced copy. -
Wow! Wow! Wow! Kelsey, you did it again. Just when I think the last book of yours is the best I'll ever read, you come out with another one that takes the cake. As a person struggling with anxiety for the majority of my life, thank you. Thank you for writing Charlie and making me feel seen in a way I haven't felt, maybe ever. Oh, the tears I cried for Charlie, for Stormy, and for myself as I navigated my way through this book, I don't know how I will recover, or that I even want to recover fully. This book, like Warrior Blue and Saving Rain, broke me and healed me.
The way you write your characters and allow us to connect with them is truly a gift. Charlie and Stormy aren't perfect, they are flawed. But, they are perfectly flawed for each other. They accept each other as only someone who truly sees another can. They love the broken pieces and work to help them heal and love them still.
Favorite quotes:
“I just decided that, for as long as we have together, I'll go where you go.”
“I'm so f*cking tired,” I admitted, the weary agony dragging my voice down to a whisper. “Then, stop running away from the monsters that keep chasing you. They'll always catch up—always.”
Spiders and storms. Two of the most common fears, and separately, we were the embodiment of them both. But we'd saved each other, hadn't we? We'd given each other shelter, a place for our hearts to heal and love.
