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A Second Chance
A Second Chance follows Mikaila, a teen in 2003 who juggles school, a fragile home, and a growing Christian faith, along with her best friend Chara and an older boy named Asa. Mikaila lives with her grandparents while her mother cycles through untreated mental illness, and Chara recovers from a horrific SUV crash that injures her and leaves her dad in the hospital. As Chara heals, Mikaila begins to have vivid dreams that seem to show the future and even Chara’s funeral, so she believes God has given her a limited window to help her friend turn toward Him. Asa first appears as a nerdy chess champ online, then starts a secret, sexualized chat relationship with Chara and later betrays her by leaking doctored conversations to the whole school, triggering brutal shame and gossip. Through all of this, Mikaila deals with a violent crisis at home when her mother holds a knife to her sister, a deepening faith, and a controlling boyfriend who does not share that direction.
I connected most with the writing when it stayed close to concrete, everyday detail. The short, dated chapters feel like diary entries and move between points of view, so the story hops from bus rides and Golden Girls reruns to hospital rooms and church services without losing the thread. I liked the way early 2000s touches sit in the background. Moments like the knife scene in Kait’s room feel incredibly sharp and cinematic. The prose leaned on repeating certain emotions and openly providing the moral takeaways in dialogue, especially in some of the more spiritual conversations and the sermon at Mikaila’s funeral. It works for the intended readership, and it still registered for me as an honest teen voice.
Asa’s arc stood out to me because it starts with such believable, flirty banter on IM and webcam, then slides into sexual comments, secrecy, and “our little secret” language that made my skin crawl. When the mass email of doctored chats goes out, and Chara gets humiliated and catcalled at school, I felt sick for her, and I appreciated how the book shows not only the initial thrill of attention but also the long fallout and the gaslighting that follows when Asa denies his role. Pairing that plot with the resource list on grooming at the back makes the story feel like both a narrative and a warning label. On the spiritual side, the book leans fully into God speaking through dreams, salvation language, and an explicit view of heaven, yet it is grounded in messy reality, including mental illness, divorce, and flawed Christians. I found that mix surprisingly tender. The focus on a God who sees, and on a faith that has to survive trauma, felt sincere. By the time I reached the last stretch, I was more emotional than I expected. The way things are handled keeps the focus on grief and on the ongoing story of the living, which I liked, and the funeral scene where Chara raises her hand to recommit her faith felt earned after everything she had endured.
I would recommend A Second Chance to older teens and adults who are open to Christian themes and who can handle heavy content around grooming, mental illness, and domestic violence. It feels especially suited to readers in youth groups, Christian schools, or families who want a story that can open up hard conversations about online boundaries, consent, and what healthy love looks like, with a strong emphasis on faith and hope. For the right reader, this book offers a heartfelt, sometimes painful, but ultimately hopeful look at how one girl’s love and faith echo far beyond her short life.
Pages: 345 | ASIN: B0GDG6WZF9
The Horror of Nachos and Hamantaschen | Podcast
The Hungry Monster was given the opportunity to interview JR Hamantaschen and Derek Sotak, the hosts of a horror podcast. We discuss the horror genre, how Queens NY is not the quietest place to record a podcast, and I find out where I can get a 5lb plate of artisanal nachos.
What inspired you guys to start a podcast about horror culture?
Derek: I had always wanted to do a podcast about weird movies, and separately always enjoyed the horror genre, so when one of my favorite authors asked me if I wanted to do a horror podcast I said “Yes Stephen King, more than anything.” That podcast never panned out because he was too busy, so later when JR came to me with the same idea I thought the second time would be the charm, and here we are today.
J.R. Well, I’ve written a couple of dark fiction collections now and have had my hand in editing some others. I felt a bit burned out on writing horror and have been pursuing other subjects, but still want to keep a toe in the genre, so to speak, and, honestly, see if I could rekindle my interest. Also, Derek’s a pretty cool guy and it was an excuse to hang out in some capacity.
How do you two know each other? How did you two meet?
Derek: I was reading JR long before I ever met him in person, becoming enraged upon reading his bio that he was so much younger than me and writing such excellent stuff. When years later we met at a convention it turned out that he was wasn’t so young anymore and a pretty radical dude in general, so I let my rage go. Sometimes that’s all it takes for a magical friendship to blossom.
J.R.: We met at the NecronomiCon Convention in 2015 in Providence, Rhode Island. We were both separately friends with Chris Lackey and Chad Fifer of the H.P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast, and we all went out to lunch. Then the sparks flew. A couple handjobs later and here we are.
You are now 13 episodes into the podcast, what is one thing that you’ve learned about the podcast process that you never considered before?
Derek: Unfortunately a podcast is not as easy as pressing record and shooting the shit for an hour. As part of the Faustian bargain I made with JR at the crossroads at midnight under a full moon I do the tech side of the operation, which involves the editing, syncing, posting, website stuff, and all the other various jazz that a “real” podcast has interns do for them, which was all more than I bargained for. BTW, we will be announcing the Horror of Nachos and Hamantaschen internship contest shortly, and Max Fun or Earwolf, we we are eagerly awaiting your call.
J.R.: This might be the height of spoiled laziness, but fitting in two movies per week or reading a book in a week and trying to think of interesting commentary or insights is harder than I thought it would be. Also, one thing I never noticed before is that it seems a lot of other podcasts pick out or select things that they already know they might like, whereas we don’t, so there’s a decent chance we will dislike what we are commenting on and rag on it. Also, I live in Queens, New York, and it seems the ambulances, taxis and people who hang out on my block must have advanced notice of when I’m recording so they all gather in full force to be as loud as fucking possible. One time while we were recording there was literally a goddamn whistling noise coming out of my pipes. So editing those sounds out has been a challenge (and by that, I mean a challenge for Derek, since he’s the tech guy).
What is your favorite decade for the horror genre?
Derek: The 80’s. I think a lot of the stepping stones for horror these days was laid then, along with the greatest wave of horror movie icons since the Universal Monsters. All my initial horror reading forays in the early 90’s were of books from then as well; King, Koontz, etc, and those are as solid a foundation to get yourself into the genre as you could ask for.
J.R. I don’t really know the answer to that. I’m inclined to say the 70s or 80s for horror movies, but there are enough things I’ve liked over a large enough expanse of time that I can’t commit myself to a decade. Maybe even in the 1920s, when Lovecraft was writing the Call of Cthulhu and a lot of “weird fiction” was of high literary merit.
A question for both of you: XBOX One or PS4?
Derek: PS4, but I grew up in a PS family so I might be biased. I’m not sure if for the most part it matters anymore rather than for a few games, and realistically a good PC is probably the best and most versatile game playing platform out there. It is a lot harder to sit on your couch and kick back with your keyboard and mouse rather than a controller though. I will always gives props to the Virtual Boy though.
J.R.: I was a Nintendo fanboy growing up, so I lived in denial about how superior the PS2 was compared to the Gamecube. I eventually got a PS2 and realized the error of my ways. I currently have an XBOX One that I bought on the advice of a friend, but if I were being honest with myself I should have gotten a PS4. Graphics are marginally better, there are more Japanese RPGs, some exclusives I want to play, and the controller is better.
Do you enjoy horror movies that are more campy slashers or thought provoking mind benders?
Derek: A campy slasher will always have it’s place in my heart, and on my TV if I’m in the mood for something I don’t need to really pay attention to. If I have the time for sitting down and giving something my full attention though, I’ll go for the provoking mind bender any day.
J.R.: I’d like to say thought provoking mind better, but in reality, the campy slasher is more of a safe bet in terms of enjoyment. If we were talking fiction, then of course the mind bender, but movies are a visual medium and there’s more room for error in a visual medium with something that – such as a nuanced, interior, contemplative work – might be better suited for fiction.
I find that horror is different in different cultures. For example, Japanese horror, I find, focuses more on psychological horror and poltergeists. What is your favorite horror culture and why?
Derek: I really like the whole Coffin Joe series and ultra weird and violent horror movies that came out of Brazil in the 60’s. Extremely subversive for the time in Brazil and 10 times that compared to what was going on in America at the same time. Even today if they would be considered a bit much for American audiences.
J.R.: that’s a good question, one that I don’t know if I have any answer to. Unlike Derek and his nacho-loving ways, I don’t know much about horror from Mexico, Central or South America.
Derek, your the author of The Field Guide to Nachos. If you were to create a bucket list of nachos to eat before you die, what would be on the top of the list?
Derek: The two best nachos I’ve ever had are the Big Foot’s Nachos Ur Way pulled pork nachos at Bigfoot Food and Spirits in the Seattle-Tacoma airport (I almost missed my plane getting those, but it would have been worth it) and Mount Nacheesmo at Tios in Ann Arbor Michigan. Mount Nacheesmo is the largest order of commercially available nachos in the US coming in at 5lbs, and while a lot of places would just throw together a bunch of cheap ingredients and try to pass that off, Tios artfully crafts an order that is delicious as you eat it, and while you munch on the leftovers for the next few days. Plus, if you can eat it all in an hour there you get a shirt and your picture up on the wall which is one of the greatest glories one can achieve in this life.
J.R. you’re the author of, You Shall Never Know Security. What do you find appealing about short stories?
J.R.: I suppose I write mainly short stories, though I’ve been working more on novellas recently. My second collection, “With a Voice that is Often Still Confused but is Becoming Ever Louder and Clearer,’ is largely novellas. I write short stories because I think that’s the idealized form for horror and dark fiction. I don’t really need many horror novels, and most of the ones I have seem padded, or would have worked better as shorter pieces. Also, realistically, when I am pressed for time with my day job and side jobs, so short fiction has just been more realistic and manageable. I want to get in and get out.
What are the subjects for upcoming episodes. Are there any that you’re really excited about?
Derek: Our culturally mandated Christmas episode is going to be something really special, but you won’t be able to experience that for some months yet. OR WILL YOU? No. No you won’t, but there are a bunch of pretty cool ones coming up as well.
J.R.: I enjoyed our nostalgia episodes, which we recorded but hasn’t been released yet. We both picked two horror movies we enjoyed as kids and re-watched them with our jaundiced, cynical eyes. I chose Demon Knight and Scream, and Derek chose Evil Dead II and Dead Alive. Surprisingly, we still both liked our selections.
Join marginally popular dark fiction author J.R. Hamantaschen and Derek Sotak as they discuss the world of horror in a light-hearted, frivolous and irreverent way. Expect horror fiction, horror movies, horror culture, and interviews / hang-out sessions with authors and creators in the field.
Listen to The Horror of Nachos and Hamantaschen podcast available every Wednesday of the month streaming on their website thehorrorofnachosandhamantaschen.com or on:
