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imoyn's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
hgatfield's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Enjoyed the mystery of the first half but found the pacing of the second uneven and the ending unsatisfying.
mortimillianog's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
steph0611's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
leelaamanda's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Domestic abuse, Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fatphobia, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, and Suicide attempt
bbyghoulreads's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.5
I really liked this, not at all what I expected going into it, but it’s definitely a favourite of the year, and perfect for spooky season.
laura_a97's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
if stranger things was set in the 90s
sharonleavy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Girls of Little Hope by Sam Beckbessinger & Dale Halvorsen is a smalltown coming-of-age horror story set in the town of Little Hope, California, in 1996.
After hearing about the Legend of Hope Gold Mine, three friends go in search of it one Summer. Only two return - but it's almost immediately evident that they're not telling the truth about what happened.
Donna, Rae & Kat make zines and enjoy investigating some of the town's legends, making sure to steer clear of notorious criminal Ronnie Gaskins, rumoured to have buried his parents alive. When the girls go to a cave to try and find the Hope Gold Mine, only Donna and Rae return. There's no sign of Kat, much to the horror of her mother, Marybeth, who is insistent that the other girls are hiding something from her.
Marybeth is also struggling with her own guilt over how she has raised Kat, pressuring her to get involved with beauty pageants from an early age and failing to hide her disgust when Kat intentionally gained weight to take control of her own self-image (and piss her mother off as a bonus).
As Marybeth investigates and gets closer to the truth, Donna and Rae quickly realise that the truth won't stay hidden for long... not in a small town like Little Hope.
I LOVED this. It reminded me of Point Horror, The Goonies, Fear Street, Goosebumps - all the horror I grew up with. The addition of Marybeth's story made for a compelling read, it's not often we get the POV of a parent in this kind of story and I really appreciated the insight into her character and how she became the way she was.
Rae's family, too, made for a clever, satirical look at a stereotypical conservative 1990s family in smalltown America. Their behaviour when they realised what was happening was darkly hilarious.
I loved the girls, I loved their friendship, and I really enjoyed this. It did have echoes of "My Best Friend's Exorcism" or the girls from the Hocus Pocus sequel, but it was a fun, gruesome, gory, nostalgic romp.
Thank you so much to @titanbooks for the ARC via Netgalley.
After hearing about the Legend of Hope Gold Mine, three friends go in search of it one Summer. Only two return - but it's almost immediately evident that they're not telling the truth about what happened.
Donna, Rae & Kat make zines and enjoy investigating some of the town's legends, making sure to steer clear of notorious criminal Ronnie Gaskins, rumoured to have buried his parents alive. When the girls go to a cave to try and find the Hope Gold Mine, only Donna and Rae return. There's no sign of Kat, much to the horror of her mother, Marybeth, who is insistent that the other girls are hiding something from her.
Marybeth is also struggling with her own guilt over how she has raised Kat, pressuring her to get involved with beauty pageants from an early age and failing to hide her disgust when Kat intentionally gained weight to take control of her own self-image (and piss her mother off as a bonus).
As Marybeth investigates and gets closer to the truth, Donna and Rae quickly realise that the truth won't stay hidden for long... not in a small town like Little Hope.
I LOVED this. It reminded me of Point Horror, The Goonies, Fear Street, Goosebumps - all the horror I grew up with. The addition of Marybeth's story made for a compelling read, it's not often we get the POV of a parent in this kind of story and I really appreciated the insight into her character and how she became the way she was.
Rae's family, too, made for a clever, satirical look at a stereotypical conservative 1990s family in smalltown America. Their behaviour when they realised what was happening was darkly hilarious.
I loved the girls, I loved their friendship, and I really enjoyed this. It did have echoes of "My Best Friend's Exorcism" or the girls from the Hocus Pocus sequel, but it was a fun, gruesome, gory, nostalgic romp.
Thank you so much to @titanbooks for the ARC via Netgalley.