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lilsoliver's review
5.0
A beautiful ode to the history and meaning of death and grief. Horrifying in many moments and hilarious in others. The fact that this is C.S Fritz first novel is astounding.
hannahotis's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
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
4.5
weneedtotalkaboutbooks's review
2.0
Good premise, poor execution.
I was so excited, I started reading this today and read it in one sitting, witnessing a potential five star read dying in my arms.
There are some beautiful poetic lines, and I appreciate the moral questions this story tries to answer, but the characters behaved like caricatures, and the whole story felt rushed from the halfway point onwards.
SPOILER QUESTIONS:
- why does Jess see a massive black moth on her mother’s face, when the book explains that only who is dying can see Death? Was that just a gigantic moth not related to Death? Why including this scene? 🤔
- the protagonist is 13yo, and sometimes he forages mushrooms for their landlord in exchange for $25 per bucket. His mother has a full time job. The one time he doesn’t bring a basket of mushrooms to the landlord he tries to evict them??
- what happens to Eugene’s 6yo son? Wasn’t he in the house when Eugene dies, since Sonny’s mum was at work? Does he dies in the fire, if the fire is real? This kid is introduced randomly at some point and then forgotten by the end.
- Death explains to Sonny that he appears to him a the grim reaper, because that’s how the kid imagined death to look like… Why does an Icelandic man living in Iceland 1000 years ago see Death as Baba Yaga, when she comes from Slavic mythology/folklore?
- Sonny’s mum saying to Sonny to be careful where he leaves his “toys” when Terry (Eugene’s 6yo son) is around, because they can be dangerous… and by toys she means: an hourglass, a pair of MASSIVE GLASS SCISSORS and a candle 💀
- why do these kids not go to school? Have I missed something
- Did I misunderstand or was Jess taking her mother pills? She was swallowing one pill for every pill she was giving her mum, daily. Not sure what medication could a dementia patient be, but would that not have any consequences on a teenager?
- when Sonny finds his mum on her knees, covered in blood, one eye purple, “her nose looked broken”… they chat for a moment and then he tucked her on the sofa. No ice pack on the face, no trying to stop the blood… I’m guessing the nose wasn’t broken? The state of her face is never mentioned after this
- - -
Books I’d recommend instead:
- cosmic horror on grief: This thing between us by Gus Moreno
- Death as a character (poetic, sentimental and serious): The Book Thief or (satirical and philosophical): Mort by Terry Pratchett
- fantasy/horror coming of age that reads like a fairytale: The ocean at the end of the lane by Neil Gaiman
I was so excited, I started reading this today and read it in one sitting, witnessing a potential five star read dying in my arms.
There are some beautiful poetic lines, and I appreciate the moral questions this story tries to answer, but the characters behaved like caricatures, and the whole story felt rushed from the halfway point onwards.
- why does Jess see a massive black moth on her mother’s face, when the book explains that only who is dying can see Death? Was that just a gigantic moth not related to Death? Why including this scene? 🤔
- the protagonist is 13yo, and sometimes he forages mushrooms for their landlord in exchange for $25 per bucket. His mother has a full time job. The one time he doesn’t bring a basket of mushrooms to the landlord he tries to evict them??
- what happens to Eugene’s 6yo son? Wasn’t he in the house when Eugene dies, since Sonny’s mum was at work? Does he dies in the fire, if the fire is real? This kid is introduced randomly at some point and then forgotten by the end.
- Death explains to Sonny that he appears to him a the grim reaper, because that’s how the kid imagined death to look like… Why does an Icelandic man living in Iceland 1000 years ago see Death as Baba Yaga, when she comes from Slavic mythology/folklore?
- Sonny’s mum saying to Sonny to be careful where he leaves his “toys” when Terry (Eugene’s 6yo son) is around, because they can be dangerous… and by toys she means: an hourglass, a pair of MASSIVE GLASS SCISSORS and a candle 💀
- why do these kids not go to school? Have I missed something
- Did I misunderstand or was Jess taking her mother pills? She was swallowing one pill for every pill she was giving her mum, daily. Not sure what medication could a dementia patient be, but would that not have any consequences on a teenager?
- when Sonny finds his mum on her knees, covered in blood, one eye purple, “her nose looked broken”… they chat for a moment and then he tucked her on the sofa. No ice pack on the face, no trying to stop the blood… I’m guessing the nose wasn’t broken? The state of her face is never mentioned after this
- - -
Books I’d recommend instead:
- cosmic horror on grief: This thing between us by Gus Moreno
- Death as a character (poetic, sentimental and serious): The Book Thief or (satirical and philosophical): Mort by Terry Pratchett
- fantasy/horror coming of age that reads like a fairytale: The ocean at the end of the lane by Neil Gaiman
joy_ong's review
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
pink_moon96's review
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
2.75
audreysprinkleanna's review
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
There was an appropriate mixture of horror and humor. The frightening parts were so well done I could feel them. It was very imaginative and genre bending.
teahead1228's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
If you’re looking for something to scare you, I would say this is not the book for you. BUT if you want a book that beautifully explores the intertwining experiences of several characters dealing with grief then this is definitely the book for you.
lucazani11's review
4.0
Donnie darko but better and much more poetic. Reminded me of Gardner’s ‘through a glass darkly’.
horrorhussy's review
3.0
This is such a beautifully written story. I found it very reminiscent of A Monster Calls. It has that same poetic feel, but with more horror thrown in. I did really love the creepy aspects of this book, and the concept. I’m not sure why the ending didn’t work for, but I found it a little to predictable and I guess I would have preferred the book take a darker route.
Otherwise still a very enjoyable book, with absolutely stunning prose.
Thank you Netgalley for an ARC
Otherwise still a very enjoyable book, with absolutely stunning prose.
Thank you Netgalley for an ARC
_arha_'s review
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75