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jennc's review against another edition
5.0
I don’t scare easily and this book really scared me. It was smart, well written and truly, truly creepy. If you want a perfect Halloween book this is it!
vampire_panda's review against another edition
5.0
Truly a harrowing, emotionally charged experience. Full of sadness, love and hope for them all. Terrifying and heartbreaking all at the same time.
Maybe one of the most beautifully crafted YA Horrors of all time.
A must read for any horror or YA fan, trust me, it isn’t what you think.
Gripping and captivating, you’ll feel the effects long after the book has ended.
Just whatever you do, don’t say her name.
Maybe one of the most beautifully crafted YA Horrors of all time.
A must read for any horror or YA fan, trust me, it isn’t what you think.
Gripping and captivating, you’ll feel the effects long after the book has ended.
Just whatever you do, don’t say her name.
thebeautyofliterature's review against another edition
5.0
I. Do. Not. Like. Horror. And not just what normal people consider horror, but everything that has a semi-dark scene in it in which someone is scared is horror for me. So I was really really really not looking forward to reading Say Her Name for my YA book prize challenge. Like I almost didn't want to do this challenge, because I saw that this book was part of it, but I sucked it up like a big girl and did it anyway. And I must admit that Say Her Name wasn't as scary as I expected - though I had to read it during the day and away from any mirrors.
BOBBIE AND MARY
As a horror-hater, I must admit that I know close to nothing about Bloody Mary. I knew you had to say her name a certain amount of times and something would happen, but I never knew that it took five days or that she appears in reflective surfaces such as mirrors - that's some scary stuff.
However, this book was readable for me because Bobbie is such a great narrator. Since Bobbie knows next to nothing about Bloody Mary, you don't need to know anything about it to follow the story. And Bobbie is very realistic, which is a tough thing to do in a story that borderlines on completely crazy.
Even though I don't believe in Bloody Mary, Bobbie's journey to believing and realizing what is happening is slow enough that any reader would start believing it too. She's just like you and me, until she says those words and things go from kinda weird to completely utterly weird. Bobbie doesn't just suddenly get scared or tries to scare everyone - she looks for logical reasons and I think everyone would do that.
SPOOKY WRITING
Of course closely tied to that is James Dawson's writing and it was amazing. I read the book in one day because A. I just couldn't put it down and B. It was so damn easy to read. The sentences are the perfect length, the dialogue is realistic, the teenagers use words that I actually hear teenagers use and he combined all of that with the most original YA topic I have seen in the last few years. I've never read any other books by James Dawson, but they are on my TBR-list after this one.
SCARY FACTOR
The only thing I think might put some readers off is the fact that it's honestly not that scary of a book. I mean, I could read it and my threshold for horror is incredibly low. It spooked me and it definitely made me avoid mirrors for a day, but that was about it. If you are really looking for a super scary horror story, try Stephen King. But if you are looking for some scary elements in a great YA story, Say Her Name is your book.
RATING
So surprisingly, I really enjoyed this book. It was an incredible original story with a great narrator and amazing writing - so it will be my first five stars of the year!
BOBBIE AND MARY
As a horror-hater, I must admit that I know close to nothing about Bloody Mary. I knew you had to say her name a certain amount of times and something would happen, but I never knew that it took five days or that she appears in reflective surfaces such as mirrors - that's some scary stuff.
However, this book was readable for me because Bobbie is such a great narrator. Since Bobbie knows next to nothing about Bloody Mary, you don't need to know anything about it to follow the story. And Bobbie is very realistic, which is a tough thing to do in a story that borderlines on completely crazy.
Even though I don't believe in Bloody Mary, Bobbie's journey to believing and realizing what is happening is slow enough that any reader would start believing it too. She's just like you and me, until she says those words and things go from kinda weird to completely utterly weird. Bobbie doesn't just suddenly get scared or tries to scare everyone - she looks for logical reasons and I think everyone would do that.
SPOOKY WRITING
Of course closely tied to that is James Dawson's writing and it was amazing. I read the book in one day because A. I just couldn't put it down and B. It was so damn easy to read. The sentences are the perfect length, the dialogue is realistic, the teenagers use words that I actually hear teenagers use and he combined all of that with the most original YA topic I have seen in the last few years. I've never read any other books by James Dawson, but they are on my TBR-list after this one.
SCARY FACTOR
The only thing I think might put some readers off is the fact that it's honestly not that scary of a book. I mean, I could read it and my threshold for horror is incredibly low. It spooked me and it definitely made me avoid mirrors for a day, but that was about it. If you are really looking for a super scary horror story, try Stephen King. But if you are looking for some scary elements in a great YA story, Say Her Name is your book.
RATING
So surprisingly, I really enjoyed this book. It was an incredible original story with a great narrator and amazing writing - so it will be my first five stars of the year!
theyarelex's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
ffionpritchard1's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
michellesmelancholia's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
chloereadsbooksyt's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! The right mix of creepy horror and contemporary drama. A solid YA read.
starbound's review against another edition
4.0
I watch too many horror films to find anything scary anymore, but this book certainly was creepy. Bloody Mary is possibly my favourite urban legend - and the one that scares me the most (I have a thing with mirrors...) - so I looked forward to reading this book and being scared!
It did quite a good job at it, too. I won't be avoiding mirrors any more than I usually do, but I definitely won't risking calling Mary in front of one.
I loved the setting of the book, as I love reading about boarding schools and England, and this had both. Bobbie was an okay main character, if slightly bland - her friend Naya was a lot cooler and more fun to read about (just imagine the book from Naya's perspective, oh my god!)
Satisfying ending, with a twist. It's not horror unless there's a twist at the end. ;)
It did quite a good job at it, too. I won't be avoiding mirrors any more than I usually do, but I definitely won't risking calling Mary in front of one.
I loved the setting of the book, as I love reading about boarding schools and England, and this had both. Bobbie was an okay main character, if slightly bland - her friend Naya was a lot cooler and more fun to read about (just imagine the book from Naya's perspective, oh my god!)
Satisfying ending, with a twist. It's not horror unless there's a twist at the end. ;)
booksfromthemoon's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
merinereads's review against another edition
5.0
Dieses Buch sollte man besser nicht im Dunkeln lesen! Wie bei einem guten Horrorfilm gibt es viele Schreckmomente, und mehr oder weniger normale Zwischenfälle wie Nasenbluten sind plötzlich gar nicht mehr so harmlos. Generell fand ich die Horrorszenen gut umgesetzt, ich hatte bei jeder einzelnen Gänsehaut und sie kamen größtenteils sehr plötzlich und unvorhersehbar.
Da die Geschichte sehr bildhaft geschrieben ist, wirkt die eh schon schaurige Geschichte von "Bloody Mary" noch verstörender.
Auch die Urban Legend hinter der Geschichte wurde gut eingearbeitet, wer diese kennt wird vieles im Buch wiederfinden und sich über die gelungene Einflechtung freuen.
Besonders überzeugt hat mich das Ende, denn "das Richtige" zu tun, ist nicht immer auch eine gute Entscheidung...
Da die Geschichte sehr bildhaft geschrieben ist, wirkt die eh schon schaurige Geschichte von "Bloody Mary" noch verstörender.
Auch die Urban Legend hinter der Geschichte wurde gut eingearbeitet, wer diese kennt wird vieles im Buch wiederfinden und sich über die gelungene Einflechtung freuen.
Besonders überzeugt hat mich das Ende, denn "das Richtige" zu tun, ist nicht immer auch eine gute Entscheidung...