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3.26 AVERAGE
3.26 AVERAGE
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Unbury Carol has a promising premise—an eerie Western tale of a woman who suffers from a mysterious condition that leaves her in a death-like coma and a race against time for her to be saved before she's buried alive. Unfortunately, the execution of this intriguing concept fell flat for me.
The biggest issue I had was with the pacing. The novel starts strong, but the middle drags on endlessly with repetitive sequences and a lot of meandering. What could have been a tense, gripping thriller instead feels sluggish, losing much of the suspense along the way. The characters lacked depth. Carol, the story's focal point, doesn’t feel fully fleshed out. I wanted to connect with her and her struggle, but she comes across as distant and underdeveloped.
The antagonists (Smoke, Rot, and Dwight), while menacing or just jackasses in theory, felt cartoonish at times, lacking the complexity that would have made them truly terrifying or engaging. The supernatural elements (Rot and the Magic James Moxie), while intriguing at first, felt underutilized and not fully explored, leaving the story feeling incomplete.
There are some redeeming qualities—the writing style is lyrical and atmospheric at times, and the concept is certainly original. But overall, I was left wanting more in terms of character development and a tighter, more suspenseful plot. What could have been a haunting and tense narrative was weighed down by uneven storytelling and pacing issues.
The biggest issue I had was with the pacing. The novel starts strong, but the middle drags on endlessly with repetitive sequences and a lot of meandering. What could have been a tense, gripping thriller instead feels sluggish, losing much of the suspense along the way. The characters lacked depth. Carol, the story's focal point, doesn’t feel fully fleshed out. I wanted to connect with her and her struggle, but she comes across as distant and underdeveloped.
The antagonists (Smoke, Rot, and Dwight), while menacing or just jackasses in theory, felt cartoonish at times, lacking the complexity that would have made them truly terrifying or engaging. The supernatural elements (Rot and the Magic James Moxie), while intriguing at first, felt underutilized and not fully explored, leaving the story feeling incomplete.
There are some redeeming qualities—the writing style is lyrical and atmospheric at times, and the concept is certainly original. But overall, I was left wanting more in terms of character development and a tighter, more suspenseful plot. What could have been a haunting and tense narrative was weighed down by uneven storytelling and pacing issues.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book was so slow paced and Smoke was so vile that I almost stopped reading several times. However I wanted to hear more about Moxie and Carol and Howltown was such an interesting concept that I stayed until the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Gun violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
What I was hoping for was a spooky horror novel about a woman being buried alive. What I got was The Dark Tower meets Snow White - complete with a gunslinging Prince Charming.
Meh.
Meh.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I wanted to try out another of Josh Malerman's books since I enjoyed Bird Box so much. I'm glad I did.
Set in the times where outlaws were still a thing, Carol suffers from an unheard of condition that causes her to fall into a deep sleep art unknown times. So deep that she is easily mistaken for dead.
This book follows a small range of characters which are easily remembered throughout the story. A great, fast read!
Set in the times where outlaws were still a thing, Carol suffers from an unheard of condition that causes her to fall into a deep sleep art unknown times. So deep that she is easily mistaken for dead.
This book follows a small range of characters which are easily remembered throughout the story. A great, fast read!
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Fans of Lone Women by Victor LaValle will like this one. Felt more like a Western than Horror but definitely had Horror in there.