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biblio_reckah's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I flew through this one at break neck speed. A fascinating character study on the human condition as it pertains to unknown events. Fans of Jeff Vandermeer will love this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Vomit, and Racism
Moderate: Blood and Alcohol
Minor: War, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts
britttobegorey94's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Very slow with no real climax or ending. This book walks the line of horror and mystery and keeps its readers on their toes with no real answers for so long that it's hard to feel any real satisfaction for finishing it. A strange shuffle in writing occurs approximately when Ruth and G.H show up. I think this was done to show the difference between a holiday enjoyed and a abrupt unplanned end to the holiday. Either way this is not pulled off as well as intended and it makes it feel like the first few chapters in the book are misplaced and almost like they belong to a different book entirely. The characters are frustrating and for a book lamenting how humanity might survive if technology failed, I felt this book showed a profound lack of knowledge in relation to how phones in particular, actually worked. This book also knee capped itself by shutting down technology - the audience could only know what was happening in a very specific place in America and with such a scope, this meant the world was not necessarily ending but was likely just ending in America. Perhaps the author was trying to make a statement here about America's focus on being "the main character" but the book tells us so little about anything that you could never know for sure.
This is an anxiety inducing read with no real answers but a somewhat interesting examination of classissm and racism in America, although again, I felt like these themes were not explored to their highest potential either.
Do not read if you are looking for a satisfying conclusion.
This is an anxiety inducing read with no real answers but a somewhat interesting examination of classissm and racism in America, although again, I felt like these themes were not explored to their highest potential either.
Do not read if you are looking for a satisfying conclusion.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Classism, Death, and Vomit
Moderate: Racism
bluejupiter1818's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Body horror
Minor: War and Suicide
bootsmom3's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Medical content, Medical trauma, Vomit, and Cursing
Moderate: Racism, Terminal illness, and Sexual content
Minor: Animal death and Excrement
brookebatesratesbooks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Moderate: Sexual content and Body horror
genny's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I really enjoyed the tone of this. Quietly scary with a palpable sense of dread. I was freaking out because I couldn't imagine how it would end, and it kind of...doesn't? Don't read this if you don't like open endings or having a lot of things left to the imagination. The story heavily hints at the beginning of the end of the world but we're restricted to a very isolated POV. The characters don't know what's going on, we don't know what's going on, but an omniscient narrator occasionally does tell us what's going on...in the outside world, far from the main cast. I thought it was clever, but judging from other reviews, this is a polarizing book. There's really no closure to be had here, yet it worked for me. I'm not sure how but that ending punched me in the gut! Plenty to chew on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Vomit, and Blood
Moderate: Sexual content and Racism
Minor: Alcohol
oshild's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Vomit, Blood, and Body horror
juliaaa02's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Vomit
Moderate: Sexual content
eeeeva's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Sexual content
alexisgarcia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was an insane read. I’m slightly new to reading thrillers, it was a genre I never really read (no idea why) until recently. This book was incredibly bone chilling and unpredictable. I was surprised that I was never able to guess what was happening next which I was very excited by. I don’t think the characters were incredibly well developed but the book was on the shorter side and character development didn’t seem to be a main aspect of the book so I never minded. This is one of the most captivating thrillers I’ve yet and would definitely recommend!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Blood, Medical content, Alcohol, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Vomit, Sexual content, and Racism