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abies's review against another edition
3.5
the only reson i dont rate it a little higher is that something was missing for me personally character or story-wise. absolutely would recommend to teens / young adults who enjoy body horror and exploration of religious trauma. and those that just think it would be cool to be a beast as well.
Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, and Vomit
Moderate: Dysphoria, Transphobia, and Child death
Minor: Eating disorder
ezwolf's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Deadnaming, Dysphoria, Death, Grief, Homophobia, Transphobia, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, Medical trauma, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child death, Gore, Terminal illness, Genocide, Medical content, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Eating disorder
Minor: Alcohol and Classism
milliyum's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It was fun and I'm glad i tried it, i would definitely reccomend it.
Now my issues aren't major, more that it felt lacking in some areas (of course maybe the author had a word limit or I' too dyslexic to realise i skipped parts of the plot).
I felt like the Flood should of been explained more. If their religion doesn't exist then how was it made? How are the Graces controlled by them in the first place?
I wish there was more character arcs and closeness,
It even at times felt like i was reading a fanfic of the book.
But either way i loved it, the characters were all enjoyable (even the evil ones) and i loved every scene with Benji's
Also do yourself a favor and look at the sick fanart of Benji once you finish the book!
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Self harm, Vomit, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, and Genocide
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, and Deadnaming
peroxide_princes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Eating disorder, Gore, Sexism, Transphobia, Grief, Violence, Blood, Deadnaming, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, and Body horror
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Body shaming, Chronic illness, and Cursing
beanaroni's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Deadnaming, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, Child abuse, Gore, Violence, Cursing, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Murder, Transphobia, Death, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Grief, and Vomit
Minor: Eating disorder
this is a book that heeds a general body horror warning for its entire length, but please be cautious if you're particular about teeth (as I am).hemlockbabe's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
I adored this book. I picked it up entirely on a whim during pride month on the wall of recommended reading at a small bookstore. I read (more like skimmed) the blurb on why the shop employee recommended it so highly. I love reading religious trauma inspired books, so I pretty much was sold immediately.
I devoured this book during the span of one six hour shift at my workplace. I've always been a fast reader- it's my attention span that ruins my ability to read books. This book sucked me in hard enough that occasionally I had to be prompted multiple times by customers to buy their stuff.
I don't know if I would have had a different experience with it if I had known of the trigger warnings, especially the violence, purposeful misgendering, and body horror. I've always loved zombie books, and I read those curled up in chairs in the library of my high school, so I didn't think much of the location I would be reading this book.
Public crying, for me, is the highest form of torture, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from the pages of this book. The pacing, the content, the plight of the main character- all of it kept me hooked until the very end. I'm just glad I didn't snap at a kid for interrupting my reading time with a craving for Pokémon cards.
My review doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of public opinion- I have a history of really liking books and movies that had piss poor reviews and ratings- but I loved this book so much. As I've gotten older and more mentally ill, I don't get sucked into the pages of a book like a used to as a kid. I miss the ability to be absorbed in a story until it's done, and this book brought that back for me.
This book is definitely not for everyone, and all readers should be mindful of their triggers to disturbing content. But I definitely enjoyed myself, hence the five star rating.
Graphic: Body horror, Mental illness, Outing, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Child death, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, Pandemic/Epidemic, Homophobia, Gore, Forced institutionalization, and Self harm
Moderate: Ableism, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, Cannibalism, Deadnaming, Eating disorder, and Emotional abuse
Zombie apocalypse, and a religious cult worshipping it as the rapture. Or God's work to cleanse this Earth and remake it anew.refrejarator's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Dysphoria, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Medical trauma, Transphobia, Animal death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Violence, Vomit, Blood, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Eating disorder, Hate crime, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, and War
winterhartarts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Sexism, Eating disorder, Xenophobia, Body shaming, Vomit, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, Pandemic/Epidemic, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Gun violence, Genocide, Dysphoria, Death, Deadnaming, Child death, Murder, Medical trauma, Medical content, Body horror, Transphobia, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Ableism, Grief, Gore, Classism, Homophobia, War, Cannibalism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Forced institutionalization, Cursing, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Torture, Slavery, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Colonisation, Alcohol, and Toxic friendship
loverrbboy's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
from just reading the blurb, i expected a fanfic-y depiction of queer rebellion in the post-apocalypse. however this was full of nuance, spiritual exploration, and of course, found family. imperfect people, in a ducked up world, making the most of what they have. expressions of queer rage, insecurity, and beauty.
quote from the author: “if i wanted to write authentically about myself, i had no choice but to write about a trans boy turning into a monster.” like yeah
also i HAVE to mention.
soooo many cw tags on this one so i’ll highlight the biggest: VOMIT, GORE, GUN VIOLENCE.
Graphic: War, Death, Dysphoria, Gore, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, Deadnaming, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Child abuse, Religious bigotry, Vomit, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual content, Trafficking, Eating disorder, Child death, Excrement, and Genocide
o3ovin's review against another edition
- 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
The moment i read the description of this book i knew that this was the queer religious horror of my dreams, and besides some qualms with the style/structure (most of which relate to it being a teen book which is not really a flaw) I throughly enjoyed it.
I love how throughly this book embraces the idea of community and aid during tough times just as much as it acknowledges what being queer amidst hostility really means. In this case, rage. deserved rage, rage that doesn’t contradict with that at all.
My only other issue with the book is honestly the character development. There are certain characters that I found unbelievable or who’s bonds with each other I just couldn’t get invested in. I think maybe the small details that flesh them out as people weren’t as there as I would have liked them to be. I loved Benji though.
Any issues with this are also somewhat negated by the very interesting apocalyptic world that the author created, because I was able to absolutely buy into it and was super intrigued by everything surrounding all its grisly history. Loved the little bits of sermons or journals or bible quotes that start off chapters and i thought those were often used for unique worldbuilding.
TLDR; We need more books with trans joy and also trans revenge and I will be reading more Andrew Joseph White
Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, War, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Medical content, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Gore, Deadnaming, and Death
Moderate: Homophobia, Child death, Infidelity, Misogyny, and Transphobia
Minor: Eating disorder, Physical abuse, and Sexual harassment