Scan barcode
swilli's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Car accident and Grief
Minor: Death of parent
silversparkles50'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
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Blood, Vomit, and Murder
Minor: Alcohol and Child abuse
livlamentloathe'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? Yes
3.0
I also wanted more of the book to touch on the racism Jasper faced in Eden. I wanted Jasper to better scold Opal for the way she ignored about that part of him. She made a comment later on that alluded to her getting it in part. But she also definitely was very forgetful of his race. The book itself barely even acknowledged his race. It took until the middle of the book for me to determine his ethnicity - maybe that's my bad and I missed an early tell. But I think overall, this book wanted to hide details and it didn't always handle that well. It would be evasive and add extra page time instead of being a bit more upfront about things. Maybe that was purposeful too with Opal's personality. But it felt like it was just trying too hard.
The premise felt like a cross between The Hazel Wood and Book of Night. I thought it was meant to be horror, but it wasn't horror so much as gothic. More of a magical realism/low fantasy romance. This book could've been great but I think it needed further editing and less evasive plot points. I get it. Most details were meant for "reveals" later but it became excessive when I got lost wondering what the point of the book was. Or what was going on period.
P.S. I'd have loved more of a violent ending for the Gravely family and Elizabeth Bane.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Blood, and Classism
Moderate: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Car accident, Stalking, Slavery, Racism, Sexism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Violence, Grief, and Police brutality
Minor: Homophobia, Hate crime, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Incest, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Animal death
aharrison_33'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: Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Child abuse
moniquewrites'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
4.5
Graphic: Slavery, Death of parent, Violence, Car accident, and Death
Moderate: Racism
Minor: Child abuse and Homophobia
hagwife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I love that the characters' flaws have rhyme and reason and the chance to change; morally grey characters are always one of my favourites, but neither Opal nor Arthur nor Jasper are flawed for the sake of being flawed. They're all aggregations of their lived experiences, of inherited traumas and expectations that they didn't ask for, even as they continue to perpetuate some of them.
I love that this is a haunted house mystery without the haunting necessarily being about the house. Harrow's Starling House is less in the company of Hell House or Hill House, but that of Mervyn Peake's Gormengast, Susanna Clarke's the "World" from Piranesi, Jeanette Winterson's Tanglewreck, Tilly Walden's castle in The End of Summer, and Diana Wynne Jones' Howl's Moving Castle.
Concerning the end of the book, I wanted perhaps just a bit more.
For those who liked this book, especially the gothic and horror elements, I highly recommend Cherie Priest's The Toll.
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Death, Murder, Grief, Racism, Death of parent, Blood, Car accident, Violence, and Child abuse
aklovekorn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death of parent, Blood, Car accident, and Death
bookcasey's review against another edition
Graphic: Death and Death of parent
ciwanski'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
4.25
Loved the homage to beauty and the beast in the story, love the found family aspect, and love a man who is constantly kneeling for a woman
Also the first book I’ve read where the two main characters are supposedly ugly??? Felt (surprisingly?) represented.
I feel like this review makes this book sound like a romance and, like, it IS a love story, but it’s definitely not a romance and I love it for that
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Slavery, Vomit, Abandonment, Car accident, Death, Blood, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, and Alcohol
biome_'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
4.5
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Blood, and Slavery
Minor: Adult/minor relationship