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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
Fuck, this was amazing!
This book was a little hard to read for me because there was so much animal cruelty and animal death. I am used to human death in horror and I enjoy people dying and making the book and characters not safe, but animal death is hard for me. Very hard…
Be aware when you start this book if you can read it, check the TW
My only trigger in books is animal cruelty so yeah, even though it was lots here, this book is still a favorite. The story, and the characters, were amazing. This book also has a feminist aspect, which I loved.
Here are a few quotes I loved.
"All men did was rape, kill, eat and fuck, as far as I could see, and it's not like the fields knew any different. The world was just an echo chamber for man's sin."
"She'd feel too guilty not to get out and look. Every girl in the world was taught not to trust her gut. Every girl in the world knew she was the fool in the play."
This one was so sad and so true. There was a podcast on which this was also discussed, a woman saying she was walking home alone and noticed a man behind her. She could have crossed the road and walked another way and gotten away, but she didn't want to make him feel bad because she was "running away" from him without him doing anything. She ignored her gut feeling because we were taught as women to not bother men and not make them feel bad, and she was robbed. The girl in this book died because she didn't trust her gut feeling, not wanting to offend another person who gave her a bad feeling from the start.
Stop ignoring your gut feeling!
"There was no evil in the world that was not man's work."
We ruin everything, be it humans, animals, earth, or objects.
This book was a little hard to read for me because there was so much animal cruelty and animal death. I am used to human death in horror and I enjoy people dying and making the book and characters not safe, but animal death is hard for me. Very hard…
Be aware when you start this book if you can read it, check the TW
Spoiler
rape, human & animal death, torture, SA, children being abused, there might be more that I don't remember, please be safe!My only trigger in books is animal cruelty so yeah, even though it was lots here, this book is still a favorite. The story, and the characters, were amazing. This book also has a feminist aspect, which I loved.
Here are a few quotes I loved.
"All men did was rape, kill, eat and fuck, as far as I could see, and it's not like the fields knew any different. The world was just an echo chamber for man's sin."
"She'd feel too guilty not to get out and look. Every girl in the world was taught not to trust her gut. Every girl in the world knew she was the fool in the play."
This one was so sad and so true. There was a podcast on which this was also discussed, a woman saying she was walking home alone and noticed a man behind her. She could have crossed the road and walked another way and gotten away, but she didn't want to make him feel bad because she was "running away" from him without him doing anything. She ignored her gut feeling because we were taught as women to not bother men and not make them feel bad, and she was robbed. The girl in this book died because she didn't trust her gut feeling, not wanting to offend another person who gave her a bad feeling from the start.
Stop ignoring your gut feeling!
"There was no evil in the world that was not man's work."
We ruin everything, be it humans, animals, earth, or objects.
I really loved this. I wanted more for Suzy, something better, but perhaps it makes the story all the more effective that Suzy is unable to want anything better for herself. I feel such a kinship with Suzy it hurts my heart. Some of us don’t survive and become better or even good. Some of us just survive for the sake of survival.
Kolesnik’s writing is absolutely spellbinding. The pacing was a bit off, in my opinion, but it also left me feeling lost and helpless, which I imagine was also the purpose. It reminds me a lot of All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Green and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara.
Kolesnik’s writing is absolutely spellbinding. The pacing was a bit off, in my opinion, but it also left me feeling lost and helpless, which I imagine was also the purpose. It reminds me a lot of All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Green and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara.
Dark, gritty and twisted.
Sadly, the ending felt so rushed.
Sadly, the ending felt so rushed.
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Lately I've read a handful of horror novellas that fell short of their promises, but True Crime is not one of them. It manages the difficult task of presenting a story that is extreme and transgressive in its violence, while maintaining well-crafted prose and a nihilistic perspective that feels earned. Suzy is a character you feel for even when you're repulsed by her actions, and riding along in her head on a murder spree and beyond was an experience that will stick with me. Highly recommended for wizened horror fans who listen to Ethel Cain maybe a tad too much. CWs for .
Spoiler
child sexual abuse, rape, murder, animal abuse, animal death
It’s hard to gather my feelings on this book, but I can say this was absolutely five stars.
True Crime was grim, bleak, and left my eyes watering at certain parts of the story just because of how brutal they were. This is extreme horror, but the author’s narrative writing was so compelling that I always felt the story moving forward. Even through the destruction and incredible violence during certain parts of the book I found the characters so compelling that I really wish for a full length novel, especially going into other parts of the story. But the length by itself was perfect. Really great novella, and I’m kind of in disbelief. Will certainly be checking out more of this author’s work. Overall, if you’re a fan of extreme horror I would recommend this little novella!
True Crime was grim, bleak, and left my eyes watering at certain parts of the story just because of how brutal they were. This is extreme horror, but the author’s narrative writing was so compelling that I always felt the story moving forward. Even through the destruction and incredible violence during certain parts of the book I found the characters so compelling that I really wish for a full length novel, especially going into other parts of the story. But the length by itself was perfect. Really great novella, and I’m kind of in disbelief. Will certainly be checking out more of this author’s work. Overall, if you’re a fan of extreme horror I would recommend this little novella!
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Tragic and heartbreaking look at how the world treats us, and in return, how we treat the world. The emotional portrayal of living past abuse, is some of the most poetic and tragic I've ever seen. I only think it ended a little limply.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol
Dark as hell but excellently written! I'd love to read more by Samantha Kolesnik; here's to hoping for a future release with a little more meat on the bone.
grim and brutal. while i didn’t like this as much as kolesnik’s book waif, true crime delivers gut punching sadness and critique of the human condition.
dark
emotional