Reviews tagging 'Death'

Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

93 reviews

enyltiak's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

Lying was reductive, but in a way, all art was a form of lying. Poets hyperbolize. Painters heighten colors, smudge edges. Actors shapeshift. All ways to twist reality in order to tell a deeper, more potent truth. Fact only goes so far. There are a finite number of facts in the universe with which to tell a story. Lies, on the other hand, are limitless. 

What an incredible, wonderful book. Stories about houses, about hauntings, about stories themselves, will always draw me in and delight me. I can't express the love I have for this story. I'd rate it six stars if I could, if not more. Utter perfection, falling somewhere between the cozy epic-ness of Six of Crows and the comforting gothic of A Series of Unfortunate Events. It's a book about folk tales and magic and siblings and ghosts and memory, told from the perspective of the house in which the characters reside. I cannot recommend it enough. An instant new favorite. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, War, Genocide, Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Antisemitism, Child death, Death, and Violence

abscott's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Abandonment, Death, Genocide, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Self harm, Cursing, and Violence

lancemama's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Abandonment, Child death, Death, Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Colonisation, Grief, War, Xenophobia, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Racism, Violence, Hate crime, and Murder

lisettemarie's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, War, and Body horror

caebrown's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Child death, Self harm, Antisemitism, Death, Genocide, Animal death, Violence, and Hate crime

tamara_joy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Religious bigotry, Genocide, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Self harm and Sexual content

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, and Blood

carlyoc's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

"If a story does its job, it never ends--not really."
We have three main POV characters in this book: Isaac Yaga, his sister Bellatine, and Thistlefoot, a house that walks on chicken legs. The estranged siblings are brought together by a notice that they have inherited the house of their twice-great grandmother. But the house is pursued by a monster from its past, who we later learn is a very interesting portrayal of a dybbuk from Jewish mythology. 
Magic is not the norm in this world, but nor is it mind-blowing. Isaac and Bellatine take their house on tour around the country, running a travelling puppet show like their family did when they were children. Isaac and Bellatine each have special powers, although only Bellatine's is known by the other sibling. 
Isaac can mimic other people with inhuman accuracy to the extent that his body really seems to take on their shape. And Bellatine lives in fear of what her hands can do to inanimate objects that have too much life in them. 
Although the novel takes place in modern times, there is something old-timey about the book, including Isaac's habit of jumping onto moving trains and speaking in classic rail rider slang. Adding to that feeling, was the narration of the audiobook by the excellent January LaVoy, whose voice will be very familiar to listeners of Libba Bray's The Diviners series. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, and Grief

Minor: Mass/school shootings and Racism

Depicts in some detail a pogrom in Eastern Europe.

anna_i3's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Antisemitism, Death, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

s_writes's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism and Racism

Moderate: Death, War, Violence, and Child death

Minor: Sexual content and Suicidal thoughts

meshuganush's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

This book is a stunning masterpiece. I have so many words for it and yet they will not be enough. The writing is just astounding, the way the story is woven and the characters developed is just masterful. It is also one of the most uniquely and unapologetically Jewish books I have ever read. It doesn't stop to explain itself it just exists with Jewish customs, ideas and themes at the forefront. This was a stunning story that I will never forget and will sing it's praises to anyone who can't run away from me fast enough.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Antisemitism, Child death, Murder, Violence, Death, and Suicidal thoughts