Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean

84 reviews

sunnydale's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

3.0

This book succeeds as a gothic allegory exploring the ways both targeted abuse and impersonal violence are used to maintain an oppressive culture. If it were marketed primarily as an introspective novel about a woman's journey to free herself and her children from abuse, people might not be so disappointed that the SFF elements aren't at the forefront. I don't think the physiology and culture of the otherworldly race are underdeveloped, but they aren't emphasized. 

I wasn't disappointed by the focus on Devon's personal arc. I was, however, disappointed that the crucial parts of that arc happened almost entirely in the past. The present-day chapters feel like they're only there to build tension as you wait to figure out what led up to them—they don't carry the narrative weight of half the book, despite getting half the book's "screen time." Characters like Hester, Cai, and Killock are intriguing, and I wish they'd been given more depth. 

Overall, I found the worldbuilding compelling, and I'd be interested in revisiting the world to learn more about mind eaters in particular. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Misogyny, Violence, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Sexism, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Child abuse, Vomit, Alcohol, Abandonment, Slavery, and Gun violence

Minor: Drug use, Acephobia/Arophobia, Medical trauma, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Body shaming

Physical abuse specifics:

Matley chokes Devon until she passes out, and it takes her a long time to recover. This happens immediately after she gives birth to Cai. She is also pinned down when Matley and his guards arrive to take Cai away.

There is no explicit sexual content or description of sexual assault, although Devon's relations with her husbands are nonconsensual. A lot of discussion of Devon's children being taken away from her. Her children are also threatened with violence.

nicoleisalwaysreading's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-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

4.25

This one was SO GOOD! super complicated concept that was well-executed and read like a wonderful literary fiction debut, a fantastical sci-fi wonder, and high-powered adventure story. What really held it all together for me was an examination of patriarchy, morality, and fiercely loyal love. I hope there will be a sequel 👀

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gore, Violence, and Body horror

Moderate: Sexual content

ivleafclover's review against another edition

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I dunno, I dug about the first half and then it slowed waaaaay down and I lost interest. I was interested enough to keep slogging through to see how it ended (and the end is satisfyingly exciting), but it’s destined for the donation pile. Not one I’ll be tempted to re-read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Confinement, and Domestic abuse

leonormsousa's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

REP

lesbian MC, sapphic LI, asexual male SC, disabled Indian-British SC

QUOTE 

“For here was the thing that no fairy tale would ever admit, but that she understood in that moment: love was not inherently good.
Certainly, it could inspire goodness. She didn’t argue that. Poets would tell you that love was electricity in your veins that could light a room. That it was a river in your soul to lift you up and carry you away, or a fire inside the heart to keep you warm. Yet electricity could also fry, rivers could drown, and fires could burn; love could be destructive. Punishingly, fatally destructive.
And the other thing, the real bloody clincher of it all, was that the good and the bad didn’t get served up equally. If love were a balance of electric lights and electric jolts, two sides of an equally weighted coin, then fair enough. She could deal.
That wasn’t how it worked, though. Some love was just the bad, all the time: an endless parade of electrified bones and drowned lungs and hearts that burned to a cinder inside the cage of your chest.
And so she looked down at her son and loved him with the kind of twisted, complex feeling that came from having never wanted him in the first place; she loved him with bitterness, and she loved him with resignation. She loved him though she knew no good could ever come from such a bond." 

THINGS I ENJOYED 

• Sunyi Dean's writing is stunning (something I've confirmed in her two recent short stories), and I think I might read everything she puts out there
• So many great and strong passages! (I'm not one to annotate but this book made me want to)
• We love a book that doesn't shy away from talking about misogyny and oppressive societies
• How the author explored the topic of love, especially maternal love and how it can twist your moral boundaries (see the quote I included)
• The queer rep <3
• The concept of book and mind eaters was so interesting and original, and the chapter introductions with the lore really made the experience better
• It really stuck with me (it has been 4 months since I read and I not only think about it but almost feel like rereading it)
• The dual-timeline storytelling works so well

THINGS I DIDN'T ENJOY

• The ending was a bit too rushed and even almost “too easy”.
• Some details were given a lot of emphasis in the book but then ended up not playing any part at all, which felt a bit misleading and incoherent.

THINGS THAT I'VE SEEN CRITICISM ABOUT AND WHY I ACTUALLY LIKED THEM

• The world-building is limited - I think that the vagueness and unresolvedness of this book fitted it quite well. It's very rooted in Devon, so for me, it made sense that we didn't knew much about the book/mind eaters origin or lore (or other topics of the book in general) because she didn't knew it as well, either because she wasn't given that information as a woman or because it was not knowledge the book eater society had at the time.
• The abrupt ending - I actually like open endings and thought this one fitted the book well

READ IF YOU ENJOY

• creepy books with grey/dark characters
• stories about unhinged women trying to break free
• topics like misogynist societies and motherhood
• urban fantasy/sci-fi elements as a means to uncover and discuss real-life situations

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Violence, Gaslighting, and Death

Moderate: Pregnancy, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Blood, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Cannibalism, Child death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Stalking, and Vomit

Minor: Trafficking, Acephobia/Arophobia, Homophobia, and Slavery

ashleyrunswild's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Slavery, Rape, Sexism, Trafficking, Misogyny, Body horror, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Vomit

reading_ani's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

I was really looking forward to reading this book as the premise sounded really intriguing. Unfortunately, the book didn’t even keep half of what it promised. Also, the writing style was so incredibly boring, I had trouble concentrating. I enjoyed the idea of book eaters, yet the main focus were the mind eaters, which heavily reminded me of the monsters in the tv show “the Strain.” Not that I was against the whole concept of Devon being on the run from the families, but her entire escape was just too dragged out and honestly at times pretty annoying because barely anything happened in the present timeline, and also not least because the idea of book eaters wasn’t really fleshed out properly. There is so much wasted potential in that book, and even though on the surface it could have been interesting, there were just too many elements that fell completely flat in execution. My only reason for not DNFing was because I wanted it gone and finished from my TBR-file and not risking me having to revisit it at some later point, just so I can stack it into my bookshelf. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Body horror, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Grief, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship

amiegold's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-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

4.0

The book Eaters is a dark, wild ride!  A mother and her 5 year old 'mind eating' son embark on a long and painful journey to find a cure for his mind eating that will let him live in the human world without being a danger to others.  It opens with Devon in a large manor and being raised as a princess.  But, we soon feel that there is a dark, underlying motive for everything around her.  I felt like it was almost a literary horror, if that is a thing.  It explored the idea that people in fairytales may not have it as good as we always thought.  Princesses, arranged marriages, and being raised to produce an 'heir' are all things out of our real-life history.  However, in Book Eaters, she takes these ideas and mixes them with a new kind of monster that is oh-so-fun to read. If you like a bit of horror mixed with introspective moments, this book would be a great fit.  It may not be the right fit if you are looking for a light or thoughtless horror.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Body horror, Sexism, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Cursing and Murder

Minor: Rape

morganpearcy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

I was super excited about the concept of Book Eaters. When I got into it, the reading was easy and flowed well - but I wouldn’t classify this as horror. 

The literal book eating and mind eating wasn’t explored as much as I would have hoped. I got to the end of the book and still had some unanswered questions. The overall book felt kind of flat compared to what I was expecting based on the summary. 

All that being said, it was a quick read. Interesting concept. Lesbian awakening!! Revolution and patriarchy-smashing vibes. It makes for a nice easy read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Grief, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Confinement and Body horror

Minor: Body horror

Let’s add straight up patriarchal systems of oppression, forced marriage, forced birth and forced birth-parent-child separation.

carlatemis's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Kidnapping, Murder, and Sexual assault

halfbloodprincess_hogwarts's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

This was not my cup of tea. It's quite triggering and has a society that controls women reproductive rights. Solely, from my understanding, on sexual violence. 

So I jumped from 32% of the audio to the end and was greatly disappointed with the ending. It leaves a dry cough of hope at the end that is 99.9% uncertain/may not succeed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Domestic abuse, Rape, Abandonment, Infertility, Murder, Sexual assault, Body horror, Cannibalism, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual violence, Alcohol, Confinement, Grief, Pregnancy, and Torture