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michellec9's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Animal death, Gore, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Blood, Animal cruelty, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Vomit
gatsbyonabudget's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Murder, Medical content, Blood, Body horror, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Mental illness, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cursing, Bullying, and Fatphobia
bellestallard's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Blood, Pandemic/Epidemic, Self harm, Torture, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Gore, Violence, Death, Physical abuse, Murder, and Vomit
Moderate: Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Body shaming, and Cursing
Minor: Police brutality
caro_mac's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Self harm, Terminal illness, Violence, Animal death, and Gore
Moderate: Bullying, Cannibalism, Confinement, Body shaming, Medical content, Physical abuse, Death, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Injury/Injury detail, and Self harm
Minor: Vomit, Excrement, and Suicide
poop_scoop's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Murder, Vomit, Suicide, Stalking, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Self harm, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Bullying
j_m_alexander's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.75
Body horror, animal harm, and overly descriptive scenes written with the explicit intention of raising the bile straight up your gullet. Can't say the writing is itself is bad exactly, so thus not a 1-star, but oof I REALLY did NOT like this book. This is a straight up book of grotesqueries that tries to toy with ideas of psychological terror, that I just didn't find successful within the context of the relentless squelching bodily fluid wallowing imagery. The premise is what drew me in, but after a while it seemed like the boys slid back into caricatures (it's like Cutter said "have your read The Body or Lord of the Flies, and/or seen the respective movies? -- it's pretty much some of those kids with a touch of a more youthful and messier American Psycho") and the order of operations were fairly predictable I found.
In reflection I recognize that what I look for most from horror these days is building tension and I am not as big of a fan of overt body horror, so this is maybe just the opposite of my current preferences. I have specifically identified that possession stories are something I am just NOT into, and really this is a possession story, a different take on possession, but possession none-the-less. Intermittently Cutter broke in with after-the-fact reports and testimonies, he mentioned being inspired by Carrie, and I can't decide if these helped or hurt the book; often they worked as a pallet cleansers from all the revulsion by inserting plain reportage, but they also depleted momentum... not sure if the trade off was worth it. I did find myself wanting to stop at points so maybe I would have made this a rare DNF if not for those breaks in the story, but then again maybe I would have sped through it instead of the stopping and starting as I ended up doing, making the choppiness even more pronounced.
Carrie apparently was an inspiration of sorts, but that book was punchier and King managed development with economy, while this book seemed sickeningly bloated, squishy, and somewhat flat. The more direct King comparison to make would be Dreamcatcher, which was also not my cup of tea, but in hindsight (and comparatively) is not so bad, certainly I think it's a better take on the basic premise of this other type of possession in the context of a group of friends in a secluded setting.
If you like detailed descriptions of slow horrific death and have a strong stomach (or enjoy the sensation of wanting to toss your cookies), then maybe this is a good book for you! Not a good book for me as it turns out.
Graphic: Gore, Self harm, Terminal illness, Violence, Body horror, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Death
Moderate: Medical trauma, Medical content, Cursing, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Grief, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse
gianna_lodato's review against another edition
Graphic: Physical abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Toxic friendship, Torture, Animal cruelty, Violence, Suicide, Death, Medical trauma, and Gore
jvr1210'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Torture, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Gore, Death, Excrement, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, and Mental illness
lexx_reads'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
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Self harm, Animal death, Child death, Excrement, Gore, Vomit, Body shaming, Murder, Blood, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, and Physical abuse
alexlouise97's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Bullying, Child death, Murder, Body shaming, Sexual content, Violence, Confinement, Physical abuse, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, Blood, and Vomit