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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
heartofhorrors's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Fire/Fire injury, Terminal illness, Suicide, Violence, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Self harm, Torture, and Toxic friendship
Minor: War, Gun violence, Alcohol, Child abuse, Fatphobia, and Sexual content
jacksonaugust33's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.75
Graphic: Violence, Gore, and Terminal illness
Not for the squeamish!crownoftamriel'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I read What Moves the Dead and was pretty bored. I guess I wanted "more" from the spooky/horror category. Welp, this absolutely delivered.
My first reaction after putting it down was "...what the ever living duckaroni did I just read." and that I have to tell everyone about it. 1. The main....issue in this book is one of my irrational fears so that did not help. 2. Yes, it's strong teen boy energy because it's a boy scout troop, which is a little annoying but that's the point. Teen boys are annoying lol. Pretty stereotypical choices for each of the characters. 3. I adored the inserts of the court cases and observations. I love that stuff. I want backstory. I want a conclusion. I needed that evil.
This is just...wow, gross and graphic. I felt it started a little slow and then suddenly I couldn't put it down. According to my kindle, from around the 35% mark was when I just straight up binged this to completion in maybe a day.
I think I may have overkilled on the content warnings, but I felt that what I listed is touched up on (I didn't realize there were categories of content warnings until I made the list so I'm not editting it). This book made me gag and gasp in the ways it was supposed to..I think I may read another horror book, especially by Nick Cutter.
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Death, Animal death, Eating disorder, Gore, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Self harm, and Terminal illness
vvlyn'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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Murder, Terminal illness, Child death, Blood, Gore, Death, and Vomit
shelbylanglois's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Self harm, Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Bullying, Body shaming, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and Violence
layc's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Violence, and Murder
ghostblush's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Terminal illness, Confinement, and Gore
Moderate: Animal death, Murder, Vomit, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, and Physical abuse
amsswim's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Vomit, Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Cursing, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Terminal illness, Torture, Body shaming, Animal cruelty, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Death, Grief, Medical content, Murder, Animal death, Body horror, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Addiction, Cannibalism, Cancer, Abandonment, and Vomit
allhailursula's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.0
I think this really does have a few downright skin crawling and unsettling scenes, and by the end, i felt a lot of pity for the characters put in front of us.
I am on the fence when it comes to horror authors writing gross and gratuitous scenes,not for plot purposes but just because the writer can.
There was the once scene specifically in Shelley's POV that was particularly grotesque, and when reading felt almost as if the author was trying to beat it over the head and say, "Look at me! Aren't i a great author!"
I had more than one moment when i thought the author himself was creepy. Im not sure if he meant to do that, but there were some weird choices, such as legnthy passages about the way these young boys smelled in great detail borderlining fantasy or the very descriptive moments of a young teenage boys erection which was inappropriate at best. Im of the opinion that fantasizing and writing in that great detail about children is almost never appropriate or needed to further the story. Especially when the second offense occurs more than once.
It wasn't bad i just really had some icks with this one.
Graphic: Bullying, Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Death, Excrement, Gore, and Self harm