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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
(3.5 stars bumped to four) Lacey lives in a cult. Vern, the leader of the cult, is a former pedophile, convinces an agricultural town that hasn’t had rain in years, he can make it rain if the folks only do what he tells them to do. Lacey’s mother is an alcoholic, self-absorbed girl-woman who abandons Lacey, leaving her with her bat shit crazy grandmother who collects stuffed rodents and dresses them in tiny clothes. Oh, and Lacey is impregnated by her first cousin (who, by the way, raped her because Vern told him to). A couple of kind souls along the way and you have the makings of an interesting story…in a totally sick world. Would I recommend this to friends? Depends on the friend.
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Rape, Sexual violence, Grief, Religious bigotry
Moderate: Suicide
With Godshot, Chelsea Bieker screams herself hoarse to tell us that violence against women and girls and domination over the natural environment are one and the same. In the subsiding desert of California's Central Valley, she draws a mirror between the claims men make to female bodies and the claims they make to the land and to the stories we tell about God and holiness. Evocative of Tara Westover, Vandana Shiva, Joan Didion, and the greatest odysseys (but without hardly going anywhere at all), this book has enough resilience to burst at its own seams. Shot through and patched up with perfection.
It slow burned a little too slow for me and then the ending sucked
Every word of this novel is searing and unflinching. It’s about a California that isn’t often depicted—the sun drenched and drought-rotted Central Valley. A place where faith falters and cults thrive. An exploration of the line between desire and belief, and the line between love and hate, this novel manages to be both brutal and beautiful. A real achievement.
really good cult novel! california farm drought + charismatic psycho + adolescent girl FMV who just deserves better in every way + gets her happy ending!!
This just wasn't the right time for me to read this. Too distracted (election, work, etc.). Wouldn't mind returning to it at some point.
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No