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steffi_23'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? N/A
4.0
Graphic: Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, and Animal death
Minor: Sexual assault
abookishwasp's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
I am not sure if it's the writing or the characters or the pacing or the narrator of the audiobook. None of these particularly put me off but at the same time none of them were able to grab my attention and keep me interested. My favourite part about this is the story itself as a whole, the concept and the setting, which is very atmospheric. Also towards the end the story took a turn that I did not quite expect that kind of left me dumbfounded and it just didn't really seem to fit with the vibe while it did make sense.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Gore, Violence, Blood, Death, Body horror, and Death of parent
Moderate: Confinement and Sexual assault
sillylilreader'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
5.0
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault
lady_moon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gore, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Misogyny, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Suicide, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
kassielovestoread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I thought the world of Amity! Her courage to face the deceit that has plagued her town was admirable. Her willingness to think beyond the white hot rage she feels at all the abuse she and countless other women have endured at the hands of men to bring about a more peaceful Haven, was beyond me. I know for a fact that if I had to survive half of what Amity had and I had the chance at revenge, I would not hesitate. And yet, I do not fault Amity for choosing to build a new future for Haven instead of enacting her vengeance. If you act on the hatred boiling inside of you, what will be left of you when everyone who has wronged you is dead? How can anyone deal with such emptiness? Those who refuse to repent should, of course, be dealt with accordingly. But the town of Haven deserved to have a chance to live to become better people. Such a profound and important lesson.
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, and Sexual assault
mooandshoe'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
4.75
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood
Moderate: Lesbophobia, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting
Minor: War
sallysimply's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
3.5
All of this to say that I only liked this marginally better than The Grace Year, and I possibly would have liked it more if I didn’t (unintentionally) read it almost immediately after.
Go into this expecting all the content warnings you might imagine when reading misogynistic dystopia.
Graphic: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Death of parent, Cursing, and Gaslighting
apersonfromflorida's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Misogyny, and Abandonment
Moderate: Sexual content, Blood, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Gore
Minor: War and Homophobia
thebookishvalkyrie'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
4.5
Graphic: Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Violence, Body horror, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Xenophobia, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, War, and Grief
Minor: Racism
camillessi's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
2.5
Firstly, I wanted to express how surprised and disappointed I am that there is no official trigger warning list for this book. I searched the author's website and the publisher's site and did not find any. With the amount of disturbing and potentially triggering content that is in this novel, I think that would warrant at least a warning, especially as this is a book written for teenagers. That said:
CONTENT WARNINGS: Gore, body horror, sexual assault, abuse (domestic abuse, child abuse, religious abuse), animal death, cannibalism, misogyny, minor character death
Claire Legrand's books tend to be hit-or-miss for me, but with how much I loved Sawkill Girls, I was excited for another horror novel from her. This did not, however, live up to my expectations. As always, the prose was generally beautiful and mostly flowed well, and the way the plot fit together was clever. The atmosphere throughout was dark and heavy, well-fitting for a horror novel.
But the downfalls (to me) were too many for me to say I really enjoyed it (and certainly not to the extent that I enjoyed Sawkill Girls). I felt that this book relied too heavily on the violence and the shock value of it in efforts to get its point across. It becomes clear rather early on that the men of Haven are the villains in this story. But the constant gruesome deaths and murders of these men seemed gratuitous and made it feel like I was getting hit over the head repeatedly with the "ALL MEN ARE HORRIBLE" message. I can understand the message fine without men getting mangled until they are unrecognizable every other chapter. It wasn't even just the men's deaths either—everyone who dies in this novel reaches a gruesome end that is described in painstaking detail. This could be attributed to Legrand's excellent imagery in her prose, but I also felt that after a while, it became tedious. I found myself skipping past paragraphs and pages describing torture and mutilation, and really didn't feel like I missed out on anything in my reading experience by doing so.
The catalyst for the protagonist Amity's quest I also found rather confusing. I reread the passage several times trying to figure out why it made sense for her to make the decision she did just based on a vague fable from her town. The quest itself was interesting and brought plenty of tension that eventually I was able to ignore that it didn't make sense. But it certainly pulled me out of the story for a while.
Furthermore, the big reveal near the end felt anticlimactic and reminded me too much of other post-apocalyptic novels.
Overall, this book might be great for people who don't mind the unsettling content and enjoy straightforward messages. The female friendship was strong here, despite it feeling slightly underdeveloped. I also liked how a supporting character was given a (rushed) redemption arc—I think they deserved one.
I think this book was not to my personal tastes, which is fine. I wanted to put it down many times, but felt I needed to finish it in order to write an honest review. I can't really say I enjoyed reading it, but it did hold my attention after about the halfway mark. Additionally, I haven't read YA novels in a few years now, and so found some moments in here cheesier than I might have previously. But those who are used to reading in that category may not be bothered by it at all!
Like I said at the beginning, this author is always a hit-or-miss for me, so even though I didn't enjoy this book, I will still be on the lookout for more releases from her.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Cannibalism, Body horror, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Animal death, Death, Gore, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault