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livlamentloathe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I also wanted more of the book to touch on the racism Jasper faced in Eden. I wanted Jasper to better scold Opal for the way she ignored about that part of him. She made a comment later on that alluded to her getting it in part. But she also definitely was very forgetful of his race. The book itself barely even acknowledged his race. It took until the middle of the book for me to determine his ethnicity - maybe that's my bad and I missed an early tell. But I think overall, this book wanted to hide details and it didn't always handle that well. It would be evasive and add extra page time instead of being a bit more upfront about things. Maybe that was purposeful too with Opal's personality. But it felt like it was just trying too hard.
The premise felt like a cross between The Hazel Wood and Book of Night. I thought it was meant to be horror, but it wasn't horror so much as gothic. More of a magical realism/low fantasy romance. This book could've been great but I think it needed further editing and less evasive plot points. I get it. Most details were meant for "reveals" later but it became excessive when I got lost wondering what the point of the book was. Or what was going on period.
P.S. I'd have loved more of a violent ending for the Gravely family and Elizabeth Bane.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Blood, and Classism
Moderate: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Car accident, Stalking, Slavery, Racism, Sexism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Violence, Grief, and Police brutality
Minor: Homophobia, Hate crime, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Incest, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Animal death
blacksphinx'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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, Car accident, Grief, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, and Mental illness
Moderate: Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Racism, Slavery, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Religious bigotry, Vomit, Homophobia, Deportation, Bullying, and Child abuse
Once again, why doesn't Storygraph have a "drowning" warning???issamay's review
- 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
Graphic: Grief, Cursing, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Car accident, Slavery, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Drug use, and Mental illness
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Incest, Vomit, and Sexual content
erinreadsbooks'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? Yes
3.5
Once the plot picks up around the 50% mark, it gets interesting and I began to get invested in the mystery of the house and the people surrounding it. I was entertained as Opal unraveled it but I must admit it was pretty frustrating that she withheld so much information from her brother with no real explanation. If it came from some sort of desire to have something for herself, it might have been nice for the author to have alluded to that, but without explanation it was almost infuriating that she wasn’t sharing this information she was finding out.
I liked all the secondary characters and I wish we got to spend more time with them, perhaps seeing more interaction with them in the first half to invest the reader a bit more.
Ultimately, the end was more or less rewarding as everything was revealed, but I wasn’t rooting for Opal as much as I was rooting for everyone else around her.
Read if you don’t mind slowly paced dark mysteries with light mythological elements.
Graphic: Violence and Gore
Minor: Suicide, Racism, Car accident, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Child abuse, Bullying, Incest, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent
robin_reads's review
- 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
5.0
A sentient and haunted house, mysterious creatures, reluctant working together, a lot of trauma and sadness.
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Vomit
Moderate: Drug abuse, Bullying, and Blood
Minor: Racism, Homophobia, and Suicidal thoughts
megnut's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Sexism, Classism, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Abandonment, and Police brutality
Moderate: Child abuse, Blood, Adult/minor relationship, Car accident, Confinement, Gaslighting, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, and Bullying
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Sexual violence, and Incest
flohbeutel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Violence, Vomit, Alcoholism, Car accident, Cursing, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Racism, Bullying, Classism, and Blood
Minor: Drug use
booksemmahasread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Bullying, Child death, and Adult/minor relationship
story_goblin's review
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent and Car accident
Moderate: Bullying, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Slavery, Blood, Body horror, Sexual content, Alcohol, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Incest, Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, and Suicidal thoughts
torturedreadersdept'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Violence, Alcohol, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Car accident, Child abuse, Classism, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racism, and Sexual content