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alicerain's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
4.0
theinkwyrm's review against another edition
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I went into this expecting a spooky story about LARPing gone wrong and maybe an accidental summoning of bog people, and this was very much not that. Up until the last 30 pages or so, this was actually giving more survivalist-novel vibes like I Who Have Never Known Men or The Wall with all the in-depth descriptions of trying to survive in nature, which is all well and good if you’re looking for that kind of thing, but I wasn’t. Then the ending went off the rails and it felt like Moss was trying to make a connection between Sylvie and the bog people that didn’t really pan out because she didn’t actually die and I’m not sure what the point she was trying to make actually was. So yeah, not a super great reading experience, but it was a quick read and might have potentially helped me start getting out of a reading slump?
saspell's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Dreadful and pensive.
caileigh's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- 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? Yes
4.25
Further evidence that just having a PhD doesn’t mean you’re not an idiot.
Also you might want to have a very basic idea of bog people prior to reading. Also if you’re a rabbit owner,you should know that they hunt rabbits.
Also you might want to have a very basic idea of bog people prior to reading. Also if you’re a rabbit owner,
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse
Minor: Racial slurs
tamsenreed's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse and Domestic abuse
reginamea's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
georgiahi's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.5
I enjoyed both the characters and the writing here, I actually wish it had been a bit longer and more fleshed out.
poisoned_icecream's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Silvie and her parents are participating in an Iron Age reenactment with a professor and three students. Her dad is a cringey racist and misogynist piece of shit who hits his wife and daughter. Silvie and her mom are too afraid to stand up to him because he is loud and obnoxious. It is very obvious that to her dad (forgot his name), the reenactment is really an attempt to live out his pathetic fantasy in which there are no immigrants and women are there merely to cook and clean, especially when he and the professor make a ghost wall out of rabbit and cow skulls to keep out their imaginary enemies. This entire book is clearly a huge middle finger to Brexit and I love it so much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Classism
sbhumphreys's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely terrible. Beautifully written. Rarely do I read a novella that feels like it was meant to be a novella. The story is simple, which I feel highlights the brutality of it. There’s a lot to be read into here with imagery of running water, leather, walls, bogs, and ghosts. (Probably more than that too.)
There are some lovely reviews here of people making excellent observations about feminism, toxic masculinity, romanticizing the past, and even Brexit. The writing style was a bit hard to read at times since dialogue is not in quotations or separated out, but in this text it actually becomes a strength of the writing style.
Please check content warnings.
There are some lovely reviews here of people making excellent observations about feminism, toxic masculinity, romanticizing the past, and even Brexit. The writing style was a bit hard to read at times since dialogue is not in quotations or separated out, but in this text it actually becomes a strength of the writing style.
Please check content warnings.