Reviews tagging 'Cursing'

Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison

23 reviews

tiddlerrr's review

dark funny mysterious tense slow-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? It's complicated

3.5

I bought this book on a whim to keep me occupied for an afternoon train journey, which it succeeded in doing. However, I think it struggles to decide whether it is a comedy-horror or not, and personally I didn’t find it particularly scary/horrifying. After going into this blind about anything that happened I do think that’s the best way to experience it, as it is VERY predictable in places. The MC is also not likeable and I don’t think she is meant to be, however all of the progression/development/action seems to happen at the end whereas the first two thirds are largely filler. It was a decent read and kept me occupied for an afternoon, but I don’t think I’d ever read it again.

I do also think the satanic cult “twist” was a bit overdone and would have been scarier if it was a Christian cult or something else entirely. Lucifer being her absent father felt very tropey, and as a someone who is normally lover of tropes, I mean that in a bad way.

I also didn’t really understand the point of the epilogue, the whole thing just kind of…ends.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Emotional abuse, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Abandonment, Kidnapping, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Grief, and Child abuse

Minor: Eating disorder, Sexual harassment, and Alcoholism

kermit_the_wrong's review

dark funny mysterious 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

3.75

Excellent body horror 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Violence, Gaslighting, Cursing, Gore, Child abuse, Cannibalism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, and Body horror

bcvogel90's review

dark emotional tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship and Gore

Moderate: Body horror and Animal death

Minor: Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, and Cannibalism

caseythereader's review against another edition

dark funny tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Cursing, Animal death, Body horror, Death of parent, Blood, Gore, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

flaminggecko's review against another edition

reflective medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Panic attacks/disorders, Body horror, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Animal death and Cursing

cytokine_storm's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Murder, Toxic relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Violence, Body horror, Gaslighting, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness

plumdustsuns's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

2.5

I wished the section after she left the wedding was a bit grander. The epilogue felt a little… baseless. I wish the ending birthday party and all of that got more focus and time, especially with the family and Constance than the middle part after the wedding which meandered and wasn’t quite exciting to read. I almost wish she didn’t ‘leave’ the first time and all she found out about herself and not being loved by the family was set in the farm with the members. Her being the antichrist didn’t feel like it had weight or consequences until the party and maybe her going off on Kerri and George but I feel those moments would have had more effect if it was with Brody and Rosie instead of them just falling. Her realization of her power would have held more weight for her and the readers. I just feel like she the book had a lot more potential than what it came to by the end and overall. Had her life outside of the farm held more weight or been more ‘exciting’ to return to after the wedding, it would have made the middle section better and made me want to not stop reading. 
I wish we get a prequel on Constance. Intriguing. 
Also don’t know what I feel about the devil being so powerless against Vesper’s tantrum and powers on earth. Wish that was explored more as to why he needed her teeth and hair to walk on earth. Once again, more time with him and in the farm would have solved that. 
But the book had solid parts and I didn’t put it down long enough to stop reading it. Enjoyable but yes, I wish there was a bit more because the buildup to the climax didn’t feel like it had much emotional weight by then although it did.

Also what do you mean the devil wrote on an invitation with a black SHARPIE? A SHARPIE?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Cannibalism, Violence, Gore, Murder, and Toxic relationship

mandi_lea's review

dark funny reflective medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Animal death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, Sexual content, Grief, Cannibalism, Toxic friendship, Gore, Animal cruelty, and Fire/Fire injury

karen_lo's review against another edition

dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

4.5 stars

Loved the story, the concept, and the protagonist who was so resilient despite all the things she goes through. 
I wish it was a bit longer cause I wanted to know more about certain characters, but overall was the perfect read for this spooky season!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Blood, Animal death, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Murder

Minor: Sexual harassment

katiemack's review

dark funny reflective medium-paced

• 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

4.5

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I like my horror with a comedic twist, so Rachel Harrison's quickly becoming my go-to author during Spooky Season. This is the second book of hers that I've read, and I've grown to love her dark, twisted, sarcastic sense of humor; she reminds me of Grady Hendrix in that way. She also creates jaded, snarky, smart heroines that are easy to root for as they get themselves into increasingly weird, terrifying situations.

I'm also a big fan of how Harrison makes a familiar trope feel original and fresh; this is the case with this trope of going back home to one's estranged, extremely religious family only to have something creepy happen. (Don't read any synopses before you start this book--I've had issues with marketing blurbs before, but the publisher did a solid job being informative yet cryptic with this one.) Also, don't be put off by the slower pacing in the beginning--it REALLY picks up later, especially in the last quarter of the novel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death and Blood

Moderate: Abandonment, Body horror, Cursing, and Gaslighting