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Reviews tagging 'Blood'
Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology by Shane Hawk, Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.
77 reviews
pigeonmellow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
If you’re considering reading it, you’ll likely find something to enjoy!! It’s an anthology with over 20 short stories by as many authors, so you’re bound to find a story and an author you connect to.
I enjoyed hearing all the different writing styles (I listened to the audiobook version), and especially loved the voice actor Sheldon Elter, who voiced several of the stories. Sheldon Elter brought the characters and action to life with his emotion and voices — and none of his skillful spice distracted from the heart of the story, only served it. Sheldon Elter — you rule!
This book swerved for me towards the end. First, because I wasn’t aware when I picked it up that SA would be a major element in two stories (there was something that border-lined sexual violence in a third one, but it wasn’t viewed as a assault by the character who experienced it). Some readers can get through SA in their stories, but for me, it’s a trigger I can’t get past. Speaking of which: I completely skipped the second to last story (I think it was that one?) because, without warning, it opened with a first-person description of child SA in progress. I couldn’t do that one.
Second — as someone with a mental illness, I’m always hesitant when it comes to horror stories that paint mentally ill people as monsters or mental illness as a supernatural evil. At best, it’s tired — at worst, it’s perpetuating a harmful stigma. So yeah — for me personally, it’s not enjoyable to find that the “horror” of the story is a character being mentally ill and not taking their medication. In this anthology, there was one story that disappointed me in that way.
Lastly, I wasn’t ever creeped out by any of the stories, or on the edge of my seat with any of them — something I was looking forward to, as it was a horror anthology. Maybe that’s because I was listening to the audiobook version, and not reading in silence?
Huge trigger warnings for colonization, racism, white supremacy, racial slurs, talk of genocide and all of that directed at Indigenous people. If that is something that is a trigger for you, just know that all of those topics come up in almost every story. As one would expect, likely, given that these are horror stories written by Indigenous people, about Indigenous characters from this real world, where all of these horrors make up the real past and present.
Okay. ALL THAT BEING SAID: I did *really* love learning more about indigenous culture, and hearing about the fears, battles, resilience and triumphs of indigenous people. I am very interested in continuing to read my fav authors from this anthology! I learned a LOT I didn’t know before, and so much of the writing was so visceral, which I enjoyed immensely. This book has further motivated me to continue reading work by indigenous authors featuring indigenous characters and stories.
I want to note here, too, that horror stories deal with complicating and disturbing topics. So (apart from painting mental illness as an “evil”), I understand that my displeasure at some of these topics mostly means I’m a bit of a picky horror reader!
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
asurasantosha's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Stalking, Abortion, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
scarrillo222's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
sakiido's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
pineapple_queen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Alcohol
nihilusion's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Gore, Blood, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, and Stalking
dezzella's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death, Gore, Miscarriage, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Abortion, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Colonisation
laymanh's review against another edition
- 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: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Classism
willow_thewisp's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Minor: Rape, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Cultural appropriation
cadence99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail