Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Ring Shout: Nuestro cántico

This genre isn’t usually my speed but I am so glad I read it! The prose style is simple, powerful, and beautiful. The use of dialect and imagery gives such a great window into this world and these lovable characters. I felt like I was reading a folk tale, an epic, and a high art piece all at once. The body horror and gore was done tastefully — it was shocking and gruesome without being unreadable for my squeamish self. My biggest critique is that it was almost too fast-paced for my liking and I would have really liked to see a deeper dive into the characters and the world building. I did love it though, and would totally read a sequel if one ever comes about!

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ashleytalksbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

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

5.0

The horror, the social commentary, the history. Everything about this book was amazing. I could not stop listening to it until I finished it.

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thebustadotjpg's review against another edition

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adventurous dark inspiring tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The protagonist literally fights the Final Boss of Racism with a magic sword. Come on man. This rocks.

Never before have I devoured a book as voraciously as this. I picked this up on a whim from the book store just because the cover went hard and this buzzer beater just stealthily snuck into my favorite reads of the year. Clark takes full advantage of first person narration that totally immerses you in Maryse’s world, where racism and hate turn people into demons and wretched lovecraftian horrors made of a million mouths and slithering, sentient meat. The supernatural elements here are way more prominent than I expected but I’m welcoming it. Clark’s ability to pack such a strong narrative into just 180 pages is absolutely incredible. Not an ounce of fat on this thing. At such a short length there’s no reason to pass this up if you like horror or maybe historical fiction that gets a little weird with it, as long as you’re okay with some nightmarish visuals.

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likeagilmoregirl's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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annie10's review against another edition

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challenging dark hopeful sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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surdiablo's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Well, color me impressed with this one even though I'm not typically a fan of action horror. Initially, the premise didn't seem like my cup of tea, but it ended up winning me over with its unique setting, fast pacing, characters that feel real, and an actual intimidating antagonist. Ring Shout is a gory delightful ride featuring several tense action sequences, vivid horror imagery, and rich themes that explore the pain of the oppressed. Gullah culture and other historical references were also blended together very well and were interesting to read about. Unlike the Djinn stories from Djeli Clark, I found this one to be cooked really well considering its length.

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thegayestghost's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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