Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid

94 reviews

rainkatzanddogs's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

gothbaby's review against another edition

adventurous 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

3.0

I have crafted my review of this book since I started it. Partly because I expected to love it, to devour its words with the same ferocity which I believed Évike to have; instead I found it utterly forgettable and slow when it was written most beautifully.

I was hesitant to pick up The Wolf and the Woodsman based on the expectations that were created around it. I agree with the consensus that it was beautifully written (albeit very redundant at times, especially when it came to similes and metaphors), but I found the plot forgettable. There was nothing that made the fantasy element feel intense or epic to me. 

Ava Reid is definitely talented and I am excited to read her other work(s), I just hope I enjoy it more than her debut novel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, and Gore

Moderate: Xenophobia

kristakp's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I enjoyed this story. The audio book was very digestible and helped me stay focused on the plot. Sometimes it felt like the plot or the style of writing didn't match up with the ages of the characters. I enjoyed most of the choices, but it often didn't feel like I was reading about twenty-somethings on the page. Perhaps the best way I can describe it is that the author's tone felt disjointed from what felt natural for the characters. The necessity of the plot definitely led the characters instead of being informed by them, which is what I prefer. 

Overall, the book was entertaining. I wanted to read more of Evike and Gaspar's story together as I wasn't fully satisfied by the end of everything.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racism and Religious bigotry

saeliphil's review against another edition

dark

3.5

This book was super interesting! I was really fascinated by its exploration of religion, morality and belonging and it was also the darkest fantasy book i‘ve ever read! So brutal wow, but i liked it. My main complaint is just that the plot felt rushed, especially towards the end. I wish it had taken more time to explore certain developments and dynamics. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Blood, Antisemitism, and Religious bigotry

theincrediblesulk's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• 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? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Violence

lilbookbee's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

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

2.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Gore, Violence, Blood, and War

kylasmv15's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

mjwhitlock18's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-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? Yes

3.5

I loved lots of things about this. It has a sentient forest, a prickly stubborn female main character, a magic system derived from multiple different religions, and an forced proximity enemies to lovers subplot. The influence of Eastern European and Jewish history and folklore lends the worldbuilding a rich fullness, but the plot wandered substantially and the pacing seemed weird, slow at times and blazing quick at others. I love the verbose, lyrical descriptions, as it really helps me feel immersed in the world, but I can imagine that it will make others feel bogged down. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Violence, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Antisemitism

Minor: Death of parent

caitb's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, and Antisemitism

ridesthesun's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark slow-paced

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

3.5

I really love the premise of this one! The variety of culture and mythology was really cool, and I loved seeing the Jewish stories woven in so lovingly. 

I'm not sure why, perhaps it was just bad timing, but the book overall failed to really grab me. I *wanted* to enjoy it, but I found myself checking "how much longer is this audiobook" too many times. Idk if it was the pacing or what, but it felt a lot like nothing was happening while simultaneously lots of things were happening? Not sure how. Like it felt like it was dragging while simultaneously feeling under-developed.

Anyways, I would say definitely give this one a try; the concept was brilliant, the weaving of mythology was really cool, Evike and Gaspar were lovely. Also recommend the audiobook, getting the pronunciations for everything was a huge bonus.

*does deal a *lot* with anti-Semitism, and is strongly reminiscent of pogroms and pre-WWII eastern europe. The Jewish community is written beautifully and with great care, but if that's a sensitive topic for you I would avoid this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Blood, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Colonisation