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gawdz0rz's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
i enjoyed the writing style, thought it was well-written, and i really like the self-deprecation of characters. the story was also good, very unique, though the ending felt very empty, sort of a forced “and then they all lived happily ever after” trope that didn’t really fit. the aliens (or maybe their descriptions) were really unique but also a bit convoluted for what the author was trying to portray. also, the sex scene in the middle felt really out of place, considering the situation.
overall, i really liked the book.
i didn’t mind the fact the dog died (though that really sucks, media should really let the animal companions live) but it seemed very unnecessary to torture the poor thing for multiple chapters by letting it bleed out only to then have it somehow gain the energy (and blood) to sacrifice itself(???) to an alien so the humans can escape.
overall, i really liked the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood, Suicide attempt, and Body horror
Minor: Emotional abuse and Vomit
a_novel_craving's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Suicide attempt, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
megaden's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-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 this book as a bonus when supply chains altered the contents a book subscription and I’m glad it was included! It’s jam-packed with tension as the story follows two people who are thrown together when, after a drunken one-night stand, find themselves stranded in a car on a beach during an alien apocalypse. It’s a perfect mix of sci-fi and horror. The story is written very visually and I wasn’t surprised to learn that the author had previously been a screenwriter. I suspect that this will be adapted into a Netflix movie at some point.
the dog doesn't make it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Gore
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Alcoholism
girlcalledryan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
A dog plays a huge role in this story. the dog doesn't make it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Animal death and Suicide attempt
mangosunscreen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Addiction, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Animal death, Gore, Death, and Confinement
Minor: Vomit
cathepsut's review
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Beth is a mess, a self-proclaimed „car wreck“. She is a professional house-sitter, sampling other people‘s lives. This time around she also dog-sits Jake, a golden lab, and makes friends with her neighbour Mike. Well, she starts by stalking him with her camera and then…Hello to an alcohol-induced one-night stand! And then the world ends and they end up stuck in a car on a beach, surrounded by something scary…
My recent track record with horror is not great. Psychological horror is lost on me, I usually get bored. And slasher stuff turns me off. Creature features are the most fun. This isn‘t exactly that, but a little. Plus there is plenty of action right from the start. Creepy, scary, sci-fi horror fun. Alien invasion with a twist.
I quite liked the reason for this particular end of the world and wish that it had been explored more.
Unfortunately I did not like Beth. Whiny, sorry for herself and a general failure at life. Bent on making the stupidest choices possible. Mike is self-destructive in another way. Together they make a couple that is potentially quite inept at survival under apocalyptic circumstances.
Don‘t expect deep character development.
The audiobook is told by two narrators, one female and one male, alternating between telling the story from the POVs of Beth or Mike. They do a good job although there is one voice towards the end that doesn‘t really work well for me.
Bottomline, I liked the claustrophobic plot, but disliked Beth quite a bit. Good action, fast plot. Let‘s say 4 of 5 ominous bowling balls for now, I might raise that once I‘ve pondered it a bit longer.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Animal death
mondovertigo's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Confinement, and Animal death
Moderate: Suicide and Suicide attempt
thesaltiestlibrarian's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Thanks to Edelweiss/NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Let's clear something up before I go into this. I didn't think the book was *bad.* Did it drag? Yeah. Could it have been a novella without losing anything? Absolutely. Was the kid at all needed as a character? No.
Was it bad? Also no.
So we have your standard alien invasion: bad signs in the sky just before hell breaks loose, stuff falling from space(?), then creatures showing up and our heroes figuring out how to take them down. The "tide" part of the title is a bit deceptive, as the book takes place on a beach but has little to do with the actual water. Which was pretty disappointing to me. Stuff from space is scary, sure, but what about the things that live just below us? Where they're naturally a part of our world in the first place, then just decide, "You know what? F those people on land. I'mma kill 'em."
The aliens themselves had biological factors that didn't make much sense. There was a lot going on with them that seemed contradictory, but it's an invasion book. I suspended my disbelief long enough to get through and not hate it. It kind of felt like a movie you'd watch on the SyFy network, along the lines of "Lavalantula" or "Piranhaconda." (I have watched both with popcorn in a bowl and a cold soda at my side.) The alien origin also was unclear, and if Beth's dream in the beginning of the book had actually proven true--some kind of weird dimensional overlap--that would have been neat. I wouldn't have expected it to be explainable right away if at all. However, the invaders were rather typical overall.
As for the characters, they were average at best. I didn't like Beth much at the beginning, but by the end she'd grown on me. That said, Mike's voice was definitely the least distinctive. I constantly mixed up his narration with Beth's if her name wasn't in a dialogue tag so often. Natalia was a useless last-act addition, and Jake was my favorite. The little golden good dog who derped his way right into my squishy canine-loving heart. And then K.C. Jones killed him, and the rest of the book was pointless to me.
YES. The dog dies. Sure, it happens off-page technically, but I don't care. You gave me a dog who was fantastic, made him fluffy and beautiful, and then he died. That's such a dick move as an author.
Honestly, Jake's death knocked off a whole star for me. The aliens and Mike did the rest of the damage. If someone needs a popcorn read that's quick and doesn't take much thought, this is a good remedy.
Let's clear something up before I go into this. I didn't think the book was *bad.* Did it drag? Yeah. Could it have been a novella without losing anything? Absolutely. Was the kid at all needed as a character? No.
Was it bad? Also no.
So we have your standard alien invasion: bad signs in the sky just before hell breaks loose, stuff falling from space(?), then creatures showing up and our heroes figuring out how to take them down. The "tide" part of the title is a bit deceptive, as the book takes place on a beach but has little to do with the actual water. Which was pretty disappointing to me. Stuff from space is scary, sure, but what about the things that live just below us? Where they're naturally a part of our world in the first place, then just decide, "You know what? F those people on land. I'mma kill 'em."
The aliens themselves had biological factors that didn't make much sense. There was a lot going on with them that seemed contradictory, but it's an invasion book. I suspended my disbelief long enough to get through and not hate it. It kind of felt like a movie you'd watch on the SyFy network, along the lines of "Lavalantula" or "Piranhaconda." (I have watched both with popcorn in a bowl and a cold soda at my side.) The alien origin also was unclear, and if Beth's dream in the beginning of the book had actually proven true--some kind of weird dimensional overlap--that would have been neat. I wouldn't have expected it to be explainable right away if at all. However, the invaders were rather typical overall.
As for the characters, they were average at best. I didn't like Beth much at the beginning, but by the end she'd grown on me. That said, Mike's voice was definitely the least distinctive. I constantly mixed up his narration with Beth's if her name wasn't in a dialogue tag so often. Natalia was a useless last-act addition, and Jake was my favorite. The little golden good dog who derped his way right into my squishy canine-loving heart. And then K.C. Jones killed him, and the rest of the book was pointless to me.
YES. The dog dies. Sure, it happens off-page technically, but I don't care. You gave me a dog who was fantastic, made him fluffy and beautiful, and then he died. That's such a dick move as an author.
Honestly, Jake's death knocked off a whole star for me. The aliens and Mike did the rest of the damage. If someone needs a popcorn read that's quick and doesn't take much thought, this is a good remedy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Chronic illness, Alcohol, and Violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
Minor: Sexual content
booksthatburn's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
BLACK TIDE features two almost-strangers suddenly trying to survive after a meteor shower that left behind very strange things on the beach.
Early on I realized what it's horror novel treatment of, and I don't really want to spoil it except to say that any of my fellow exvangelicals might find something you recognize. You don’t need to figure it out to understand the book, however, since it’s using that sequence of events as the bones in a wonderfully horrific creation. It's from the perspective of two characters who aren’t already familiar with the shape of what’s to come, who have no way to guess the truly twisted shit that’s going down.
The characters have the kind of communication errors which completely fit people who met yesterday and have very little emotional energy to navigate interpersonal dynamics in addition to trying to stay alive. It's just enough to feel real but doesn't bog down the story. The worldbuilding is very good, with the characters slowly figuring out what's happening and some strategies to deal with immediate dangers, but lacking any ability to fix things more broadly. This is a very good horror novel and I'm quite pleased overall.
Early on I realized what it's horror novel treatment of, and I don't really want to spoil it except to say that any of my fellow exvangelicals might find something you recognize. You don’t need to figure it out to understand the book, however, since it’s using that sequence of events as the bones in a wonderfully horrific creation. It's from the perspective of two characters who aren’t already familiar with the shape of what’s to come, who have no way to guess the truly twisted shit that’s going down.
The characters have the kind of communication errors which completely fit people who met yesterday and have very little emotional energy to navigate interpersonal dynamics in addition to trying to stay alive. It's just enough to feel real but doesn't bog down the story. The worldbuilding is very good, with the characters slowly figuring out what's happening and some strategies to deal with immediate dangers, but lacking any ability to fix things more broadly. This is a very good horror novel and I'm quite pleased overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Death
Moderate: Animal death, Grief, Cursing, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Violence, Gun violence, Car accident, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent
Minor: Ableism, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, and Sexual content
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