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matt4hire's review against another edition
tense
fast-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
3.5
3.5/5. It loses half a star because the dog dies.
Really solid horror thriller, one of those great ones where the bulk of the action is in one place over the course of a single day. But on top of that, it manages to have some really distinct character work between the two leads; they’re both damaged in their own way. Best of all, Jones manages to give them both fairly distinct voices, so 99% of the time, I’m not confused who’s talking at any given moment (a harder trick to pull of than you’d think).
Solid stuff! Except for the dog dying. Boo to that.
Really solid horror thriller, one of those great ones where the bulk of the action is in one place over the course of a single day. But on top of that, it manages to have some really distinct character work between the two leads; they’re both damaged in their own way. Best of all, Jones manages to give them both fairly distinct voices, so 99% of the time, I’m not confused who’s talking at any given moment (a harder trick to pull of than you’d think).
Solid stuff! Except for the dog dying. Boo to that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
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
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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