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that_person_logan's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Thank you so much for writing this Andrew, truly.
I adored this and I am so so grateful I was able to read it
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
mrscreativity_1982's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment
dalek_caan's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
atlastheninth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"We are the same species. We're all human. It's not that people cannot understand me; it's simply that most of them don't want to."
Graphic: Ableism, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Homophobia, Rape, Grief, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
Minor: Genocide, Slavery, Colonisation, and Classism
starrysteph's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
booksmellers'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? N/A
5.0
White is the type of author that knows what he wants to say and is excellent at executing it. He writes the autistic, trans, and queer experience extraordinarily well, he creates compelling depictions of toxic families and their deep indoctrination into abusive systems, as well as complex characters with complicated relationships. What draws me to White's writing is his themes are clearly thought out and his writing makes a statement, but he doesn't coddle the audience and he isn't interested in being didactic. He doesn't overexplain identity but allows for nuance in these various experiences and his writing is more interested in the individual characters rather than appealing to the masses. These books will not be for everybody, but I'm glad that they do seem to have found their audience.
This book is still settling in my brain, but I think I liked it more than Hell Followed With Us. I could definitely see improvement from White's previous novel. The pacing was excellent, it was well researched, and all the connections were all there to make a great reading experience. This is definitely a great addition to the queer horror genre. And I have to say, the cover is so perfect.
If you love horror, historical fiction, and queer fiction, I'd highly recommend this book. You will definitely want to check content warnings because it is extremely graphic (I went in prepared, having read the warnings and his previous book, and I was still surprised).
Thank you, NetGalley, for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Deadnaming, Pedophilia, Transphobia, and Pregnancy
Minor: Cursing, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Dysphoria, and Classism
themargherita_s's review against another edition
5.0
Andrew is not capable of writing a bad book.
When I read Hell Followed With Us it immediately became a new favorite, but now The Spirit Bares Its Teeth has surpassed it a million times over and I'm kind of shocked. I feel like the writing and content has clearly matured from the first book and I love that. It did also make this a little heavier and darker read, at least for me, compared to Hell Followed With Us (which was already heavy enough with all the religious trauma lol).
I admit I got a little lost with the names of the girls at the school in the beginning, but I started to get them after a while.
I could perfectly see this story as a tv show and I honestly hope it gets an adaptation someday in the future.
Representation: autistic bisexual trans boy mc, trans woman li, sapphic secondary characters, autistic secondary character.
Content Warnings: ableism, deadnaming, transphobia, gender dysphoria, misogyny, gaslighting, gore, animal death, detailed medical procedures, medical content, injury detail, rape, child abuse, pedophilia, blood, murder, torture, violence, sexual violence, confinement, forced institutionalization, pregnancy, child pregnancy, gory 'homemade' abortion (sorry I don't know how to describe it), mention of miscarriage, mention of self-harm and suicide attempts, vomit, religious bigotry.
Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Self harm, Suicide, Vomit, and Religious bigotry
ender24's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism