Reviews tagging 'Death'

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran

54 reviews

2treads's review against another edition

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

3.5

A story is what holds me hostage during sleep.

Anything that leads with a haunting, a sentient or otherwise inhabited inanimate object, complicated father-daughter relationships, a self-aware, queer, motivated, complex, and confused main character will have me reaching for it. The malevolence that comes through as Jade learns more of the house's history and previous owners is a palpable thing, as are the marks left by French colonialism.

#SheIsAHaunting brings this and much more, the underlying sinister vibes, entangled familial and colonial history, identity, sexuality, and the need for acceptance are all wrapped around Jade as she tries to navigate her fraught relationship with her father in order to be able to pursue her educational aspirations.

I love that Tran has given us a look at how each child responds to the father in their way, based on their age and understanding of why he isn't home with them. It also speaks to their complex relationship with their  heritage and cultural identity. How you feel in the place of your parent's birth and history versus how you feel in your country of birth that finds many ways to make you feel Other.

But it is also the sacrifices that we can be led to make for those we love while ignoring the damage such actions cause. It is learning and relearning, listening, and understanding that there is always another story, another person who was also used and impacted by the need for power and longevity.

I want to go through this terrible thing, but I’ll never fully understand the intimacy of a home rooted in soil.

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rowanbg's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.75


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marleywrites's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious slow-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

5.0

Jade was the perfect narrator for this haunting novel. She was angry, she was scared, she was smart. Jade was also a normal eighteen year old- a little cocky, a little blunt. I loved every second. 

I found learning about Vietnamese culture through this story really engaging. I like reading stories about taking down nasty colonizers so I was really enjoying that aspect of the novel. I especially liked that the book did not provide translation for everything said in Vietnamese. I liked that it wasn’t handed to me, I had to pause and go Google it. I didn’t mind that, for me, it worked. It was unapologetic.

Florence was such an interesting character. I liked her sass and her brains and her scheming. I liked that she saw Jade and wanted to know her right from the start. She weaseled her way in there and did not back down when things got hard. 

I found the pacing of this book to be moderately slow, but I think it worked for the story. It sort of goes from a warm water to a rolling boil at a pace where you don’t even realize you’re being pulled in. I liked that when the ending hit, you’re like, “how did we get here??”.

The wealthy couple, Alma and Tommy, were really frustrating characters by design. I enjoyed their role in this book. 

I wish we could have seen Halle on page. I would have liked to know more about that relationship for Jade. I also wish we could have seen more on page, in person interactions with Jade’s mom. But I did enjoy getting to see them interact on FaceTime!

Overall, I loved reading this story and I think the author did a really wonderful job with this book. The horror elements were gross and captivating at the same time, and I look forward to more from this author! We also love to see an author using they/them pronouns! 💛

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marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Jade’s first visit to her ancestral homeland in Vietnam is not exactly how she’d envisioned spending her last summer before college.  Having agreed to stay with her sister in the historic house her estranged father is obsessed with restoring, Jade expected to face family drama, but what she finds is much more sinister.  Death and decay creep around every corner, and the unease of day and night are only partially countered by time spent with a rebellious and magnetizing local girl.  Woven with body horror, ghosts, and the violence of colonialism, I’d definitely recommend this YA crossover to fans of Mexican Gothic.

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