Reviews with content warning for Suicide - She Is a Haunting

Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran

19 reviews

lunarexorcist's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

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

i thought this was a new adult book until like twenty pages in my bad. i was so let down jade was 17 and not... like... 22.

i cried at the last forty pages but then went "what. what? what???" until the end. unhinged. i cant decide if it was unhinged in a genius or stupid way, but i will say that

being horny for a ghost that is horny for you also in a toxic yuri way and also a "wow you are so repressed colonialism slash misogyny slash queerphobia is a hell of a thing huh"

is one of the more unique interpretations of "this house eats people" ive seen.

i think the fact everyone sucks so bad throws people off but that just made my chest ache with how real it felt. that was my dad. thats my eldest daughter trauma. im gonna lose it.

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torismazarine's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.75

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steppenfreak's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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khakipantsofsex's review

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dark tense medium-paced

Strong character development? It's complicated

3.75

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kingcrookback's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense 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

This book would probably fit into the niche of creeping Gothic horror with generational themes of the likes of Mexican Gothic and What Moves the Dead. When Tran's writing was effective, her imagery was genuinely and viscerally unsettling. Ordinarily, the themes of generational trauma, queerness, colonialism and diaspora, and father-daughter relationships should have kept me hooked from page one.

The problem is, I found that Tran's writing was often not effective. Much of the time the figurative language and syntactical choices lacked the necessary undergirding of substance, which resulted in a murkiness that did not seem intentional and consequently just felt confused or unfocused. I understand that sometimes the intention was slipperiness and disorientation, and while that sometimes came across, its success was inconsistent. In fact, what this book did well - the creepy-crawliness, the imagery, the way it taps into the experiences that many American-born Vietnamese people share - made it even more of a frustrating read in the face of its shortcomings, including the underdeveloped side characters and the (occasionally) less-than-natural dialogue.

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talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

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

1.75

SO much going on all at once, and not balanced very well. I think I would have liked the different narrative elements individually or if they had been melded more effectively (because a haunted house that is so both literally and as a deeper allegory for the lingering legacy of colonialism -- if that is the intention -- is conceptually great), but it just feels like it's trying to be several different things mashed haphazardly into one. Super overwritten as well, and yet at the same time basically everything that should be shown is told and vice versa.

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vampire_burrito's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

4.0

"Did you all die here?" I ask out loud, when the question I mean is, Have I buried you well enough?

Let me start this review off by saying that I can completely understand why some people didn't like this book. There are some pacing issues and for a horror novel this was not at all scary (for context, I'm a massive wimp who has read like three horror books in her life and gets weirded out by scenes on Stranger Things) but it also has so many things that worked so well for me personally. Let's start of with the main character Jade. In so many ways Jade is me. We are both older sisters, both perpetually stressed out, both crave validation in every aspect of our lives, we are both queer. She doesn't really know what she wants to do with her life despite having a meticulous plan. Obviously there are differences (I'm not Vietnamese, she is) but reading about a character who struggles with so many of the things I do, and feeling so seen by that character was an experience I don't think I'll forget. In many ways Jade's haracter felt like a love letter to confused queer teens. I also loved the way this book focused on familial love and family relationships (both positive and negative)over platonic and romantic ones (although there is a little touch of romance mixed in) because I feel like I haven't read a lot of books that have that focus. Jade's relationship with her sister was lovely to read about. I also loved the way her relationship with her dad was presented because I thought the author portrayed a situation like that in a really nuanced way. Jade has a lot of harsh feelings against her dad

she is angry at him for leaving her mother and younger siblings as well as his rejection of her bisexuality

but she cannot help but still care about him and want his love and acceptance. This is all written about in a way that shows the love she still has for this parent but does not diminish her anger. The writing style in this book was also really great (especially for a debut novel) in my opinion. The quote at the beginning of this review was one of my favourites, but there are so many other lines and passages that I highlighted on my kindle. As for the horror in this book, I think this would make a pretty good introduction to horror but that seasoned horror readers/consumers would find that aspect of the book to be lacking. The themes behind the horror (the use of the house to show the way the colonial and violent past of Vietnam continues to impact people living today) was far more interesting and scary that the actual on-page horror, which I think is exactly what the author intended and they executed it really well in my opinion.
Overall, She Is A Haunting is a fascinating debut that unpacks heavy themes, while also managing to have a flawed but relatable protagonist. I will definitely be reading this authors next book. I would recommend this book to teenagers who don't know what they want to do with their life, people who want an introduction to horror and people who enjoy books with a heavy focus on family and familial pain.

I carry the burden of being the first child, and it sinks me into the soil.

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hobbithopeful's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? No

4.75

Sapphic colonization horror!?? LIKE WHAT! This was such an engaging and creepy read. I couldn't put it down, even as I had goosebumps from the suffocating imagery. I don't think there are many authors that can pull off writing about race and colonisation for a horror book, but Trang Thanh Tran NAILED it! I am a grade A weenie, so this wasn't too scary for me to read. I was guessing the whole time, and I loved the twists and turns.
I absolutely loved how race was talked about, it was just done so well and seamlessly. Honestly still cracking up about the line "this woman has a PHD in colonization.." . Jade feels so out of place in Vietnam, like a banana she mentions, and honestly I relate so much to her with my own race struggles.
Also this book is sapphic!
A truly creepy and tense tale about a hungry house, and too many bugs!
If you like thriller books you will definitely like this one!

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pey333's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.0

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evelynyle_88's review

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dark mysterious 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

5.0

What a journey following Jade Nguyen and her imperfect family. There were so many things going on, She Is A Haunting really gave me creepy gory horror disturbing type of book. But, although this is quite disturbing, the whole story was perfect.

How she engaged with every ghosts and facts about the house, her relationship with Florence Ngo, Lily and her estranged father... it all captured in a perfect way. This book gave me chills from the very first chapter until the end.

The feels of it, the way Trang Thanh Tran described every situation in the house in detailed way... I love it! What an amazing debut, Trang! I love every second of it when I deep dive to Jade's story. Wish I could see the bonus chapter though! But, all okay. I love this book as a whole. My best read this month!

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