Reviews with content warning for Violence - She Is a Haunting

The vibes were immaculate, which is pretty important for a gothic horror novel, and the author managed to create an eerie and tense atmosphere while also describing everything so aesthetically. The descriptions felt very... indirect? I sometimes had to reread parts because I wasn't sure what was actually happening but that is by no means a criticism; I adored the language. Plotwise however, I struggled a bit. Haunted houses only work if the characters have a good reason to be in them and not leave once, you know, they realize they might die. In this case, there were reasons for the main character not just going home, but they weren't strong enough for me. I got her motivations and I liked how her struggles with her family and her identity played out, but her behavior in the house was just ridiculous. And some of it seemed like it only happened to set up conflict between characters, the main thing that didn't work for me. Nearly every thing that characters got angry about was so obviously only there to create a shocking reveal and lead to an argument and some of the "dark secrets" I just straight up didn't consider as bad things. The romance also suffered from this.
My favorite thing however were the shorter horror chapters and how horror as a genre was used to discuss colonialism, racism, and sexism. Gothic horror has always been used to portray societal issues with supernatural metaphores and this was done so well here. I also have never read YA horror before and was pleasantly surprised how well these two can be mixed.

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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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bookcaptivated's review against another edition

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adventurous 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? No

4.0

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susanpevensie's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

i’d like to preface this review by saying that i’m not vietnamese, so i believe that my experience with this book would certainly different than if i were a vietnamese.

what i loved about this book is that it’s very rich in culture and lore. i loved that the author did not shy away from using vietnamese language. she most definitely did not over-explain terms—it’s like, if you don’t know what they’re saying, then google is free!

jade wasn’t exactly an easy character to like. she was all teenage angst at seventeen years old. a bit abrasive, she was constantly angry and rude to the people around her, she was stubborn, she betrayed her best friend by kissing her friend’s crush just because she could, and she held a mean grudge. but underneath it all was just a child who needed to be loved and accepted. i couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. her struggle as an inner child unbeknownst to her little sister resonated with me a lot.

the author’s writing was hard for to follow at times. i understand why some readers found themselves confused with what’s going on with the story. certain parts were disjointed, which i felt made no sense but i think it’s just the author’s writing style. regardless of that, i find this book beautifully written and i thjnk it would make such a perfect movie.

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