Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo

43 reviews

mmccombs's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

Deliciously dark and queer and monstrous, I really enjoyed the historical fiction + creature revenge plot mix. Short and sweet, I thought the writing was engaging, the characters well-written, and the time period compelling. Exploring queer and trans identities in Appalachia post WWI, where religious bigotry, eugenics, and modernization clash was something I’ve not explored before. I enjoyed Mandelo’s other novella and was pleased to enjoy this one just as much, great stories with even better senses of place and atmosphere. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Homophobia, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Abortion, and Pregnancy

ghostingarden's review against another edition

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Homophobia, Rape, and Pregnancy

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, and War

genen0x's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Deadnaming

Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Abortion, and Pregnancy

hardbackhoarder's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

4.0

The pacing was a bit off - there was a slow build up for the good first 3/4 of the book with a rush of events at the end that felt jumbled in execution.

Was not expecting furry/beastiality? smut which really isn't my thing.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Medical content, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, and Dysphoria

Minor: Confinement and Panic attacks/disorders

ryanandrew23's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

bookshelf_al's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Homophobia, and Transphobia

Moderate: Rape

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.75

The Run-Down: The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo is an exquisitely imagined historical horror romance that delivers a gritty, feral catharsis. 

 

Review: 

Lee Mandelo has done the unimaginable with The Woods All Black. In just 150 pages, he has created an immersive, historically detailed trans romance horror story. The novella follows Leslie, a nurse from the Frontier Nursing Service assigned to provide vaccination and other health services to an isolated religious Appalachian town called Spar’s Creek. Leslie puts up with the town’s distrustful attitude toward him in order to help a young resident, Stevie, whom he recognizes as a gender- nonconforming kindred spirit. As the residents grow increasingly hostile toward Leslie and Stevie for failing to act like proper God-fearing women, Leslie finds himself embroiled in a conflict that involves forces beyond his comprehension.

 

It's rare to find a piece of queer historical fiction that does not simply transplant modern ideas about gender and queerness into a historical setting. While there is nothing inherently wrong about this approach from a storytelling perspective, it does promote a rather limited and inaccurate understanding of the past. By contrast, The Woods All Black makes a genuine attempt to reimagine queerness and gender nonconformity as its characters might have understood it. For example, the book’s protagonist identifies as a female “invert,” a sexual identity popularized in the late 1920s that in today’s understanding of gender and sexuality might be most akin to a he/him lesbian or transmasc nonbinary identity. Furthermore, Mandelo’s extensive historical research—combined with his sharp imagination— lends this book a remarkable sense of historical realism. At the same time, however, he manages to craft a story that is both affirming and relevant to the present, and modern queer readers will see parts of themselves represented in these characters. 

 

Despite the book’s short length, The Woods All Black never seems rushed or underdeveloped. On the contrary, its characters come alive on the page with remarkable depth. The steady pacing contributes to the ever-increasing narrative tension, which is released in a brutal, cathartic climax. Mandelo’s writing rejoices in a gritty, animalistic version of trans masculinity—a tender ferocity borne of a lifetime of societal oppression and constraint. The graphic nature of this book won’t be for everyone, but for those who need this narrative, it will be a blessing they didn’t know they needed.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Medical content, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Abortion, and Pregnancy

Minor: Racism, Rape, and War

Additional Content Warnings: Misgendering, war-related PTSD

amandalachelle's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Confinement and Excrement

barometz's review

dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Deadnaming, Cannibalism, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, and War

Minor: Lesbophobia

corabookworm's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.0

I honestly thought this book was 5-star worthy for the most part. The writing was fantastic, the historical elements interesting but not boring, the story fast paced, and the plot intriguing. The explicit sex scenes threw me off and, due to personal preference, lowered the rating of the book to 3 stars. But otherwise I really liked it! If you're looking for short, queer horror with elements of religion, romance, monsters, and history, this one's pretty damn good!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Sexual content, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Moderate: Homophobia, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Confinement, Rape, and Sexual assault

Sexual assault is referenced/implied multiple times but never shown on page. There are pretty explicit sex scenes, so if that kind of stuff makes you uncomfortable, skip these parts:

pg. 100/65% ish and pg. 132/86%

. There's also pretty gory stuff, which is worst at:

85%/pg. 130ish