Reviews with content warning for Violence - The Woods All Black

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo

37 reviews

charlesbiglythethird's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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saturdayslaughter's review

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dark tense medium-paced

4.25

It was so cool to see all this old timey trans stuff! I had a great time following this war veteran invert through rural town hell. I didn’t really go in expecting erotica, I wish I had, I could have enjoyed anticipating it, but anyway that part was good. The story really ramped up for me, and that climax (ha)! Blood and guts and monster sex!

(was kind of wild for the epilogue to put them back in an context I recognized where they weren’t being immediately threatened, it made the age dynamic suddenly way more apparent. not a bad thing! but an interesting thing)

I did find the inclusion of the super natural elements a bit lackluster. I think what I was feeling is that it wasn’t treated like a mystery. I liked the characters choices around Leslie’s reaction to it and the monster and the fact of his own murders, but I didn’t like how Little reaction to it there was. Like he finds a cave with a gorey flowerbed and two severed fingers and after running for his life in the moment he kinda just does not think about it. I would have been fine with that if it had been a bit more explicit that he was avoiding it because of the shellshock or the more immediate threats, but it just felt unaddressed. Overall I felt like something was up with the presentation of the supernatural horror bits. (also something compromised for me in how connected Stevie supposedly is to the forest, vs his ending. it felt like there could have been more there)

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rachelgreenreads's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo

I didn’t know I had a southern gothic trans horror romance hole in my heart until this book filled it. I think I could read this book a hundred times and not get sick of it.

The prose was lush and poetic, while still feeling grounded and deeply personal. The social horror was impeccable. Mandelo uses parallel themes of one person poisoning a whole community: the villain believes such of our main character, that his queerness will spread sin and evil through the holler. While in reality and alongside this narrative, the pastor, relatively new to town, has poisoned the community with his hatred and suspicion. A community that was once “a decent place as any for a child to be strange.”

Mandelo also captures the intense and unique way in which queer people find and support each other, and the many small and large resistances we’ve embodied throughout history.

If you support trans rights, and also trans wrongs, I highly recommend this book.

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faeriekit's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Still deciding how I feel. Definitely a...heavy queer read. It's written better than my review implies; I just have mixed feelings about the contents.

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meagan123's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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sammy357's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-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

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courtneys_shelves's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny tense medium-paced

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? It's complicated

4.0

NOTE: REVIEW BASED ON AN UNCORRECTED DIGITAL GALLEY

This book is not for everyone. But it is for some very specific people who will cherish it.

The book is graphic, both sexually and with regards to violence. It is a dark, dark novella. It begins slowly, but when it picks up, it REALLY picks up, and I didn’t want to put it down.

Leslie is a trans man serving in the Frontier Nursing Service in rural Appalachia in 1929. When he is assigned a post in a small, religiously zealous town, he struggles not only achieve the medical ends he wants to achieve to help the people of Spar Creek, but also to find ways to help Stevie, a young man with whom Leslie thinks he may have much in common. As trouble between Leslie and the town grows, so does the sense that something supernatural is afoot.

If you you can stomach the intensity, this book has much to say about belonging, revenge, and religious zealotry.

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