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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:moonyreadsbystarlight's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.75
The main character, Leslie, is an invert traveling through Kentucky in the 1920s on duty as a nurse, to give vaccines and provide care around childbirth. This begins as more of a historical novel. Leslie is assigned to provide care and vaccines in a small town Appalachian. He receives unprecedented religious pushback in the town, which complicates his job and potentially his livelihood. But there are people he is determined to help before he leaves.
The horror element slowly builds as the woods are clearly more than they seem. So much of the story culminates towards the end, making this a bit of a slower burn, but trust that it ends with a bang.
The blurb promises "historical horror, trans romance, and bloodsoaked revenge" and most certainly delivers on all in more ways than I was anticipating (it gets gruesome and spicy, but also I can see where Madelo's writing style was impacted by the time in which he is writing.).
The horror element slowly builds as the woods are clearly more than they seem. So much of the story culminates towards the end, making this a bit of a slower burn, but trust that it ends with a bang.
The blurb promises "historical horror, trans romance, and bloodsoaked revenge" and most certainly delivers on all in more ways than I was anticipating (it gets gruesome and spicy, but also I can see where Madelo's writing style was impacted by the time in which he is writing.).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Abortion, and War
Moderate: Ableism, Rape, Cannibalism, and Fire/Fire injury
fairytalefootnotes's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
4.0
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Tropes, etc: Small Town, Place Personified, Religious Persecution, Revenge, Transgender MC, Transgender Love Interest
3rd Act Breakup?: No
The Praise: This book gave an interesting glimpse into the experience of a transgender man in the 1920s and paired that with eerie horror and sweet romance. It was well-written and I really loved the ending!
The Critique: I would’ve liked to know more about Spar Creek and its whole deal.
Final Thoughts: This wasn’t my typical kind of read but I really enjoyed it! Especially the ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Deadnaming, Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Rape, Abortion, and Pregnancy
lynch's review
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? It's complicated
5.0
i have no words for how incredible this read was. important and brilliant. everything i want to embody, and totally sexy beyond imagination. changed my life, i fear.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Hate crime, Rape, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy
isaiahh's review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
The queerly willful creatures of the world had only one another to rely on.
I stayed ten minutes with my pen poised over the paper trying to find a more... professional way to start this review; but it's my review after all, and I'll write it however I please. With that: The Woods All Black is HOT! In both senses of the word.
Set in 1920's Appalachia, this novella follows Leslie Bruin, a FNS nurse assigned to the small town of Spar Creek to inoculate the population and help deliver babies. Unfortunately for Les, this close-knit community led by an infuriating preacher shows only contempt towards him and his queer ways. And as something strange brews in the woods, tensions peak around the explosive behaviour of one Stevie Mattingly, a boy Les has been trying his damned best to help.
This T4T historical horror is everything I could have ever asked for. It's got a rural american setting surrounded by woods and sticky heat (I told you it was hot! I'll let you discover the second meaning of it by yourself, though); queer characters trying to survive while dealing with Frontier PTSD and bigoted religious communities; and, more importantly, MONSTROUS TRANS RAGE (I finished it feeling like I could tear a transphobe's throat with my teeth).
The prose is lush and plunges you right into the skin of Les as he navigates his way around this hostile town for 140 pages; and you will not want to put this book down.
It's evident Lee Mandelo did a lot of research for The Woods All Black, but it's blended so well in the story, it only serves to make it feel realer. You get a glimpse into the lives of queer folks in 1920's America, and it makes you want to read more of it.
This is a new favourite for me, and a full five stars! Leslie and Stevie will stay with me for a long, long time. I'm also very excited to discover Mandelo's other works.
Thank you so much to Tordotcom and NetGalley for providing me with an e-arc of this book in exchange for a review!
*Just a note to say there IS an age and experience gap between the two main characters, in case anyone is uncomfortable with that!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexual content, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Body horror, Hate crime, Rape, Transphobia, and Violence
Minor: Death, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
booksandteatime's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Deadnaming, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Abortion, and Pregnancy
charleshasalibrary's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Trans vengeance on smalltown religious bigotry, set in the hills of Appalachia where all sorts of beasts are known to wander... I stayed up until the witching hour reading this one, holding my breath the entire time. The Woods All Black was like a fever dream I never wanted to end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Abortion, and War
margaret's review
dark
tense
5.0
*screaming and screaming and screaming and screaming and screaming and*
Lee Mandelo said is anyone going to find homoeroticism in the monstrous and then didn't wait for an answer
so like. THE WOODS ALL BLACK is basically a perfect novella?? and I don't know what to do with myself now that I've read it??
the story follows Leslie Bruin, a nurse traveling to a small town in 1927 Appalachia to administer vaccinations and health care. viewed as a woman, he is greeted with hostility by the townspeople who consider any deviation from the norm to be dangerous. throughout the 160 or so pages, an eerie, unsettling atmosphere underpins a story that asks: who are the true monsters - the ones who dare to live as themselves, or the ones who would force them back into the boxes prescribed upon them since birth?
this book has so much to say about queerness and transness, intolerance and complicity, justice and revenge. it breaks apart every expectation I had going in. I personally love when queer historical books allow their characters to be undefinable by modern standards, because even today's labels of gender and sexuality are imperfect and limiting.
I can't tell you how many times I screamed aloud while reading this, and after I finished I had to pace around my apartment for ten minutes. it was horrifying and sickening and satisfying and cathartic; I wanted to burst with how much I loved it and how awful (complimentary) it was. plus, lee mandelo's writing is SO gorgeous. this cements him as a favorite author for me, and this as one of my new favorite novellas.
Lee Mandelo said is anyone going to find homoeroticism in the monstrous and then didn't wait for an answer
so like. THE WOODS ALL BLACK is basically a perfect novella?? and I don't know what to do with myself now that I've read it??
the story follows Leslie Bruin, a nurse traveling to a small town in 1927 Appalachia to administer vaccinations and health care. viewed as a woman, he is greeted with hostility by the townspeople who consider any deviation from the norm to be dangerous. throughout the 160 or so pages, an eerie, unsettling atmosphere underpins a story that asks: who are the true monsters - the ones who dare to live as themselves, or the ones who would force them back into the boxes prescribed upon them since birth?
this book has so much to say about queerness and transness, intolerance and complicity, justice and revenge. it breaks apart every expectation I had going in. I personally love when queer historical books allow their characters to be undefinable by modern standards, because even today's labels of gender and sexuality are imperfect and limiting.
I can't tell you how many times I screamed aloud while reading this, and after I finished I had to pace around my apartment for ten minutes. it was horrifying and sickening and satisfying and cathartic; I wanted to burst with how much I loved it and how awful (complimentary) it was. plus, lee mandelo's writing is SO gorgeous. this cements him as a favorite author for me, and this as one of my new favorite novellas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Transphobia, Blood, and Medical content
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, Pregnancy, and Dysphoria
courtsport3000's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I don't even know what I think about what I just read, but I had a good time???
Love the historical queer horror aspects of this story - the constant tension, the pressure of the overbearing religious community and never knowing how far they will go to protect what they believe is right. The lack of power is tangible and weighs so heavy in these pages. I was on edge this entire read because our boys were in such danger and I could not cope. But that just made all the scenes where folks FAFO that much more rewarding.
I did struggle with the romance during certain parts... IYKYK. I just wasn't prepared for certain aspects of it and... yeah. But it's mostly very sweet and those parts were fab.
You can tell the author did a ton of research for this book, even without the recommended reading list at the end. I enjoyed learning about the traveling nurses and their journey to inoculate small town areas without steady access to medical resources. The exploration of women's healthcare, especially where pregnancy and contraception are concerned, was also fascinating and just as disturbing as one might expect.
I'll definitely be recommending this one.
Special thanks to Tor and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for review.
Love the historical queer horror aspects of this story - the constant tension, the pressure of the overbearing religious community and never knowing how far they will go to protect what they believe is right. The lack of power is tangible and weighs so heavy in these pages. I was on edge this entire read because our boys were in such danger and I could not cope. But that just made all the scenes where folks FAFO that much more rewarding.
I did struggle with the romance during certain parts... IYKYK. I just wasn't prepared for certain aspects of it and... yeah. But it's mostly very sweet and those parts were fab.
You can tell the author did a ton of research for this book, even without the recommended reading list at the end. I enjoyed learning about the traveling nurses and their journey to inoculate small town areas without steady access to medical resources. The exploration of women's healthcare, especially where pregnancy and contraception are concerned, was also fascinating and just as disturbing as one might expect.
I'll definitely be recommending this one.
Special thanks to Tor and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy
Minor: Animal death, Rape, Abortion, and War