Reviews tagging 'Abortion'

The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo

39 reviews

aplpaca's review against another edition

adventurous 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Sexism, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Abortion and Pregnancy

Minor: Homophobia, Racism, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

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. 

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Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Abortion, and Pregnancy

city_girl_writer's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Not what I expected but in a good way! Preferred the historical horror aspects than the trans romance but still good nonetheless.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Rape, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and War

Minor: Confinement, Sexual assault, and Abortion

helorenz's review

challenging dark 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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Moderate: Rape

Minor: Animal death and Abortion

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

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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.

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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

ursustheboi's review against another edition

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I enjoyed the read. It's clear though the book has been written over many months because the style is all over the place. The book cannot decide what it wants to be. I praise it for depiction of lgbtqia+ themes (

trans characters

depiction in particular). As a horror novel or just when it comes to simple plot devices, a lot could have been improved.
Heads up for explicit sex scenes as I was not ready for it (made me feel like I'm reading smut on ao3 rather than published work).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Deadnaming and Transphobia

Minor: Rape, Abortion, and Pregnancy

inkylabyrinth's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

:)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Transphobia

Minor: Ableism, Rape, Sexual violence, and Abortion

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.

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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

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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