Scan barcode
windermerepeak1's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, Violence, Blood, and Murder
brebeingwell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book gave me all the proper uncomfy feels I want in a horror, but I did feel like it dragged a little in the second half. I wish I didn't know Russian or play The Sims because then the twist might have been a little more twisty (if you know, you know). I think the characters have strong, independent voices and personalities which lead to me becoming emotionally attached to both who they are as well as their desires/goals. The worldbuilding for a standalone book was immaculate and I enjoyed getting lost every step of the way.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
18soft_green's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The mystery in this story was good. Who was out killing witches and stealing their demon tattoos? I was curious. The characters of this story were also good. Emer is my favorite character, with how very Eldredge she is. Zara is interesting to me with how her practicality clashes with her separation. Jude is not interesting to me. And neither was the sexual/romantic side plot between her and Erer.
What bothers me about this book is how shallow it is and exclusive its message is. I love a rage story. I love when characters get ugly and break shit and go mad, almost nothing makes me as excited as a deranged character going apeshit. I love revenge stories! Sutherland has an obvious weakness that seems to have only grown from her last book into this one.
Sutherland writes for white girls and women and them exclusively. It's not just that they are her audience, they are the only important characters in her books. Everyone else in her books either don't exist or are bad. In the House of Hollow, there was only one person of color and she killed them. In this book the only important characters that aren't white women are men and they are the bad guys. Sutherland tethers herself to the queer community by making her characters queer but then doesn't acknowledge queer men or nonbinary people. Her message is very gender essentialist but she doesn't even include those that challenge the gender norms the most in her story. The farthest she went was lesbians and clearly stated that trans women should be included but then didn't include them. Because, unfortunately, if she had included the rest of the queer community then her whole story would fall apart in several different ways.
This story relies on the idea that men are evil and weak and bad for women. Men are harmful to women one way or another, they are predatory and selfish, and all men want to devour women. The story stresses more that men = bad than women = good. If Sutherland were to include queer men and nonbinary people she would have been forced to ask if the evil of men lay in their gender and acknowledge that men do not = bad. For some reason finding the actual root of the problem of violence against women was too complex for her. The story demands that the reader care about that women are abused in this culture several times and at one point passively admits that men are under patriarchy and that makes them the way they are, but the rest of the story shows men harming but blames these men individually. The story doesn't explain why women aren't bad, it just states over and over again that women are victims of male violence and apparently that makes them not capable of true evil. Meanwhile, it can be assumed that boys and men will inevitably do some injustice because they are boys and men. This steals all men and boys of agency and brinks on the argument that it is not what you do but who you are that is evil. This argument is used against all queer people. Our crime isn't that we are trans or differ in sexuality but that we exist. If we cannot change what defines us then we shouldn't live because we are abominations.
Sutherland can't include people of color in stories like this one because European gender stereotypes have defined people of color's gender differently than they did their own. And people of color have always suffered more under Western rule than white women have. To include them would require Sutherland to be more nuanced in her gender-essentialist story and acknowledge that other people suffer. She could have included women of color but that would require her to challenge colonization and capitalism as well as patriarchy and that would threaten white women's privilege and how highly valued they are among the demographics.
To be clear, white women do suffer under patriarchy. But so do white men. And nonbinary people suffer more than both. Queer men suffer more than cis het white women. Even more than most white lesbians. White women have always been the most protected demographic, this protection was what disabled women in modern societies. White women do have reason to be angry for their own suffering but white women's biggest struggle isn't physical or sexual violence, it's the belief that they are in constant danger of being assaulted that makes them so powerless. Queer people are women of color and especially queer women of color are physically and sexually assaulted much more than white women are and it isn't talked about nearly as much as white women's stats are. As long as white women believe as they do that they are each in constant danger they will uphold the current social hierarchy and thus continue to be just as powerless as they are now.
As for witches: The European witch hunts were horrific. Those who were burned alive, drowned, and stoned to death were just people who acted a little differently than the rest of their communities. They weren't at all medically trained, they were not scientist seeking knowledge, they were widows, disabled people, and older women with no prospects. The "witches" that were killed during the American and European witch killings were those with less power than those around them. The witches of the past were not independent women, they were women that relied on their community to survive. The symbolism that witchery has taken recently can be inspiring but the history of it is tragic. Women have always suffered because of systemic patriarchy, not because men are evil. The system requires women to fear and hate men. It isn't until you see that men are victims just as you are and see them as potential allies against the system that you will truly disrupt it. Patriarchy wants you to separate yourself from the other genders because you are weaker without them.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Grief, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Rape, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, and Classism
Minor: Bullying, Child death, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Lesbophobia, and Pandemic/Epidemic
katielouisef's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
bzliz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Emer, a cursewriter whose coven was slaughtered years ago and was essentially raised by demons, is only seeking survival and revenge on the men who killed her family. She provides curses to gift magic to women in bad or desperate situations. Zaraās sister was murdered nearly a year ago and sheās not looking for revenge; she just wants to raise her sister from the dead. Jude made a stupid mistake is writing her own curse which bound an unwilling demon to her and it is hell bent to destroy her. Zara and Judeās journeys join them together then link them to Emer as they investigate who is killing Emerās clients and stealing their invocations.
In my opinion, the least enjoyable part was the āromanceā between Jude and Emer. It would have been just as well by these three girls- Jude, Emer & Zara- seeking connection, community & friendship because thatās really what they want. I hesitate to say thereās much growth for the trio as such a vast majority of their quest is externally driven but I donāt think the story suffers for it. The ending is a little waffley too. The cops here must be pretty inept and thatās all Iāll say on that.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Self harm, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Animal death, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Sexual harassment
bellebeaumont95's review
- 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
3.25
Graphic: Body horror, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexism, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Chronic illness, Excrement, and Vomit
Minor: Death of parent
brittonmc1221's review
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
While dark there were enough moments of levity to keep it from being a thoroughly depressing book.
Narrator Rating: 5 stars
The narrator did an excellent job with tonal shifts and giving each character a unique voice.
Elemental Levels: Fluff-0/5 Heartfelt-2/5 Helpful-NA Horror-3/5 Inspiration-NA
Love aka Romance-3/5 Mystery-2/5 Predictability-4/5 Spice-0/5 Suspense-2/5 Tear- 2.5/5
Thrill-3/5 Humor-2/5
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Excrement, Medical content, Cannibalism, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic
ilaxaria's review
3.5
Graphic: Death, Gore, Misogyny, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Violence, Vomit, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug use, Rape, and Sexual harassment
lawwenlouis's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Murder