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kris386's review
3.0
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death of parent, and Alcohol
jaedia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I enjoyed The Invocations a lot. At first I worried the purple prose was going to fall on the wrong side for me but quickly fell in love with the way Sutherland describes everything and paints pictures with words. And the three girls: Jude, Emer, and Zara, felt pretty 3-dimensional to me, to the point that Jude in my mind looked quite different to the Jude on the cover art, the other 2 as well, actually - I struggle to visualise characters at all, usually. I also just adore dark witchy stories. This one has gore, and demons, and dark power, and women who are angry. It really really hit the spot.
There were a few points that bothered me, however, though they were small niggles rather than outright problems. For one... quite a few typos. I maybe noticed 7 or 8 throughout the book? Which isn't great for a traditionally published book. Not the end of the world though, they don't make it unreadable. Also without spoilers, one character has a magical injury, you learn about it right away when they are introduced, and the extent of the injury and the pain it causes... it really bothered me that they could walk around and do things. Like, yes there were times if they were running or doing manual labour they'd be visibly struggled or just bow out completely, but it's never made into much. I experience some minor pain at times and can't walk when it gets really bad, and there are others who need to constantly use crutches or a wheelchair. Pain like that isn't something that you grin and bear, get used to, magical or not. It wipes you out. I would have at least liked for them to have a walking stick, you know? Would have felt more real. Also: disabled representation, we could always use more.
Aside from that, the rest really are just small things here and there. Perhaps a person feels too much like a walking cliché, something feels a little too convenient, that kind of thing. These are generally things I notice when I read young adult fiction, however, and I tend to just brush them off. The instances in this book where they came up just didn't affect what I was reading. The overall writing and excitement of the story and what was happening to these characters was solid enough that it more than made up for any issues I had.
If you don't mind a little gore and enjoy dark stories about witches and the occult, with queer leading ladies, nonetheless, you might really get a kick out of The Invocations. And if you do, I definitely recommend checking the trigger warnings, as it is horror.
Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Self harm, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Infidelity, Vomit, Medical content, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Mental illness, Excrement, Car accident, and Pregnancy
bookiesncreme's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Self harm, Blood, Vomit, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, and Excrement
yourleastfavoritereader's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Self harm, Blood, Cannibalism, and Murder
ivywwx'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
4.75
Graphic: Body horror, Self harm, and Blood
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
ohclairebear's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, Violence, and Blood
devynreadsnovels'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Rape, Medical content, Cannibalism, Stalking, Abortion, and Pregnancy
anna_may's review
- 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
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
hobbithopeful's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Krystal Sutherland truly never misses. The Invocations is haunting, magical, and full of rage, and Sutherland's writing style makes it impossible to put down!
Demons, magic, and so much blood, I don't even know where to start with what I love the most. The characters are all so fleshed out and well explored. Over the course of the story we see each one open up more as they begin to trust each other, and share their stories. There is so much female rage in this, and so much wonderful queer representation. Everyone who has been scared to walk home alone, or has pepper spray on their keychain will easily relate and see themselves in this story. I will say this isn't a book to eat and read at the same time, the imagery in this book had me gagging from how horrific and disgusting Sutherland described it.
Each one of the characters has lost something, and they are on a quest to achieve their goal, no matter the cost. (Also guys, lots of daddy issues in this, you know I love to see that!)
I love every second of this book, I have yet to read a book of hers I didn't thoroughly enjoy. There is something about her writing style that manages to tread the line between grotesque imagery, and mystery. I never know where her books are going to take me, but I always know I am going to have a fantastic time on the journey.
This is definitely one to check your triggers for! There is a lot of blood, injuries, and heavy topics that will make this difficult to read for many people, so please make sure you check that before you read this.
This is easily my favorite book of hers so far. I HIGHLY recommend this one! Perfect for fans of dark witchy reads with badass sapphic rep at the forefront.
One final note, I learned way more then I ever wanted to about body decomposition.
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Self harm, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
metaphorsandmisc'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, Misogyny, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Vomit, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent