tiak143's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Spoiler
This was a big scarier/more suspenseful than I thought it would be! I had nightmares about the dark walkers 🤣 but maybe that’s just me.I really enjoyed this! The characters were realistic, and believable, and I was questioning everyone’s motives the entire time. It’s very well done!
I do wish there was a little bit more closure. I want to know they made it out, and if their parents are actually alive. And I wish they could’ve gone back for the bees 🥺
Very good book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, and Murder
tetedump's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Gun violence, and Murder
whenjessreads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Bees. Monsters. Madness. More bees. Yes please.
I love the way Erin A. Craig writes creepy atmospheres. In this book, like in A House of Salt and Sorrows, there’s this soft, almost lazy overtone with just an undercurrent of… wrongness. I would describe the book as a gentle horror, if such a thing exists. There’s a quiet solemnity, calmness, and feeling of isolation throughout - but also some MESSED UP mutant animals that come out of the forest, and several gruesome violent deaths 🤷🏻♀️
It showcases the idea that the monsters hiding in the dark may not be as destructive as the monsters within ourselves. There’s an aspect of the macabre in the mutated creatures that feature as the initial ‘villains’, but the real horror of this story is found in humanity itself, and in what happens when the dark parts of ourselves are magnified and unrestrained.
The book is told in seasons, with the plot building pretty slowly. I didn’t have a problem with the slow progression because the tension remained… tense… throughout, however it did make the final 100 pages or so seem quite rushed, and a little messy. To be honest though, everyone knows I love a good ‘descent into madness’ storyline, and sometimes that kind of chaos can’t be presented calmly and orderly. ACCEPT THE MESS!
The setting was fantastic, the characters were well rounded, and while the twist was pretty obvious, experiencing it from the perspective of the MC still felt new and devastating, so kudos to Craig and her beautiful writing.
I do prefer A House of Salt and Sorrows to Small Favors, but I still enjoyed this read a lot!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gaslighting, Death, Violence, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry
hanna's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Idk what Craig is smoking but I hope she gets the help she obviously needs.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Death
Moderate: Pregnancy
lizgriffinwords's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A chilling tale perfect for fans of The Village, but with an even more gruesome twist. This is not one to listen to at night!! As an oldest daughter, I found Ellorie’s stress and burdens remarkably plausible.
Be aware of potentially triggering content including religious trauma, gore, blood, fire injury, hangings, hallucinations, animal death, and prominent character death. THIS IS A HORROR NOVEL.
Sadly I found the open ending to be dissatisfying; otherwise this would have been a 5 star read for me. I would have preferred either more confirmed closure OR an all-out horror ending.
Be aware of potentially triggering content including religious trauma, gore, blood, fire injury, hangings, hallucinations, animal death, and prominent character death. THIS IS A HORROR NOVEL.
Sadly I found the open ending to be dissatisfying; otherwise this would have been a 5 star read for me. I would have preferred either more confirmed closure OR an all-out horror ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Blood, and Gore
Moderate: Death
miyothecat's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
I cannot believe how misogynistic this book was. And it’s written by a woman. Virginity culture? Check. Slut shaming? Check. Women serving men? Check. And for what?? Nothing happened out of it. It didn’t turn out to be a plot point in the book or anything. It was just there for misogyny’s sake. The protagonist was a girl but she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders and let others (as well as herself) humble her. I’m sick and tired of selfless female characters who only exist for others and only gets complete when they have a male love interest.
The only good thing about this book was the idea of the monsters and the plot twist was way too predictable from page 60 and the last encounter with the monsters turned out to be really cheesy in the last chapters. Disappointed. This book had potential but was wasted in the hands of Erin A. Craig.
The only good thing about this book was the idea of the monsters and the plot twist was way too predictable from page 60 and the last encounter with the monsters turned out to be really cheesy in the last chapters. Disappointed. This book had potential but was wasted in the hands of Erin A. Craig.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Death, and Misogyny
Moderate: Pregnancy
ashlikes's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Animal death, Death of parent, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, and Pregnancy
Minor: Child death, Miscarriage, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Religious bigotry, and Alcoholism
mpurdy's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I was utterly enthralled in this story. It gave me a rumpelstiltskin retelling feel. It was a page turning favorite. I fell in love with so many characters and felt there pain but at the same time grew to despise others. I gave it 4.5 because I had two unanswered questions.
are her parents alive? I mean I figure they are because of how it ended but I would have liked to get the confirmation. My other question I guess is I wanted to see how Sam really grew so dark? Or was he always that way? I wanted a replay more of when he made
his bargain with the "queen". And how absolutely messed up that he was so readily to offer his twin like wtf. Like was he just mad that his dad respected Ellerie more and that set him off?!
This isn't a spoiler but if you have read this wouldnt it have been kinda cool if Ezra the real Ezra had joined the Kindred to spare the town a little longer? I enjoyed the backstory on the first hanging in Amnity Falls not the hanging itself but how famlies have been at eachother at the start. Looping back to what the "Queen" said about how the violence was here they just kinda helped it along.
All in all it was a great book and has become a favorite that I will cherish in my collection. I am looking forward to reading her debut novel. I really enjoyed her writing. It was the perfect amount of flowery imagery, loveable characters that were soooooo easy to connect to, and a dark fairytalk/folklore that I cannot get enough of.
Spoiler
are her parents alive? I mean I figure they are because of how it ended but I would have liked to get the confirmation. My other question I guess is I wanted to see how Sam really grew so dark? Or was he always that way? I wanted a replay more of when he made
his bargain with the "queen". And how absolutely messed up that he was so readily to offer his twin like wtf. Like was he just mad that his dad respected Ellerie more and that set him off?!
This isn't a spoiler but if you have read this wouldnt it have been kinda cool if Ezra the real Ezra had joined the Kindred to spare the town a little longer? I enjoyed the backstory on the first hanging in Amnity Falls not the hanging itself but how famlies have been at eachother at the start. Looping back to what the "Queen" said about how the violence was here they just kinda helped it along.
All in all it was a great book and has become a favorite that I will cherish in my collection. I am looking forward to reading her debut novel. I really enjoyed her writing. It was the perfect amount of flowery imagery, loveable characters that were soooooo easy to connect to, and a dark fairytalk/folklore that I cannot get enough of.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Suicide, Injury/injury detail, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, and Animal death
magellen's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.5
Hooray for a sophomore success! This book is much more cohesive than House of Salt and Sorrows- that said, it still takes a *long long* time to set things up. 3/8ths of the way in felt like the inciting moments, the plot finally showing up to the party.
Once it's in motion, the plot carries along on its own. The nebulous setting flounders through the front half, making it hard to tell just when and where we are, which winds up making it feel like The Village for a stretch. Though it lacks much flavor for voice, the moments of tension/horror are well built and sustained on a razor wire, satisfying to squirm over - there is a lot of blood in this book and talk of the smell of blood so heads up.
Overall, it's a stellar follow up that leans into the fear and reality more than the frothy illusion of S&S. It runs long, or slow, depending how you consider the word count load but it does eventually find uses for most of those words. With yet again a large cast, there's a lot of threads to tie at the end and only a handful of them stay knotted.
Once it's in motion, the plot carries along on its own. The nebulous setting flounders through the front half, making it hard to tell just when and where we are, which winds up making it feel like The Village for a stretch. Though it lacks much flavor for voice, the moments of tension/horror are well built and sustained on a razor wire, satisfying to squirm over - there is a lot of blood in this book and talk of the smell of blood so heads up.
Overall, it's a stellar follow up that leans into the fear and reality more than the frothy illusion of S&S. It runs long, or slow, depending how you consider the word count load but it does eventually find uses for most of those words. With yet again a large cast, there's a lot of threads to tie at the end and only a handful of them stay knotted.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Stalking, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Physical abuse, Violence, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Confinement, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Vomit, Toxic friendship, and Pregnancy
allycat21's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/injury detail, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, and Blood
lots of bees/insects