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pizzabrot's review against another edition
4.0
WHAT A FANTASTIC BOOK! Finally one that lives up to its absolutely gorgeous cover! Expect an unnecessary cheesy love-letter to this novel because I'm in awe right now and ready to scream it out loud TO THE WHOLE WORLD!
I honestly thought this would take me much longer to read, and decided to choose it as my Halloween book (if that's not a Halloween cover, I don't know what is). Little did I know that it would barely take me two days of reading! I am in absolute love, and I hate that no matter what I'm going to write next, there really is no way I can do this book justice. No fucking way. First of all, if I ever were to write a book (never going to happen but let's pretend I have all these amazing ideas crispy and ready for publishing), I hope I'm as good, no, fantastic at conveying a mystical atmosphere as Deirdre Sullivan. Never have I read a book that has intended to be as creepy as possible and managed to actually pull it off at the same time. Too often I end up underwhelmed, and I already gave up on ever getting spooked out about anything (because that's how cool and brave I am. The girl who can't even get on ghost trains without getting close to panic attacks). And the characters felt so REAL! In the best way, not the way where you'd roll your eyes and think, real life-people suck enough as they are, I don't need more of them in my leisure material as well. They were funny, and flawed, and complicated, and they had too many secrets and not enough at the same time. Amazing! If they acted stupidly, then for a very good reason! Which is more than can be said about other fictional characters...Not gonna say names here because I really want to keep this review within the character limit (what an amazingly terrible pun). I did have my problems with the ending, admittedly; it felt messy and kinda rushed, but I like how the author didn't decide to go for a shocking plot twist there, but rather let it develop all organically throughout the whole book. Which was so much better than destroying it all just for the sake of having a plot twist to make your book seem cooler. Even though there were times I wished for one, I'm going to give you that. But I made my peace with it; it's a risky, but very mature decision for a thriller (not sure this even is a thriller, but not sure what else it is) and after thinking about it, I appreciate it so much for how authentic it makes it feel. It just fits the novel like a glove, and that's the most important thing for the coming-up winter. And oh my god, speaking of important things! The whole...let's call it incident, with cute little kitten Button! It was so dark! Tell me one YA novel that is similarly dark (not even THG is, since I can deal way better with dead children than...this. I'm telling you, THIS was soooo much worse!) and you know what, I could barely look at the page and whoever has read the book knows exactly which page I'm talking about, inwardly screaming "No...No...NO!!!!" the whole time, and yet, it was all so...believable. Almost horrible in its justifiability! AND I HATE AND LOVE THE AUTHOR FOR MANAGING THIS. I have to say that I didn't understand every part of the ending - maybe I'm just too stupid, but I actually feel like that was very much intentional (the mystery part, not my being stupid). I wouldn't be surprised if this book is going to have a sequel, since the whole storyline around their father has so much potential left and I'm not 100% sure on what happened and why. Plus I'd love to read more about the village and its more than weird and quirky habitants, who somehow all managed to feel real from the very second they were introduced! And to manage to pull that off given that those very habitants include the incest-supporting Collinses is a master stroke in its own way. Furthermore, I absolutely loved the magical realism-elements in this book. You know, I'm not getting tired of dishing Deborah Harkness, and will continue to do so for a long time, but this time (not only this time, actually) for a very good reason! There's also a magic/witch storyline in this book, and Deborah Harkness really should take notes because thats how you handle witches and magic. Simply, but realistically, leaving a healthy dose of mystery! (and rhyming in the process) I could believe everything I was being told because it sounded so damn genuine! (telling you, if the flat earthers wrote like that they'd probably get more support for their asinine theory) And the author didn't do it by giving bunches of unnecessary information about alchemy that no one fucking cares about; but by letting it combine with the flow of the storyline, never giving too much away, but handing out just enough explanations for you to get a medium-ish grasp of what's going on. It's actually an insane feat that the author managed to pull this off, because at first it's all very...well, non-magicky, but this part gets introduced in such an ingenious way that you just roll with it. You never ask yourself "Why" or "Did we really need this", you just accept it because there really is no reason not to. Does everything make sense? Absolutely not! Did I ask myself why the village acted the way they did? Oh hell yes. Did I care about any of that? NOPE! Because that's how good it is written. You just don't care. Because even though what people in this novel do and did may not make sense in a stereotypical manner, it all fits in this really REALLY fucked-up way. Because people aren't perfect, people are illogical, and stupid, and should really use their brain more. And unlike in other books, the stupidity just makes sense (ha, something does make sense after all) in this case. It's strange - and that's exactly what makes it brilliant! Brilliantly strange. Theme-wise, this novel is a lot about self-exploration, and even though that's not necessarily one of my favourite topics, it was handled so damn well. Better than in most YA books I've read, where it always feels so incredibly forced, dull and uninspired. This book gave off insane "Bone Gap" vibes, which, if you've read my reviews over time, is one of my all-time favourite books and another one that is heavy on the magic realism with this healthy dose of...authenticity and weirdness thrown into it And PPD was so god-damn funny too! Sometimes it made me laugh out loud like a crazy person on a bus full of people, but I have no regrets. That was exactly my type of humor, and after having read the dullest books ever (All Souls trilogy, I'll hate you forever) I really needed a bit of dark fun in my literary life. And the relationships in this book! I especially loved the chemistry between both sisters and the author for not going the "They are complete opposites and must therefore hate each other"-route, but pretty much every relationship was handled SO well and realistically. The whole resolution with Oona? Perfect. Just thank you for this. It's actually impressive how the author managed to convey it all so amazingly, given that the book isn't exactly long, and so full of all kinds of events at the same time (some of them really, unbelievably horrible and gaspworthy) - and nothing suffers, neither plot, nor the atmosphere (and the author uses such beautiful and mystified language in describing it!!), nor any of the relationships. Especially not the relationships! Yes, some of them naturally got the short straw, and yet you still got a good enough sip, err grasp of the whole dynamics and sometimes that (not love) is all you need. I liked how not everything and everyone got a happy ending, because after all, that's just what life is: you win and you lose some. And yes, there was so much lost, but still so much hope left at the same time. Which is impressive, given the incredibly gruesome things that happen in this book, one more stomach-turning than the other. But it was never written in a gory or sensational way like in those 08/15 thrillers that all want to top each other in the oh-so-terrible-but-actually-totally-uninspired cruelty of their murders (yawn...it's fun for a time, but gets very old really soon); instead, the descriptions were very blunt and matter-of-fact, sparse and leaving a lot of room for imagination, and that made everything seem even more terrible. So yes, the ending was neither a classically good or bad one; rather, there's this fabulous (and horribly underestimated) grey zone that really not enough authors make use of but that fortunately enough got featured heavily enough here. Still, as I said, for me personally, there was something missing in the ending, which is why the book doesn't get its full five stars from me - but I can't put my hand on it, and maybe I'm just not super-satisfied because the ending may have been even too ambiguous and weird for my liking. Plus all those unanswered questions...But that's probably just on me though and really doesn't matter too much. I should just start to become even weirder instead, in order to be then able to appreciate it fully. And who cares about the ending if the other 80% were so good? The book managed to completely draw me in, and unsurprisingly I found myself being completely unwilling as well as unable to put it down until the very end (am I imagening it or do I write this sentence in every review of the books I enjoyed...) It's simply that amazing! I almost felt witched myself, because I feel like the book has made such an impact on me. I blame it all on the afore-mentioned, absolutely marvelous writing style. So simple, and yet so effective! And so wonderfully strange and arcane! Absolute proof that you don't need overly complicated, pretentiously-poetic flowery language or endless descriptions about surroundings no one fucking cares about, just because the author doesn't have any other means to pull it off. Deirdre Sullivan makes it all seem so...easy. She never pretends that her characters are anything other than they are, teenagers (but still manages to have the perfect amount of parody thrown in without it ever breaking the flow of the novel; cue to Catlin's outbreak over how her parents don't understand her forbidden and very intense love for some allegedly dangerous weirdo). I'm sure that I'll keep thinking about the book for a long time and I already know that this is perfect reread-material. One of those books that you can read a thousand times probably and that will still be amazing. Oh god, what an embarrassing and chaotic love-letter this review is. But this book deserves it! And although it pains me deeply and very lividly how many unanswered questions there are in this book, I (grumpily) understand that they are an intentional and probably important part of this novel. Or something. And I'm not quite ready to sacrifice a fox to get my answers yet. I think I'm good for now...And so is this novel, quite obviously!
PS: Unfortunately, so isn't the title. "Perfectly Preventable Deaths"? Really? What's that supposed to have to do with the book? Like...What? Why? Or....Wait! Because the deaths could've been prevented in the end? It does sound like sarcasm though. Frankly, I am confused, and I don't like it. But as long as I like everything else, I'm going to leave that grumpiness at the door right now!
PS2: This is what I call a typical Kathi-book. A typical Kathi book is: extremely weird, full of quirky yet loveable characters, heavy on the dialogue and dark humor, very fucked-up and awwwww-able (cruising perfectly between the two), questioning your sanity in the best way, and last but not least: very magically realistic! Usually an acquired taste, but once acquired, really tasty. Always leaving you hungry for more though :( Poor next course...err book.
PS3: Also, will I ever pay attention to what fucking (wrong!) bus I'm getting into while editing my review?! Why am I like this.
I honestly thought this would take me much longer to read, and decided to choose it as my Halloween book (if that's not a Halloween cover, I don't know what is). Little did I know that it would barely take me two days of reading! I am in absolute love, and I hate that no matter what I'm going to write next, there really is no way I can do this book justice. No fucking way. First of all, if I ever were to write a book (never going to happen but let's pretend I have all these amazing ideas crispy and ready for publishing), I hope I'm as good, no, fantastic at conveying a mystical atmosphere as Deirdre Sullivan. Never have I read a book that has intended to be as creepy as possible and managed to actually pull it off at the same time. Too often I end up underwhelmed, and I already gave up on ever getting spooked out about anything (because that's how cool and brave I am. The girl who can't even get on ghost trains without getting close to panic attacks). And the characters felt so REAL! In the best way, not the way where you'd roll your eyes and think, real life-people suck enough as they are, I don't need more of them in my leisure material as well. They were funny, and flawed, and complicated, and they had too many secrets and not enough at the same time. Amazing! If they acted stupidly, then for a very good reason! Which is more than can be said about other fictional characters...Not gonna say names here because I really want to keep this review within the character limit (what an amazingly terrible pun). I did have my problems with the ending, admittedly; it felt messy and kinda rushed, but I like how the author didn't decide to go for a shocking plot twist there, but rather let it develop all organically throughout the whole book. Which was so much better than destroying it all just for the sake of having a plot twist to make your book seem cooler. Even though there were times I wished for one, I'm going to give you that. But I made my peace with it; it's a risky, but very mature decision for a thriller (not sure this even is a thriller, but not sure what else it is) and after thinking about it, I appreciate it so much for how authentic it makes it feel. It just fits the novel like a glove, and that's the most important thing for the coming-up winter. And oh my god, speaking of important things! The whole...let's call it incident, with cute little kitten Button! It was so dark! Tell me one YA novel that is similarly dark (not even THG is, since I can deal way better with dead children than...this. I'm telling you, THIS was soooo much worse!) and you know what, I could barely look at the page and whoever has read the book knows exactly which page I'm talking about, inwardly screaming "No...No...NO!!!!" the whole time, and yet, it was all so...believable. Almost horrible in its justifiability! AND I HATE AND LOVE THE AUTHOR FOR MANAGING THIS. I have to say that I didn't understand every part of the ending - maybe I'm just too stupid, but I actually feel like that was very much intentional (the mystery part, not my being stupid). I wouldn't be surprised if this book is going to have a sequel, since the whole storyline around their father has so much potential left and I'm not 100% sure on what happened and why. Plus I'd love to read more about the village and its more than weird and quirky habitants, who somehow all managed to feel real from the very second they were introduced! And to manage to pull that off given that those very habitants include the incest-supporting Collinses is a master stroke in its own way. Furthermore, I absolutely loved the magical realism-elements in this book. You know, I'm not getting tired of dishing Deborah Harkness, and will continue to do so for a long time, but this time (not only this time, actually) for a very good reason! There's also a magic/witch storyline in this book, and Deborah Harkness really should take notes because thats how you handle witches and magic. Simply, but realistically, leaving a healthy dose of mystery! (and rhyming in the process) I could believe everything I was being told because it sounded so damn genuine! (telling you, if the flat earthers wrote like that they'd probably get more support for their asinine theory) And the author didn't do it by giving bunches of unnecessary information about alchemy that no one fucking cares about; but by letting it combine with the flow of the storyline, never giving too much away, but handing out just enough explanations for you to get a medium-ish grasp of what's going on. It's actually an insane feat that the author managed to pull this off, because at first it's all very...well, non-magicky, but this part gets introduced in such an ingenious way that you just roll with it. You never ask yourself "Why" or "Did we really need this", you just accept it because there really is no reason not to. Does everything make sense? Absolutely not! Did I ask myself why the village acted the way they did? Oh hell yes. Did I care about any of that? NOPE! Because that's how good it is written. You just don't care. Because even though what people in this novel do and did may not make sense in a stereotypical manner, it all fits in this really REALLY fucked-up way. Because people aren't perfect, people are illogical, and stupid, and should really use their brain more. And unlike in other books, the stupidity just makes sense (ha, something does make sense after all) in this case. It's strange - and that's exactly what makes it brilliant! Brilliantly strange. Theme-wise, this novel is a lot about self-exploration, and even though that's not necessarily one of my favourite topics, it was handled so damn well. Better than in most YA books I've read, where it always feels so incredibly forced, dull and uninspired. This book gave off insane "Bone Gap" vibes, which, if you've read my reviews over time, is one of my all-time favourite books and another one that is heavy on the magic realism with this healthy dose of...authenticity and weirdness thrown into it And PPD was so god-damn funny too! Sometimes it made me laugh out loud like a crazy person on a bus full of people, but I have no regrets. That was exactly my type of humor, and after having read the dullest books ever (All Souls trilogy, I'll hate you forever) I really needed a bit of dark fun in my literary life. And the relationships in this book! I especially loved the chemistry between both sisters and the author for not going the "They are complete opposites and must therefore hate each other"-route, but pretty much every relationship was handled SO well and realistically. The whole resolution with Oona? Perfect. Just thank you for this. It's actually impressive how the author managed to convey it all so amazingly, given that the book isn't exactly long, and so full of all kinds of events at the same time (some of them really, unbelievably horrible and gaspworthy) - and nothing suffers, neither plot, nor the atmosphere (and the author uses such beautiful and mystified language in describing it!!), nor any of the relationships. Especially not the relationships! Yes, some of them naturally got the short straw, and yet you still got a good enough sip, err grasp of the whole dynamics and sometimes that (not love) is all you need. I liked how not everything and everyone got a happy ending, because after all, that's just what life is: you win and you lose some. And yes, there was so much lost, but still so much hope left at the same time. Which is impressive, given the incredibly gruesome things that happen in this book, one more stomach-turning than the other. But it was never written in a gory or sensational way like in those 08/15 thrillers that all want to top each other in the oh-so-terrible-but-actually-totally-uninspired cruelty of their murders (yawn...it's fun for a time, but gets very old really soon); instead, the descriptions were very blunt and matter-of-fact, sparse and leaving a lot of room for imagination, and that made everything seem even more terrible. So yes, the ending was neither a classically good or bad one; rather, there's this fabulous (and horribly underestimated) grey zone that really not enough authors make use of but that fortunately enough got featured heavily enough here. Still, as I said, for me personally, there was something missing in the ending, which is why the book doesn't get its full five stars from me - but I can't put my hand on it, and maybe I'm just not super-satisfied because the ending may have been even too ambiguous and weird for my liking. Plus all those unanswered questions...But that's probably just on me though and really doesn't matter too much. I should just start to become even weirder instead, in order to be then able to appreciate it fully. And who cares about the ending if the other 80% were so good? The book managed to completely draw me in, and unsurprisingly I found myself being completely unwilling as well as unable to put it down until the very end (am I imagening it or do I write this sentence in every review of the books I enjoyed...) It's simply that amazing! I almost felt witched myself, because I feel like the book has made such an impact on me. I blame it all on the afore-mentioned, absolutely marvelous writing style. So simple, and yet so effective! And so wonderfully strange and arcane! Absolute proof that you don't need overly complicated, pretentiously-poetic flowery language or endless descriptions about surroundings no one fucking cares about, just because the author doesn't have any other means to pull it off. Deirdre Sullivan makes it all seem so...easy. She never pretends that her characters are anything other than they are, teenagers (but still manages to have the perfect amount of parody thrown in without it ever breaking the flow of the novel; cue to Catlin's outbreak over how her parents don't understand her forbidden and very intense love for some allegedly dangerous weirdo). I'm sure that I'll keep thinking about the book for a long time and I already know that this is perfect reread-material. One of those books that you can read a thousand times probably and that will still be amazing. Oh god, what an embarrassing and chaotic love-letter this review is. But this book deserves it! And although it pains me deeply and very lividly how many unanswered questions there are in this book, I (grumpily) understand that they are an intentional and probably important part of this novel. Or something. And I'm not quite ready to sacrifice a fox to get my answers yet. I think I'm good for now...And so is this novel, quite obviously!
PS: Unfortunately, so isn't the title. "Perfectly Preventable Deaths"? Really? What's that supposed to have to do with the book? Like...What? Why? Or....Wait! Because the deaths could've been prevented in the end? It does sound like sarcasm though. Frankly, I am confused, and I don't like it. But as long as I like everything else, I'm going to leave that grumpiness at the door right now!
PS2: This is what I call a typical Kathi-book. A typical Kathi book is: extremely weird, full of quirky yet loveable characters, heavy on the dialogue and dark humor, very fucked-up and awwwww-able (cruising perfectly between the two), questioning your sanity in the best way, and last but not least: very magically realistic! Usually an acquired taste, but once acquired, really tasty. Always leaving you hungry for more though :( Poor next course...err book.
PS3: Also, will I ever pay attention to what fucking (wrong!) bus I'm getting into while editing my review?! Why am I like this.
lillii's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
3.5
shannen_m's review against another edition
5.0
This book came into my house and my dreams and said "I'm basically a novelisation of the moodboard of all your favourite things, you love me," and I said "I do, I do love you."
The trajectory of it felt like a growing thing - it got deeper and deeper as it went on, the magic roots curled up, got stronger. It's a slow slide into something ancient and unspeakably cool. The balance was there though, every time it delved into the speculative elements there's an abrupt tug back to the mundane - something funny or aggressively normal - but any time you could be fooled into thinking it was a contemp fic YA fish out of water story, you turn the corner into a crow's eye, or you find a fistful of salt in your pocket. It's designed to keep you unsteady, but in a way that gave an overall impression of balance. It's gorgeous.
The plant chapter headings were a delightful touch, the Dryrish humour is so strong and I liked how it was spread equally between dialogue and narration, it just made everything so cohesive and authentic. Maddy spending the whole book ripping the absolute piss out of Lon was a highlight - there aren't enough books for YA audiences where the carefully curated mysterious older boy gets exposed like this, where his lingering at the school and single minded focus is shown to be as predatory as it is. Catlin's absorption was such an understated horror element but it really hits hard, how easily it stands up without the magic, perfectly symmetrical along the fold line of what is possible and what is imagined.
I love my queer witch child, she's brilliant.
It was dark, and deep, brutally feminine - loved it. Loved it, loved it, loved it.
The trajectory of it felt like a growing thing - it got deeper and deeper as it went on, the magic roots curled up, got stronger. It's a slow slide into something ancient and unspeakably cool. The balance was there though, every time it delved into the speculative elements there's an abrupt tug back to the mundane - something funny or aggressively normal - but any time you could be fooled into thinking it was a contemp fic YA fish out of water story, you turn the corner into a crow's eye, or you find a fistful of salt in your pocket. It's designed to keep you unsteady, but in a way that gave an overall impression of balance. It's gorgeous.
The plant chapter headings were a delightful touch, the Dryrish humour is so strong and I liked how it was spread equally between dialogue and narration, it just made everything so cohesive and authentic. Maddy spending the whole book ripping the absolute piss out of Lon was a highlight - there aren't enough books for YA audiences where the carefully curated mysterious older boy gets exposed like this, where his lingering at the school and single minded focus is shown to be as predatory as it is. Catlin's absorption was such an understated horror element but it really hits hard, how easily it stands up without the magic, perfectly symmetrical along the fold line of what is possible and what is imagined.
I love my queer witch child, she's brilliant.
It was dark, and deep, brutally feminine - loved it. Loved it, loved it, loved it.
celine's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
this book is so weird omg
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Animal cruelty, Child death, Animal death, Body horror, and Child abuse
Moderate: Cannibalism, Death, Blood, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
nat1577's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars. Unfortunately this book just wasn't like how I thought it would be. As a lot of people have mentioned, the story really drags on for the first 200 pages or so, then reaches a climax that gets REALLY dark, and then goes back to being fairly uneventful for the last chapter or so. The supposed magic abilities of the main character aren't really explored until the end, and even then, everything is left so vague. This was possibly a stylistic choice by the author, but it just didn't work for me.
Some of the main issues I had:
- Catlin and Maddy's relationship is supposed to be a focal point of the novel, but I just wasn't buying that they had a good relationship in the first place. Catlin was just so insufferable. When it initially became apparent that something was off about Lon, I immediately thought he had put some sort of spell on her to make her act that way. But no, she really was just that terrible - seriously, some of the things she says, and the way she acts prior to Lon revealing his true nature is just horrible. Catlin after everything had gone down with Lon - now that was the character I'd been wanting to see for the majority of the story. Unfortunately, that characterisation came out of nowhere, and Catlin seemed almost too level headed for the amount of horrific trauma she had just undergone.
- The setting was seriously underutilised. Maddy now lives in a huge castle? Doesn't matter, because the castle doesn't factor into the story at all. Maddy is now apart of this strange little village? Once again, doesn't matter, because this setting isn't explored at all. The novel could have taken place anywhere else. The characters seem like nothing more than props, because they aren't fleshed out at all. Even Oona, Maddy's love interest, doesn't really seem like a fully fleshed out character.
- Speaking of the village, what was the point of introducing the idea of magic being an integral part of it, and then never actually exploring this idea? They even mention that the Collinses are shapeshifters, and yet, other than a very brief allusion to this, there is literally no point in this being here since it's never explored beyond this one line mention.
- What. Is going on. With Lon. Seriously, what IS he? Why is he killing people? How is he immortal? What's the point to any of this? Lon is supposed to be the big bad of the novel, and yet everything he does essentially happens off screen.
- The animal abuse is seriously off putting, especially because it's so unnecessary. The author wanted to show how devoted Maddy was to her sister? Then, have Mamo interrupt the sacrifice BEFORE she stabbed the cat. Seeing as the cat escaped and survived anyway, we really didn't need the graphic torture scene.
- The book just feels like an origin story that ended prematurely. Like, imagine Batman Begins, but it ends right after Bruce becomes Batman. This story just needed a lot more to it - otherwise, the magical elements could have easily been scrapped, and this could've just been a story about two twins growing apart, one exploring her sexuality and ability to forge a life and friendships on her own, her concern about her sibling potentially being in an abusive relationship and the ramifications of that - and it probably would've been a much better story.
That being said, a lot of people have clearly enjoyed this novel considering some of the ratings here, so while it didn't work for me, it did for others. And I do think that the author had a lovely writing style.
Some of the main issues I had:
- Catlin and Maddy's relationship is supposed to be a focal point of the novel, but I just wasn't buying that they had a good relationship in the first place. Catlin was just so insufferable. When it initially became apparent that something was off about Lon, I immediately thought he had put some sort of spell on her to make her act that way. But no, she really was just that terrible - seriously, some of the things she says, and the way she acts prior to Lon revealing his true nature is just horrible. Catlin after everything had gone down with Lon - now that was the character I'd been wanting to see for the majority of the story. Unfortunately, that characterisation came out of nowhere, and Catlin seemed almost too level headed for the amount of horrific trauma she had just undergone.
- The setting was seriously underutilised. Maddy now lives in a huge castle? Doesn't matter, because the castle doesn't factor into the story at all. Maddy is now apart of this strange little village? Once again, doesn't matter, because this setting isn't explored at all. The novel could have taken place anywhere else. The characters seem like nothing more than props, because they aren't fleshed out at all. Even Oona, Maddy's love interest, doesn't really seem like a fully fleshed out character.
- Speaking of the village, what was the point of introducing the idea of magic being an integral part of it, and then never actually exploring this idea? They even mention that the Collinses are shapeshifters, and yet, other than a very brief allusion to this, there is literally no point in this being here since it's never explored beyond this one line mention.
- What. Is going on. With Lon. Seriously, what IS he? Why is he killing people? How is he immortal? What's the point to any of this? Lon is supposed to be the big bad of the novel, and yet everything he does essentially happens off screen.
- The animal abuse is seriously off putting, especially because it's so unnecessary. The author wanted to show how devoted Maddy was to her sister? Then, have Mamo interrupt the sacrifice BEFORE she stabbed the cat. Seeing as the cat escaped and survived anyway, we really didn't need the graphic torture scene.
- The book just feels like an origin story that ended prematurely. Like, imagine Batman Begins, but it ends right after Bruce becomes Batman. This story just needed a lot more to it - otherwise, the magical elements could have easily been scrapped, and this could've just been a story about two twins growing apart, one exploring her sexuality and ability to forge a life and friendships on her own, her concern about her sibling potentially being in an abusive relationship and the ramifications of that - and it probably would've been a much better story.
That being said, a lot of people have clearly enjoyed this novel considering some of the ratings here, so while it didn't work for me, it did for others. And I do think that the author had a lovely writing style.
manolitagafotas's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
alexiasophii's review against another edition
1.0
DAFUQ DID I READ?!?!
This book is the perfect example of why books SHOULD have trigger warnings. If I knew I would be reading about animal sacrifice, graphic description of animal abuse, graphic description of cannibalism, and others I WOULD NOT HAVE READ THIS.
Honestly, it's get one star for the cover only. The rest of book was slow, filled with monologues (not gonna lie, skipped some of them), parents who have zero attention to their fucking kids, teachers who are absent to the concept of an ADULT GROOMING CHILDREN, among other things. And lets not talk about the second half of the book that is filled with gore description, stuff that just comes out of NOWHERE and horrible descriptions of animal abuse and mutilation. Just NO!!
This book is the perfect example of why books SHOULD have trigger warnings. If I knew I would be reading about animal sacrifice, graphic description of animal abuse, graphic description of cannibalism, and others I WOULD NOT HAVE READ THIS.
Honestly, it's get one star for the cover only. The rest of book was slow, filled with monologues (not gonna lie, skipped some of them), parents who have zero attention to their fucking kids, teachers who are absent to the concept of an ADULT GROOMING CHILDREN, among other things. And lets not talk about the second half of the book that is filled with gore description, stuff that just comes out of NOWHERE and horrible descriptions of animal abuse and mutilation. Just NO!!
quoth_chloe's review
3.0
My Review-
I really liked the main character Madeline, she was a strong character who made some difficult decisions throughout this book. She had a lot of conflict going on with her personal, romantic life as well as her relationships with her family. It was interesting to see her cope with the things that were thrown at her and how she dealt with all the strange information she learned.
Catlin, her twin sister, was a completely different story. I could not stand her, she was so toxic. Even right at the beginning of the book she was so catty. She clearly cares for her sister and throughout the book she does worry for her and support her, there are just a few comments and things she does that hurt Madelin and Catlin could not see that. She was also very overly sexual in the beginning of the book, it came on a bit strong. I am all about expressing sexuality but I don't know, it was a lot for the beginning of the book. Throughout the book it was completely fine and it didn't bother me, it was just the first couple of chapters.
Their family is interesting, their mum tries to be supportive of the girls and wants to do what's best for them but she doesn't. She doesn't understand Madelin and the things she does and instead of trying to help her and talk to her about it, just gets angry and tells her to stop. I feel like this is something a lot of people will be able to relate to, many people have parents or family members that don't understand their mental health struggles and its represented well in this book. Their new stepfather is another interesting character the entire way through the book you don't know how to feel about him, he is a really nice person who is so in love with their mum but there is obviously something going on. His father wasn't a nice person and you slowly learn more about this throughout the story.
Mamo was one of my favourite characters, you genuinely have no idea what she is doing most of the time and she's scary. You have no idea if you can trust her or not or if she is a good person or is up to no good. I really liked the mystery surrounding her and I liked her more and more throughout the book. I just wish there were a few more answers surrounding certain things she may or may not do, you never find out what's going on so hopefully there is a sequel.
The other characters throughout this, the people from the town were also strange. They were distant and closed off, which was to be expected of such a small town. I just feel that there wasn't enough information about them. you heard all of these rumours about this notorious family and then never actually interacted with them properly? I don't think the town was as fleshed out as I would have hoped.
I really liked the setting, the castle where the girls lived was amazing and the town and the scenery was really well detailed. It felt like I was there, there were parts in this book where I felt cold, it was really immersive in some parts which I really enjoyed. The writing style was really lyrical, I really enjoyed it, it was perfect for this book.
I loved the natural aspect of this book, I loved the facts about plants and being a plant lover myself, I really enjoyed reading about them.
There were a couple of things I disliked about this book, the main problem I had was that I knew almost nothing about the girls who had previously been murdered in the town and I felt like I couldn't really feel anything about it as there wasn't enough information. The entire time the characters are talking about how they are reading about them and researching them and they really grow a connection to them and as a reader I felt I missed out on that. I just wish there was a little more information about the girls and who they really were. I do also understand that the town keeps it pretty quiet but if Madelin or Catlin are reading about I don't understand why the reader couldn't have learnt something. I don't care about learning more about the deaths, I just wanted to be able to care about the girls.
The other huge problem I had was the amount of animal abuse and dead animals there were throughout this book. There was something that Madelin does near the end that nearly made me DNF this whole book. I know that animal death happens and the natural ones that happen in this book, whilst uncomfortable, I could deal with. But I could not handle the abused and tortured animals. Especially what Madelin does at the end, I felt it was an unnecessary thing to have in the book, it left an animal mutilated and I DO NOT want to read about that, especially in that much detail.
Overall, this book was an incredibly descriptive and unique read and I feel that a lot of people are going to absolutely love this. If you love dark, atmospheric books then this is for you.
My rating- 3/5 stars
UK Release Date- May 30th 2019
I really liked the main character Madeline, she was a strong character who made some difficult decisions throughout this book. She had a lot of conflict going on with her personal, romantic life as well as her relationships with her family. It was interesting to see her cope with the things that were thrown at her and how she dealt with all the strange information she learned.
Catlin, her twin sister, was a completely different story. I could not stand her, she was so toxic. Even right at the beginning of the book she was so catty. She clearly cares for her sister and throughout the book she does worry for her and support her, there are just a few comments and things she does that hurt Madelin and Catlin could not see that. She was also very overly sexual in the beginning of the book, it came on a bit strong. I am all about expressing sexuality but I don't know, it was a lot for the beginning of the book. Throughout the book it was completely fine and it didn't bother me, it was just the first couple of chapters.
Their family is interesting, their mum tries to be supportive of the girls and wants to do what's best for them but she doesn't. She doesn't understand Madelin and the things she does and instead of trying to help her and talk to her about it, just gets angry and tells her to stop. I feel like this is something a lot of people will be able to relate to, many people have parents or family members that don't understand their mental health struggles and its represented well in this book. Their new stepfather is another interesting character the entire way through the book you don't know how to feel about him, he is a really nice person who is so in love with their mum but there is obviously something going on. His father wasn't a nice person and you slowly learn more about this throughout the story.
Mamo was one of my favourite characters, you genuinely have no idea what she is doing most of the time and she's scary. You have no idea if you can trust her or not or if she is a good person or is up to no good. I really liked the mystery surrounding her and I liked her more and more throughout the book. I just wish there were a few more answers surrounding certain things she may or may not do, you never find out what's going on so hopefully there is a sequel.
The other characters throughout this, the people from the town were also strange. They were distant and closed off, which was to be expected of such a small town. I just feel that there wasn't enough information about them. you heard all of these rumours about this notorious family and then never actually interacted with them properly? I don't think the town was as fleshed out as I would have hoped.
I really liked the setting, the castle where the girls lived was amazing and the town and the scenery was really well detailed. It felt like I was there, there were parts in this book where I felt cold, it was really immersive in some parts which I really enjoyed. The writing style was really lyrical, I really enjoyed it, it was perfect for this book.
I loved the natural aspect of this book, I loved the facts about plants and being a plant lover myself, I really enjoyed reading about them.
There were a couple of things I disliked about this book, the main problem I had was that I knew almost nothing about the girls who had previously been murdered in the town and I felt like I couldn't really feel anything about it as there wasn't enough information. The entire time the characters are talking about how they are reading about them and researching them and they really grow a connection to them and as a reader I felt I missed out on that. I just wish there was a little more information about the girls and who they really were. I do also understand that the town keeps it pretty quiet but if Madelin or Catlin are reading about I don't understand why the reader couldn't have learnt something. I don't care about learning more about the deaths, I just wanted to be able to care about the girls.
The other huge problem I had was the amount of animal abuse and dead animals there were throughout this book. There was something that Madelin does near the end that nearly made me DNF this whole book. I know that animal death happens and the natural ones that happen in this book, whilst uncomfortable, I could deal with. But I could not handle the abused and tortured animals. Especially what Madelin does at the end, I felt it was an unnecessary thing to have in the book, it left an animal mutilated and I DO NOT want to read about that, especially in that much detail.
Overall, this book was an incredibly descriptive and unique read and I feel that a lot of people are going to absolutely love this. If you love dark, atmospheric books then this is for you.
My rating- 3/5 stars
UK Release Date- May 30th 2019