You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Incredibly well-written, fast-paced, a thrilling read with particularly strong character work imo. Also a fresh take imo on monsters-as-allegory for marginalized groups, handled with a heap of nuance and posing more questions than answers. Deals with abuse of authority/police violence, community self-censoring, generational trauma, intersectionality, progress and backlash, and lots more.
Not to mention the casual queer rep in this book is particularly good and wide-ranging (trans, ace, etc) and we love to see it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Incest, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Grief
DNF@16%. Lots and lots of irrelevant backstory and telling us things that we could've inferred. An internet conspiracy theorist "might be a bit unstable"? You don't say?
I tried really hard to get into the book, but it just didn't capture my interest. I know this might sound a bit strange, but the copy I had was so stiff that it made my hands sore while reading. Might pick up the paperback to try again.
A bit of a mixture of American gods and the library at Mt Char. While that sentence alone would typically make onethink this would automatically be a 5 star review, something in this book just never quite grabbed me.
I fully allow that it is possible this book was a bit smarter than me. It is also possible some of what I've heard referred to as the "woke" elements in the story were handled a bit too heavy-handedly for my tastes. It's also entirely realistic that for whatever reason I just didn't care about some of the characters or more mundane elements in this story and that felt like a bit of a shame; perhaps on me.
Whatever the reason for my never quite getting absorbed into this very interesting idea of a book, I will definitely be keeping my eye on this author and any subsequent titles in this series. This is some high-falutin urban fantasy / magical realism and you don't see that nearly enough, I'm going to stick it out and see where this goes.
I fully allow that it is possible this book was a bit smarter than me. It is also possible some of what I've heard referred to as the "woke" elements in the story were handled a bit too heavy-handedly for my tastes. It's also entirely realistic that for whatever reason I just didn't care about some of the characters or more mundane elements in this story and that felt like a bit of a shame; perhaps on me.
Whatever the reason for my never quite getting absorbed into this very interesting idea of a book, I will definitely be keeping my eye on this author and any subsequent titles in this series. This is some high-falutin urban fantasy / magical realism and you don't see that nearly enough, I'm going to stick it out and see where this goes.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Maybe I was able to follow this better than some because I was listening instead of reading or maybe because I wasn't really trying to follow closely just go along for the ride, but either way it only left me waiting for the next installment then being sad because none of my libraries carry it! I can't imagine why. This seems like such a great start!
4.5 ⭐ rounded up for a strong ending that left me excited for the next book in the series. Intricate world building and a pantheon of characters that all feel purposeful despite their sheer number.
I read a couple of reviews prior to starting this book that warned against getting too caught up in trying to understand everything and remember everybody right from the start. The advice to just enjoy the story and trust the author to take you on a journey was spot on. Sometimes rolling with it and enjoying the ride makes the destination even better. Really impressive and creative overall.
I read a couple of reviews prior to starting this book that warned against getting too caught up in trying to understand everything and remember everybody right from the start. The advice to just enjoy the story and trust the author to take you on a journey was spot on. Sometimes rolling with it and enjoying the ride makes the destination even better. Really impressive and creative overall.