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bambooboy'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: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
theoldestbennetsister's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Racism, Vomit, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
squigleyline's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
juliatindell's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Gore, Self harm, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault
val_so_'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Rape, Sexual assault, Vomit, and Grief
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, and Classism
uv_sensibility's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Death, Gore, Self harm, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Vomit, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Racism, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation
elvish_presley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Self harm and Suicide attempt
Minor: Child abuse, Rape, and Vomit
bookcaptivated'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Mental illness, Racism, Sexism, Vomit, and Stalking
Minor: Sexual assault and Fire/Fire injury
alba_marie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It's October, meaning Halloween, meaning the spooky month. This means a certain theme of reading... witchy, monsters, murder mysteries, ghost stories, horror tales, slashers.
I don't watch slashers. I'm not sure I've seen a single one of the films Jade references in My Heart is a Chainsaw and many I've never even heard of. But I decided, why not try to read one?
It's still not my genre, I don't think, though I could be persuaded to read a second one in the future. I think my biggest problem with this book wasn't the violence or death or gore but rather the writing style of Stephen Graham Jones. I really struggled to get into the book. His style is very obtuse and imprecise, keeping the reader at what feels like an arm's distance. It takes a long time for the world building to visualise and even then, I don't feel like I was really immersed in Jade's world until the last 100 pages.
Honestly, the first 200+ pages were pretty slow. We're treated to Jade's wanderings and wonderings, her spurious and somewhat nonsensical actions, and her somewhat strange reasonings. Being in Jades mind was honestly exhausting and I spent much of the time confused, trying to connect random thoughts and events with something mentioned in past chapters. Jade is obsessed – and I do mean obsessed – with horror. More precisely, slashers. It's all she thinks about. It's all she talks about. It's all she writes about. It was tiring after a while...
But there is a reason behind her horror obsession, which comes to light in the end. In the meantime, we get to learn about her dysfunctional family, her deadbeat, abusive dad, her absent mother, her difficulties fitting in a school, her job as a school custodian, and of course, her recent obsession with Letha Mondragon, a new rich girl from the new settlement across the lake, Terra Nova.
It's a bit slow and very disjointed. Nothing flows. I think it's SGJ's writing style that simply does not flow naturally to me, but then again, this is my first book by him, so maybe he wrote it this way on purpose, to keep the reader feeling on the back foot, confused and slightly disoriented. Given the genre, that tracks.
The end though. THAT'S where the extra star came from. WHEW. The final 100 pages were nail-biting. I flew threw it, so stressed and finally, 100% immersed in what was happening. (Was I finally accustomed to the writing style, or did SGJ write it as such on purpose?) At one point, I realised I was sitting on the hall stairs in the middle of the corridor, literally biting my nail, reading it obsessively and had no idea how long I'd been sitting on the ground reading in such an usual (and uncomfortable) position! I was THAT into it, and THAT stressed.
The last chapter, the veeery end, I did not think was necessary Spoiler I don't think that the forest fire or marauding bear was necessary and I was a bit confused about some of the details Spoiler so if the Lake Witch was behind the slayings, what happened to Shooting Glasses? We saw Theo with the nail gun. So what was his role? Was he somehow part of it? I don't feel like that was properly explained, but maybe I missed something. I know it's the genre, but I do feel like the end, post-slashing was too quick. It just ended. What about the aftertimes? Once the smoke lifted? What happened next? But those slasher films never go there do they. Once the foe is vanquished, and the body count is, well, counted, the film is over. Credits role. Too abrupt for my style, but then again, I am no horror chick!
Anyway, to me, this was a good intro to the genre, but with such a distinct writing style, I don't know if I'd recommend it to everyone.
TW: Blood, guts and gore.
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail