Scan barcode
kate_303'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: Death, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse and Sexual assault
thevillainschronicles's review against another edition
2.25
First and foremost, let me acknowledge my misstep in opting for the audiobook rendition of this novel. Unaware of the author's penchant for a disjointed and perplexing writing style, my choice significantly marred what could have been an optimal reading experience. My review is undeniably influenced by this regrettable decision, as the intricacies of the narrative were lost in translation, compounded by the unavailability of a Kindle or physical copy.
Moving on to the substance, I found the characters to be disappointingly one-dimensional. Despite the protagonist exuding individuality and strength notably because of her trauma, the lack of a substantial backstory left her feeling more like a sketch than a fully fleshed-out character. Peripheral figures seemed relegated to obscurity, their names fading into the background and making it an arduous task to keep track.
While the plot held a kernel of interest, my dissatisfaction with the character development leaves me contemplating future works from this author with a degree of skepticism. Though the story intrigues, the absence of depth in characters and the challenge of connecting with them leave me hesitant to venture further into this series.
Moderate: Child abuse and Rape
herelieshenry'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
I 100% recommend this to people who like slashers for both the gore/horrorfest and the sociological and psychological undertones as well as people who love horror media because it gives them control over the circumstances of their fear. The strongest aspect of this book is the perfect meeting of social commentary to a brutal slasher. The weakest is that I think the last chapter could be paced up quicker than it is to hold the momentum the last quarter picked up on a little more. I’m glad I finally gave this book a go after years of wanting to but not finding the time. If you can stomach gory writing and you’ve considered reading this book but haven’t yet, now is the perfect time to jump in before the final book in the trilogy comes out.
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Rape, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Gore, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Self harm and Forced institutionalization
Discussion of child sexual abuse; Portrayal of gentrificationuhhlexiconic'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
3.75
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Racism, Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, and Pregnancy
danimacuk'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
3.75
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Incest, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
Minor: Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, and Vomit
auteaandtales's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book was ultimately about trauma, both Jades’ personal trauma from her abusive family and others but also the trauma that came with being Native American. Jade uses horror as a way to cope with this, and it also makes her an unreliable narrator as we cannot tell what is real and what is Jades’ imagination. Unreliable narration, especially in mystery/thrillers, is one of my favourite things to read. It also has other themes of gentrification, which provided some extra commentary on the horrors persistent within the book.
I thought it all flowed together quite well, especially at the start and the end, I couldn’t wait to get back to the book and read more. The middle felt pretty slow and dragged, it felt like the pacing was off, but once it got back on track it was amazing again. However, the way it was written overall felt like a representation of the mental state of Jade as she struggles with what she has been through and copes with grief.
I recommend this a lot. It felt like a love letter to the horror genre and I’d especially recommend this to people who love the horror genre, and those who used the genre as a way to cope with their own real life monsters. I may give this a go via a different format, though. I listened to this via audio, so a lot went over my head and I didn’t feel like I could engage properly. Maybe both audio and written text, even. Either way, I’ll definitely be reading the rest of the series at some point.
Some quotes I liked:
“Horror is not a symptom, it’s a love affair”
“It’s perfectly natural for you to want to defend him. It’s the…it’s like you consider yourself an accomplice just because you were involved, but your involvement wasn’t complicit. Wasn’t voluntary. It never is, it can’t be. You don’t even know you can say no to a parent. Parents are good. Parents are shining and bright, they are the Gods of our world, so whatever they do can never be wrong. It must be your feelings that are wrong. Their mask is that they’re parents. Some of them are more, though. Some of them are monsters”
Graphic: Child abuse, Racism, and Cultural appropriation
cottagecorecabbage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Bullying and Cultural appropriation
emory's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Rape, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Racism and Vomit
tesshersh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Spoiler for my other complaint:
Also: cannot recommend the audio book enough, cara gee was amazing
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
HUGE trigger warnings - not just in the gore/violence you would associate with a thriller but for other content as well, please check content warnings before readingmelchncookies's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Child abuse and Fire/Fire injury