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honeywine's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I very much wanted to like this book. I like when authors write about things they’re passionate about and I love learning niche topics (such as experimental Canadian film in Toronto).
The author appears very knowledgeable about her niche which I would usually enjoy. Unfortunately, there are things she writes of (how stars work, how gravity works, how hospitals work), she appears to just write whatever she fancies or whatever fits the plot rather than something that lives in the truth. A quick google would have answered her areas of less expertise (such as finding out that migraine prevention pills exist or that the sun will not become a black hole) well enough for this novel but that didn’t seem to happen. Therefore, I can’t trust the history of film in this book as being informative either.
There are plenty of spots in the book that I was invested in, and the horror story itself is great. When the story got going, I got excited and I felt as though the time I invested learning in depth about fictional film buildings (and their layouts and their histories and where they get their funding and the process to apply for a grant) was paying off. And then I’d be thrown off by lecture material and information I personally knew was incorrect.
Also a warning: casual transphobia and homophobia a couple times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Cultural appropriation, Grief, Stalking, Medical trauma, and Mental illness
Moderate: Homophobia, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Child abuse, and Sexism
Minor: Infidelity
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