Reviews tagging 'Grief'

What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher

13 reviews

vixenreader's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative mysterious tense fast-paced

• 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

4.25

Despite being a smaller story than its predecessor, it is an atmospheric folk tale with loveable characters, an excellent exploration of PTSD, and lot of great world-building. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Torture, Gore, Medical content, War, Gun violence, Violence, Grief, Mental illness, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Death, and Body horror

Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, and Cursing

Minor: Sexual content

Be aware that there are instances of PTSD, violation of a grave, hallucinations, taking one’s breath, suffocation, insomnia and exhaustion, flashbacks to war, and colliding cultural practices.

wordsareworlds's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

A serviceable sequel to What Moves the Dead, but in the end nothing to write home about.

I found myself getting caught up in the way Kingfisher sets this in the fictional country of Gallacia (not to be confused with Galicia, which I did), but plops it down in the middle of real Europe with all its actual history. The myth at play in this book is of the moroi, so there are strong Romanian elements, but honestly the less you think about it the better off you'll be. Vibes only.

This book is also even more self aware than her other works, and I find that the tropes she's using work better when they're not being lampshaded by the character breaking the fourth wall to address the reader to do so. After about the 60% mark she commits to the tone and the entire book gets much better for it.

Overall, I enjoyed it fine but by far not my favorite of Kingfisher's horror works. I'd recommend it for people who want to dip their toe into fantasy horror without being too scared and can be assured of a good outcome.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War

Moderate: Chronic illness, Grief, and Death

librarymouse's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

There are so many banger lines in this book! I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book as the sequel to a retelling of a well known horror tale, but this book is so strong on its own! I love the continuation of Angus and Miss Potter's acquaintance, the new additions to the cast of cha acters, and the exploration of Easton's home country. I also really enjoyed the addition of situationally and indivi ually specific pronouns!

I just about cried in the library reading the scene with the horses when Hob's face slid off like a moth wing, sticking to Easton. That scenario and Easton's own terror was like an externalization of my actually real nightmares. Great writing, but that scene hurt so bad. But at least dream Hob didn't seem to be in pain as he crumbled.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Violence, War, Alcohol, Body horror, Medical content, Grief, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail

While there is no intentional cruelty, there is animal injury during a dream sequence in the last third of the book. More detail is listed in the spoiler part of my review.

cleverruhs's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Animal cruelty, and War

chelbelle122's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Gore, Grief, Murder, Violence, and War

reedandright's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, War, and Body horror

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Animal death, Death, and Grief

Minor: Rape, Alcohol, Gun violence, and Blood

justaddwater's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Grief, Alcohol, Murder, Death, Gore, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Mental illness, War, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Religious bigotry

maresuju's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Death

Moderate: Terminal illness, Confinement, and Grief

Minor: Gore, War, and Blood

booksthatburn's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

Alex is still unsettled by the events at the house of Usher, but is looking forward to a reunion with Miss Potter and a chance to show her their home in Gallacia. Trying to not let their newly-rooted fear of mushrooms damped their joy in the mycologist's company, Alex instead downplays rumors of a breath-stealing being who can be a woman or a swarm of moths. WHAT FEASTS AT NIGHT is a story of haunting and fear, of stolen breath and terrible dreams. It's an excellent sequel to WHAT MOVES THE DEAD, building on Alex's previous experiences but featuring an entirely new disturbance to their life. 

This doesn't specifically wrap up something left hanging, but it continues several of the relationships first developed in WHAT MOVES THE DEAD. The main storyline is new, and the breath-stealing threat is both introduced and resolved. Alex's narration somehow contains even more stories of their fondness for and exasperation with Gallacia as a place they don't want to inhabit but can't seem to leave behind. The actual narrative can stand on its own, and Alex conveys the relevant backstory succinctly enough, but certain elements of Alex's fear will resonate much more to a reader who is familiar with the events of the previous book. 

I enjoyed this and look forward to where Alex's frightful travels take them next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

Moderate: Grief, Medical content, Terminal illness, Gore, Blood, Xenophobia, War, and Death

gondorgirl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Gun violence, Violence, War, and Gore