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amandall's review against another edition
Graphic, violate death
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Body horror, Physical abuse, Blood, Gore, Murder, and Kidnapping
junejunejulyjuly's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Abandonment, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Chronic illness, Murder, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Death, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Sexual violence, Suicide, Grief, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Rape, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and War
henrygravesprince's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
In the interest of full disclosure, this review is specifically regarding a DRC copy of the book from Net Galley, so while I imagine this eBook was pretty close to finalized, some details may have been changed between my copy and the official release.
I would recommend this book to people with an interest in fresh takes on the vampire novel or anyone with an interest in the Death Positivity movement. It has a lot of interesting perspectives on life, death, and the choice to live or die, and if someone isn’t squeamish to those discussions, I definitely think this is a book worth picking up. The strongest aspect at play is the author’s stellar use of themes and imagery. The weakest is, in my opinion, the abruptness of the ending. I think it ended at the perfect point in the story, but the scene itself could have used some added exposition for the sake of clarity. All that being said, I’m very curious to read more of the author’s work when translated in the future.
This book is incredibly thematically rich. Themes of grief, motherhood, the dynamic of parenting vs being parented, and the complexities of choice are strong in this novel, effortlessly woven into the narrative. The overarching plot is meticulously crafted. It’s very tight and, for the most part, tied up neatly with a bow at the end. The secondary narrative, wherein the Part II narrator is grappling with her mother’s terminal illness and the complex emotions alongside it, is well-incorporated into the story. The family dynamics in the second half of the novel were striking, and I did shed tears multiple times over the complicated “grieving a loved one while they’re still alive” aspect of the inverted mother-daughter dynamic where the parent, in illness and old age, has become the parented.
The writing style is candid and compelling, overall very reasonable and appropriate for the story being told. Grammar and syntax were tidy and unencumbered, while word choice was direct and potent. Pacing was incredibly linear and straightforward, making it a quick and easy read. The use of description was skillfully executed: sparse in some parts and lush in others, almost always elegant. Imagery and metaphor were rich and gothic, peppered effectively throughout the prose. Overall, the prose is clean and elegant, occasionally grotesque and blunt in what it shows you but beautiful in its morbidity.
The structure at hand is interesting; instead of alternating point of view chapter-by-chapter, the point of view character changes only in the second half of the novel. Part II does away with chapters entirely, instead having a linear day-to-day structure. I think this choice was fresh and suitable for the novel. Beyond the two protagonists, the cast isn’t delved deeply into (though the mother of the Part II narrator and her son, Santiago, are very richly characterized) beyond what is necessary for the narrators to tell their story. I think this is a good example of a book where the extended cast is not the main focus and where not delving too deeply into them is a more effective choice. I think getting into the weeds of developing minor characters in this particular work would have bogged the story down and felt tedious.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Murder, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual content, and Blood
Minor: Classism, Racism, Confinement, and Child death
Dental trauma
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