Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Slewfoot: A Tale of Bewitchery by Brom

102 reviews

hauntedantiqueshop's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This was written for the preteen girls who obsessed over the Salem witch trials and never really grew out of it. Abitha and Samson are in love though, right? We all gathered that?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Grief and Gaslighting

Minor: Animal death, Racism, and Death of parent

It’s a Puritan story, lots of religious talk.

solarel's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

People suck. 

I’m conflicted a bit. While I enjoyed the main two characters, Abitha and Samson, I found the plot as a whole to be very… typical? 

Samson’s story was by far the most interesting plot line. I enjoyed watching him struggle to find who he really is. Is he the monster or the savior? Abitha however, her story felt not just predictable but inevitable. The last third of the book is pure torture porn, and she did not grow as a character. She is merely an instrument of a vengeance arc. 

I saw a lot of reviewers say this story was very white. And I think I see what they mean. I don’t know what the author’s religious background is, but this read as a very Christian framed story. People said this was a horror novel. I didn’t find it scary, only sad. People were the villain. Puritan culture was the villain. And yet it still felt like it was still validating their beliefs in the end with what was supposed to be the “horror”. 

I don’t know if that makes sense, but “pagan” aspects were not rooted in lore beyond that of Christianity. I guess that’s what made it feel like more of a fantasy masquerade of a pagan story of blurred good and evil. 

Stars for ambiance and entertainment only. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

dustghosts's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Riveting, well-paced, and propellant— I read this in about 2 days and didn’t want to put it down, hands stained black from the cover. Overall, the fairytale-esque feel combined with the colonial horror was enthralling and fun to read.

Sticking points for me: I really struggle with the way indigenous people— individually and as a whole— are dealt with by this book, and feel the ~struggle/war between colonialism and something more primal is really undermined by this. There are a FEW indigenous characters, yes, but the few we see play on harmful tropes for a very brief time and are quickly (and, once, violently) discarded. Father’s ties to nature and to those who once paid him tribute are similarly shoved to the side, while the local tribe provides shelter to the ostensible villain. If Abitha had any sort of ties to indigenous culture, this would have brought everything together nicely. As it is, there’s something… very girlboss white feminism/saviorism that equally disempowers HER story and her grief, sadly.

Overall, a worthwhile read, but one I’ve been chewing on for a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Grief, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

killmoore_'s review against another edition

dark sad 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? It's complicated

3.0

Whelp. That was a story. 

Good for her. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

sizzlesteaks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

kingsteph's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, and Colonisation

cuddlygryphon's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Racism, Sexual content, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation

emilywemily6's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.25

This book was so interesting and nothing like I have ever read before.  The vibes would be great for the fall, especially with the climax of the story taking place in October I think. I felt the feminine rage and had to take a break or two from reading because of it. But the ending was so satisfying! I wish it was a little shorter, especially in the middle. And I wish both the magic system and Slewfoot were more flushed out and dynamic.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual content, Police brutality, and Grief

Minor: Alcohol

scifi_rat's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

aerlune's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Good for her

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexism, Blood, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail