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readingpicnic's review
3.75
I don't really know how I feel about this book...it has to marinate a bit more. I will say that these are some actually morally gray characters in very fucked up ways, which was fun sometimes. I think I got confused about what was happening at some points in the book, and I didn't really understand the ending, so I almost want to reread it... It did keep me guessing the whole book about what was going on, and most of my theories ended up being wrong lol. The lack of consent in this book was upsetting...I'm not sure if it was because the main characters are meant to be fucked up or if it's romanticizing the SA? Pretty fucked though. They are sooo toxic. I don't think I understood either of the main characters' motivations for the entirety of the book whic lended to my confusion. The atmosphere in this book was so incredibly well done: the oiliest, greasiest, grimiest gay book I've ever read. The body horror was also amazing, with disgusting lines like "curdled genitals" on a dead body. Also, why is Johann literally Addie LaRue? Reading this felt like reading a toxic gay anime fanfiction; like, this is what I imagine Noé and Vanitas fanfics are like from the anime The Case Study of Vanitas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Torture
Moderate: Stalking
jems_'s review
3.5
An interesting concept and atmosphere, though the execution felt just a little off.
I do love dark sceneries and myths which I think this book did perfectly. It had a dark and gritty atmosphere, one you wouldn’t want to be in yourself. A glum industrial town would not be the place I‘d like to spend any amount of time in. Such is Elendhaven.
I also liked the myths in this book and the tad bit of the supernatural making them real.
The characters however felt a bit inconsequential at some points. With how I imagined them, some of the things they did and said felt somewhat out of character.
I would’ve also liked for the book to be a bit longer to explore the characters, especially the „monster-ization“ a bit longer and maybe over the course of that the author could’ve slowly introduced this behavior that seemed odd to me now and make it more believable.
Also beware of the trigger warnings if you read this!
One other thing: As a German reading this, it was funny because it uses some German terms. I mean „Elend“ alone is German and roughly translates to „misery“ which makes sense for the town.
I do love dark sceneries and myths which I think this book did perfectly. It had a dark and gritty atmosphere, one you wouldn’t want to be in yourself. A glum industrial town would not be the place I‘d like to spend any amount of time in. Such is Elendhaven.
I also liked the myths in this book and the tad bit of the supernatural making them real.
The characters however felt a bit inconsequential at some points. With how I imagined them, some of the things they did and said felt somewhat out of character.
I would’ve also liked for the book to be a bit longer to explore the characters, especially the „monster-ization“ a bit longer and maybe over the course of that the author could’ve slowly introduced this behavior that seemed odd to me now and make it more believable.
Also beware of the trigger warnings if you read this!
One other thing: As a German reading this, it was funny because it uses some German terms. I mean „Elend“ alone is German and roughly translates to „misery“ which makes sense for the town.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Rape, Blood, Stalking, and Death
Minor: Drug use, Death of parent, and Incest
theghostly's review
I was excited to read this because I was expecting an atmospheric and mysterious story but instead it came across as an overly edgy fan fiction written by some teenage girl who thinks a tall guy forcing himself on a “smol bean uwu” is the hottest thing ever. Very much not for me but i’m happy for anyone that did enjoy it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Gore, Incest, and Violence
sofipitch's review
dark
medium-paced
1.5
I read this bc apparently this author used to co-wrote fanfic with Tamsyn Muir and I am obsessed with TLT. So I should like this right? And while there were stylistic similarities I feel like I just read a mediocre fanfic for something that doesn't exist. It just felt so underdeveloped, the characters, the plot, the world building. Some stylistic choices I liked and then the characters would talk and it was awful. The most I liked was the gore. I considered DNFing multiple times but it was short so I figured why not. And while I knew what my review would say about half way through, I wanted to give this the benefit of the doubt that it would get better but nope, truly a "that's fucking it?" ending. Go girl, give us nothing
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Gore, Death of parent, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual harassment
reisuki's review
dark
tense
3.75
I should read more stuff like this because I always get pleasantly surprised everytime I rediscover I like horror in any type of media.
It was going somewhere but then it didn't, you know? Lol. It was building up to something and then.. ?? Nothing. It felt rushed in the end. The lack of plot (so they said) didn't bother me too much. So. Tentative rating.
It was going somewhere but then it didn't, you know? Lol. It was building up to something and then.. ?? Nothing. It felt rushed in the end. The lack of plot (so they said) didn't bother me too much. So. Tentative rating.
The longer fall I was looking for? To know that I was summoned up from the dark ether to do a monster’s deeds for Hallandrette’s truest son? And when our work is done, I will carry him to the bottom of the sea, where we both belong. Deep beneath the silt our bones will turn to salt.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Body horror, Gore, Blood, and Death
Minor: Sexual harassment and Rape
smartie_chan's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
1.5 / 5 Stars
CW: Rape of a child, Death, Blood, Gore, Murder, Dub-Con
The fact that this almost won the goodreads choice awards makes me question y'alls taste in books.
Wouldn't even reccomand to my enemies- if I had any
CW: Rape of a child, Death, Blood, Gore, Murder, Dub-Con
The fact that this almost won the goodreads choice awards makes me question y'alls taste in books.
Wouldn't even reccomand to my enemies- if I had any
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Gore, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Rape, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Sexism
maevemil's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Murder, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child death, and Blood
wyrmes's review
dark
mysterious
fast-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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Rape
chris_reads's review
dark
funny
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I have such mixed feeling on this because I loved the prose and atmosphere and setting, but not so much the plot. As with the characters, they were fascinating and well-crafted but I wasn't exactly rooting for them. This had so many elements I love but they just fell short for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Murder, Self harm, Child death, Death, Gore, and Gun violence
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Classism, Violence, Blood, and Terminal illness
Minor: Animal death, Stalking, and Drug abuse
river24's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
5/5
Where do I even begin? This is the most beautiful, well-written book that I've ever read. The writing is magical, every single line holds so much depth and emotion. I loved every single aspect of this book!
It's dark and bloody and so, so incredible. The relationship between the two main characters had me screaming in this venomous glee. It was–for lack of a better word–gloriously fucked up. Their relationship teetered precariously over the cliffside, swaying back and forth between the firmness of the crumbling soil and the black waters below. I cannot describe with words how perfect this book was. The relationship also reminded me a lot of the relationship between Hannibal and Will in the Hannibal TV show.
This book delves into a shadowed city with a vengeance at its heart and a monster on its heels. I always adore when books explore what it means to be a monster and what it means to be human, this book did so flawlessly in a non-explicit way.
Queer horror as a genre is something I always love and always come back to, please give me recommendations if you have any !! This book was everything and is something that I'll be recommending forever–I will not be forgetting about this book anytime soon!
I always stand by the fact that magic is a metaphor for queerness and I think that the horror genre often holds its own unique spin on queerness in its bloody jaws and both of those factors I am in awe of every single time.
This is quite a short book therefore this review doesn't go into immense detail because I don't want to spoil it, but trust me this book is worth your blood, sweat, tears and more.
Some of my favourite quotes were; 'Don't you feel it, sometimes? As if the world wants to consume itself.' 'Magic is not in the brain, miss; it is in the bones.' 'Thin ice isn’t a problem for the sea; it’s a problem for the blind idiot who steps out on it.'
Where do I even begin? This is the most beautiful, well-written book that I've ever read. The writing is magical, every single line holds so much depth and emotion. I loved every single aspect of this book!
It's dark and bloody and so, so incredible. The relationship between the two main characters had me screaming in this venomous glee. It was–for lack of a better word–gloriously fucked up. Their relationship teetered precariously over the cliffside, swaying back and forth between the firmness of the crumbling soil and the black waters below. I cannot describe with words how perfect this book was. The relationship also reminded me a lot of the relationship between Hannibal and Will in the Hannibal TV show.
This book delves into a shadowed city with a vengeance at its heart and a monster on its heels. I always adore when books explore what it means to be a monster and what it means to be human, this book did so flawlessly in a non-explicit way.
Queer horror as a genre is something I always love and always come back to, please give me recommendations if you have any !! This book was everything and is something that I'll be recommending forever–I will not be forgetting about this book anytime soon!
I always stand by the fact that magic is a metaphor for queerness and I think that the horror genre often holds its own unique spin on queerness in its bloody jaws and both of those factors I am in awe of every single time.
This is quite a short book therefore this review doesn't go into immense detail because I don't want to spoil it, but trust me this book is worth your blood, sweat, tears and more.
Some of my favourite quotes were; 'Don't you feel it, sometimes? As if the world wants to consume itself.' 'Magic is not in the brain, miss; it is in the bones.' 'Thin ice isn’t a problem for the sea; it’s a problem for the blind idiot who steps out on it.'
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Self harm, Terminal illness, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death, Cursing, Grief, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Abandonment and Alcohol