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theaceofpages's review against another edition
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Imagine every fleeting intrusive thought you had came true around you. This is Karina's reality. Even something as small as wishing for a second that her neighbour would hang himself when he made her mad comes to pass. After her family experiences an accident she starts spiralling and chasing the shadows around her as she looks for answers and an escape from the excess of dark that seems to fill her.
While this story probably won't be scary to most people in the traditional sense of the word, it is definitely incredibly creepy and horrifying in other ways. As someone who does suffer from mental health issues, the author does an incredible job of capturing the horrors that can go on in your head. And how much worse things get when they start to win.
The book starts off a bit slow but I decided to keep going and I quickly got pulled into the madness and the darkness. I kept finding myself questioning what was and wasn't real, particularly as things were getting started and especially withher mother's guilt tripping and blame game type behaviour . I guess those questions never really went away but they definitely got overshadowed by the unease at the very least.
If a book about the horrors that mental illness and grief can cause sounds intriguing to you, I can definitely recommend this one. It may be short, but it hits hard. Just please be careful if you struggle from mental health issues yourself since it really does get rather dark!
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.
While this story probably won't be scary to most people in the traditional sense of the word, it is definitely incredibly creepy and horrifying in other ways. As someone who does suffer from mental health issues, the author does an incredible job of capturing the horrors that can go on in your head. And how much worse things get when they start to win.
The book starts off a bit slow but I decided to keep going and I quickly got pulled into the madness and the darkness. I kept finding myself questioning what was and wasn't real, particularly as things were getting started and especially with
If a book about the horrors that mental illness and grief can cause sounds intriguing to you, I can definitely recommend this one. It may be short, but it hits hard. Just please be careful if you struggle from mental health issues yourself since it really does get rather dark!
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gore, Grief, Mental illness, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Car accident, Child death, Terminal illness, Death, and Sexual content
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Alcohol, Child abuse, Cursing, and Drug use
Emotional abandonment. Also moderate Toxic Parentlaurennreads_'s review
2.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Dark Lit Press for this ARC.
When I read the description of this book I was so excited and was expecting great things. Unfortunately I didn’t love this book. It was fine, but it wasn’t great. It took a while for me to actually get into the book and even then it took me a while to work through it despite how short it was.
When I read the description of this book I was so excited and was expecting great things. Unfortunately I didn’t love this book. It was fine, but it wasn’t great. It took a while for me to actually get into the book and even then it took me a while to work through it despite how short it was.
arcalie's review
3.0
Sometimes your thoughts feel like a dark entity that can spiral out of control. A story settled around depression and grief with some good moments but fell overall flat to deliver the right punches. There was a certain struggle to what the story wanted to deliver and it just being gory in a quite boring way. I could not really feel empathy for the main character, despite all the trauma she went through.
Some parts felt too drawn out, some weirdly rushed (like how she came to the conclusion to help herself).
I appreciated parts of it and that it did not shy of showing dark corners in the room.
Some parts felt too drawn out, some weirdly rushed (like how she came to the conclusion to help herself).
I appreciated parts of it and that it did not shy of showing dark corners in the room.
aj_humphreys's review
4.0
I am grateful to the team at Darklit Press for having provided me this ARC of "IN EXCESS OF DARK"!
There are several Content/Trigger Warnings in this book, so be wary if that's a concern. That said, NEVER have I read something that captures the dark self-talk, intrusive thoughts, suicidal ideation, and twisted imaginings that come with depression so perfectly.
Lagoe excels at bringing the dark side of mental health to life and personifying it with dark irrational intentions.
Overall, it was not the scariest story ever, but I couldn't put it down. I may have connected with the main character's internal monologs a little too much.
BUT if you, like me, have struggled with mental health, IEOD will remind you how far you've come on your journey and to keep going. To not bottle up your demons until the pressure is too much. . .
There are several Content/Trigger Warnings in this book, so be wary if that's a concern. That said, NEVER have I read something that captures the dark self-talk, intrusive thoughts, suicidal ideation, and twisted imaginings that come with depression so perfectly.
Lagoe excels at bringing the dark side of mental health to life and personifying it with dark irrational intentions.
Overall, it was not the scariest story ever, but I couldn't put it down. I may have connected with the main character's internal monologs a little too much.
BUT if you, like me, have struggled with mental health, IEOD will remind you how far you've come on your journey and to keep going. To not bottle up your demons until the pressure is too much. . .
moonsea97's review
5.0
I wasn't sure what to expect going in, but this actually ended up being one of the better horror stories I've read in awhile! Its themes reminded me of King's Pet Sematary, and its style reminded me of the stories in Night Shift (two very high compliments!). It has emotional weight, twists and turns, and some genuinely creepy moments throughout. Definitely worth a read!
(I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley)
(I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley)
kyrajanson's review
dark
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
4.0
removing_winds's review
dark
sad
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
4.0
bekkagal's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Ok. Omg. This would make such a good movie!
_mox_'s review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
4.25