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alukalani's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Bullying, Drug use, Mental illness, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Stalking, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Hate crime, Excrement, Kidnapping, and Cannibalism
biobeetle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Blood, Excrement, and Murder
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Vomit, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty and Suicide
katizwitchy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
My first thought after finishing this was "I need to walk this off."
Man, what a novel. If you have the stomach to read this, please do. Yes, it is awful and grotesque at times, but oh my god it is also ART. Women being horrible, complex, violent beings in the way men have been allowed to be for years is a perspective I didn't know I needed. The scariest thing about this novel is how easily you can find yourself agreeing with Maeve, seeing the line of thinking, right up until the brutal reality hits you full force and you feel the weight of shame and disgust for ever even slightly agreeing with her.
I cannot put into words how this novel affects me, other than saying that I will be thinking about it for a very long time. Where the R-rated scenes started to lose me, Leede would hook me back in with a beautiful piece of prose about grief, identity, and the depravedness and inherent evil that exists in simply being human. This book makes you confront the parts of yourself that are a bad person, even when you're nowhere near Maeve's level of bad person.
I didn't like American Psycho the film, mostly because it gave me anxiety from all of the violence against women, but switching the narrative and confronting our gendered understanding of violence made me approach with curiosity instead of fear and disgust. And I think that's what I'm left with. I have so many questions I'd love to ask the author, and lots to think about in terms of how I approach typical horror media.
If you don't have a stomach for some of the things I've described here, or aren't ready to confront darker shades of humanity than you deal with in your day-to-day, then don't read this. There were definitely parts that made me viscerally uncomfortable, as all good horror should have. But there were also very poignant commentaries on the idea of what makes an idol, what separates good and bad in a person, and what lies in between.
I don't know that I could pick up this book again. And, in my opinion, that's what makes a great psychological horror story.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
henripop's review
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
writerwoods's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Addiction and Cannibalism
harleyqueen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
disguisedposer's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
wends_nblw's review
- 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
2.0
Maeve as a character left me rolling my eyes. Her entitlement and edginess was underwhelming at best and annoying at worst. I understand what the author was trying to do with her, but it only reminded me of a tumblr-esque femcel whining in her trash filled nest of a bed. Maybe it's because I understand Maeve in a way, and it just frustrated me that I could somehow relate to such a whiny character. I will note that she becomes more likable as the story continues, however.
A lot of people label this as "unhinged woman", but it just seemed more like a mentally ill woman’s spiral into madness.
I didn't like the ending either. I felt Maeve's plotline with Kate was unfinished in the worst possible way. The plotline with Gideon? It was quite satisfying until the very end reveal; a reveal that I thought was really obvious until the random red herring halfway through.
I even read this In Disneyland. I read parts of the story in the exact lands she'd describe. I watched Elsa and Anna in a parade while holding this book. Yet I couldn't find any love to give to this story. It's not even a bad book. It's just not for me.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault
Minor: Abortion
madelinequinnee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I personally wouldn’t describe it as ‘feminist horror’ like i’ve seen it described by other reviewers. Maeve is absolutely not a feminist character, she’s actually quite actively misogynistic at times and SAs a lot of her victims, so I think it’s very misleading to describe this book that way.
But apart from the misleading descriptions, i did enjoy this book. It was pretty campy at times, and very gory, and even though i think more could have been done with the gore and actual horror scenes, this is a pretty solid story.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
riru1's review
- 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
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and Murder