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bookish_rex's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
1.0
I had seen a glowing review of another Mountford book, The Demonic, and decided to check things out, as it's been a long time since I've gotten a really good, proper scare of a book. In the end, I decided to read this, because haunted forests are more to my taste than haunted houses.
I was expecting, and hoping, to be terrified. Sadly, that wasn't the case. There wasn't enough time spent on creating an atmosphere I could become immersed in. Things moved way too quickly for me to develop any real sense of fear. This story relied too much on gore and just being gross... which is not scary. Possibly, this book could have been frightening, if I could have been able to see past the gore and focus on other elements, but that's the problem- all the gross stuff was so overpowering that it felt like a cop out. The elements that could have been the basis for something much better were fairly predictable. No real surprises here.
Maybe this just wasn't the right Mountford book for me. It wasn't like the actual writing was horrible, so I'm up to giving them another shot. Maybe I'll check out The Demonic. I'm not exactly holding my breath, though, and this author won't be getting any more chances if I'm disappointed again.
I was expecting, and hoping, to be terrified. Sadly, that wasn't the case. There wasn't enough time spent on creating an atmosphere I could become immersed in. Things moved way too quickly for me to develop any real sense of fear. This story relied too much on gore and just being gross... which is not scary. Possibly, this book could have been frightening, if I could have been able to see past the gore and focus on other elements, but that's the problem- all the gross stuff was so overpowering that it felt like a cop out. The elements that could have been the basis for something much better were fairly predictable. No real surprises here.
Maybe this just wasn't the right Mountford book for me. It wasn't like the actual writing was horrible, so I'm up to giving them another shot. Maybe I'll check out The Demonic. I'm not exactly holding my breath, though, and this author won't be getting any more chances if I'm disappointed again.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault and Child death
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