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mary_catherine's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Pedophilia and Rape
iwantgrilledcheese's review
dark
mysterious
tense
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? No
3.75
I liked the build up to the climax; I felt that the tension was well maintained but then the climax and denouement were a bit rushed. The main characters were compelling, though I felt a bit clubbed over the head with their respective roles after a while (Rachel, for example: i liked the buildup to her breaking point but felt little relief in the aftermath of her storyline; I had hoped for some shifts in the relationship with her mother).
All in all, a compelling story in an interesting setting (love an all girls school where things go haywire!). Good mystery, a bit of otherworldliness, and some girl power.
All in all, a compelling story in an interesting setting (love an all girls school where things go haywire!). Good mystery, a bit of otherworldliness, and some girl power.
Content Warnings
Minor: Mental illness, Rape, and Kidnapping
aformeracceleratedreader's review
medium-paced
5.0
Read trigger/content warnings. The author does have a brief warning at the beginning as well.
Once again, Hanna Alkaf writes another banger for me. She has quickly become my fave ya author not only because culturally I can connect, but also her writing is just so good. It's a great take on supernatural horror/haunted house (well in this case haunted school) while also discussing heavy topics like sexual assault, r*p*, and PTSD. I enjoyed the characters and the story line flowed well for me. I liked the ending overall, but I wish there was one little thing involving the first missing girl to fully close the story. I did start to tear up at one part towards the end which the author somehow always makes me emotional in her books.
There were very topical and memorable lines toward the last fourth of the book like "How many times have we dismissed a girl because she acts in ways that makes us uncomfortable?" and "Perhaps girls just do what they can to get by. To survive." Plus many more that I even took pics of the pages with the lines on them.
I will def be watching out for what the author writes next because every single thing she has written has been top tier for me.
Once again, Hanna Alkaf writes another banger for me. She has quickly become my fave ya author not only because culturally I can connect, but also her writing is just so good. It's a great take on supernatural horror/haunted house (well in this case haunted school) while also discussing heavy topics like sexual assault, r*p*, and PTSD. I enjoyed the characters and the story line flowed well for me. I liked the ending overall, but I wish there was one little thing involving the first missing girl to fully close the story. I did start to tear up at one part towards the end which the author somehow always makes me emotional in her books.
There were very topical and memorable lines toward the last fourth of the book like "How many times have we dismissed a girl because she acts in ways that makes us uncomfortable?" and "Perhaps girls just do what they can to get by. To survive." Plus many more that I even took pics of the pages with the lines on them.
I will def be watching out for what the author writes next because every single thing she has written has been top tier for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Grief, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape
readcells's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pedophilia and Sexual assault
Minor: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, and Gaslighting
aileron's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Sexual assault
Minor: Infidelity, Rape, and Murder
goldenelegy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
another work from hanna alkaf that i absolutely adore!
im not a big fan of horror genre but this book convinces me with its haunted-southeast-asian-school premise. and like usual, hanna alkaf tackles mental health issues in her story.
and surprisingly i actually don't find this story so horror. it focuses more on family problems and mental health issues than on the horror story. it seems that alkaf tries to insert a lesson that sometimes it's human that is the monster, not the ghosts, not the djinns.
i wish i could see more of khad and rachel's friendship dynamics, though. they found out about each other after about 50% into the book.
anyway, this book is worth given a chance!!
im not a big fan of horror genre but this book convinces me with its haunted-southeast-asian-school premise. and like usual, hanna alkaf tackles mental health issues in her story.
and surprisingly i actually don't find this story so horror. it focuses more on family problems and mental health issues than on the horror story. it seems that alkaf tries to insert a lesson that sometimes it's human that is the monster, not the ghosts, not the djinns.
i wish i could see more of khad and rachel's friendship dynamics, though. they found out about each other after about 50% into the book.
anyway, this book is worth given a chance!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Sexual assault
Moderate: Gaslighting