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stefcornell's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
4.25
The way this book is written is intriguing and entertaining. For folks that have been a caretaker for a family member with an illness, this book is heart wrenching. While the illnesses portrayed in the book aren't your typical ones, they feel reminiscent of real illnesses.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Terminal illness, Domestic abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Medical content, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Suicide attempt
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I selected this as a free add-on with my Book of the Month subscription.
"Shark Heart" is a heartbreaking story that explores the depths of love and commitment we have for those around us. Lewis and Wren are living their happily ever after and are still in their honeymoon phase of being newlyweds when Lewis receives a strange diagnosis. Lewis will remember mostly everything about himself, but his body will evolve into a great white shark. Wren tries to cope with slowly losing her husband and seeks solace with a pregnant woman who is going through her own situation with someone she loves becoming an animal.
This book was strange, but not necessarily in a bad way. I think this world in which people slowly turn into animals is a great metaphor for losing people to terminal diseases. Wren is experiencing the same feelings someone might feel if they found out their husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Wren is slowly losing her husband, and there is nothing she can do to stop it. She can be his caretaker until he becomes too difficult in his primal state, and she will have to say goodbye.
This is not the first experience Wren has had with people turning into animals, and the novel does explore some of her older memories to provide more narrative on more experiences of what it is like to lose someone to this horrid disease. In this world, not every person becomes the same animal, and some animals are easier to handle than others, allowing people more time with their loved ones.
Although I think this is a beautiful story that really explores love, memory, and identity in a poetic way, it did not land for me. I was never fully invested in Wren's story, and I am not 100% sure why. My heart went out to Wren, and I felt her devastation at watching her husband slowly change, but I was never captivated enough in her story to want more.
This is an interesting book and a great run at a debut.
"Shark Heart" is a heartbreaking story that explores the depths of love and commitment we have for those around us. Lewis and Wren are living their happily ever after and are still in their honeymoon phase of being newlyweds when Lewis receives a strange diagnosis. Lewis will remember mostly everything about himself, but his body will evolve into a great white shark. Wren tries to cope with slowly losing her husband and seeks solace with a pregnant woman who is going through her own situation with someone she loves becoming an animal.
This book was strange, but not necessarily in a bad way. I think this world in which people slowly turn into animals is a great metaphor for losing people to terminal diseases. Wren is experiencing the same feelings someone might feel if they found out their husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Wren is slowly losing her husband, and there is nothing she can do to stop it. She can be his caretaker until he becomes too difficult in his primal state, and she will have to say goodbye.
This is not the first experience Wren has had with people turning into animals, and the novel does explore some of her older memories to provide more narrative on more experiences of what it is like to lose someone to this horrid disease. In this world, not every person becomes the same animal, and some animals are easier to handle than others, allowing people more time with their loved ones.
Although I think this is a beautiful story that really explores love, memory, and identity in a poetic way, it did not land for me. I was never fully invested in Wren's story, and I am not 100% sure why. My heart went out to Wren, and I felt her devastation at watching her husband slowly change, but I was never captivated enough in her story to want more.
This is an interesting book and a great run at a debut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Pregnancy, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Blood, Domestic abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Violence
lauren_shilling's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book blew me away. I had just gotten out of a reading slump, so I was a little wary of picking up a book that was this long, as I tend to stick with shorter books when I'm recovering from a slump. However, I decided to read it anyway because it was a five star prediction, and it had been calling to me for a while now. I am so glad I chose to pick it up! It was a five star, as I predicted, and I am so happy about that! This book was heartbreaking and beautiful and just full of so much emotion. I loved all of the characters, and I loved seeing all of the stories that unfold over the course of this book. Wren and Angela were my clear favorite characters, I thought their stories were told beautifully, and I felt so much for them and their experiences. I think hearing most of Wren's story and her experience with her husband's mutation into a great white shark was so heartbreaking, and then when we hear her mother, Angela's story, it tied so much more of Wren's character together while also allowing us to get to know another woman who's story is just as impactful. Everything about this book was incredibly executed, and I loved every second of it. It's also super quick to get through! There are a lot of pages, but the chapters are very short. The longest one is only about three or four pages long. A lot of them aren't even a full page long. This not only makes this book a quicker read than you might think because of the page count, but it also lends itself really well to this story. I think for me, the honest simplicity of how it was told make the very complex emotions and experiences I was reading about seem so real. I'm not really sure how to explain it, but it was so well done. It's a very honest book, and it feels so real, even as it talks about things that don't happen in the real world. I felt every second of this story, and it was so incredibly well done. Probably one of the best books I'll read this year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Death, Pregnancy, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Abortion and Suicidal thoughts
sby's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Forced institutionalization, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, and Death of parent
jennyfromtheburbs's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy and Death of parent
tabookish's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Toxic relationship, Violence, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Abandonment, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Body horror, Chronic illness, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, and Adult/minor relationship
wowsmeows's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
"In this evanescent moment, the love of his life and the moon became indistinguishable from each other, casting everything Lewis feared about the future in the real but temporary light off goodness. Time suspended,
Lewis promised himself to always remember Wren like this, a masterpiece..."
Shark Heart follows the story of newlyweds Lewis and Wren. All seems well in their relationship until Lewis receives an unexpected diagnosis - he's mutating into a great white shark.
I went into the story thinking it would be just linear story following the main characters as they go through the strange process of the mutation, but I was very wrong. We find out about Lewis' condition within the first 10 pages, and we are also told that animal mutations are normal in this world within the book. The story is told through excerpts from a play, flashbacks and poetry. When I initially picked up the book I thought the concept sounded really interesting, so was surprised when it turned out to be more artsy than a traditional story.
Shark Heart is an artistic exploration of grief, loss and how people change, sometimes literally.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Physical abuse
mxyfrzn's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, Chronic illness, Death of parent, and Dementia
Moderate: Blood, Domestic abuse, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, and Physical abuse
Minor: Abortion, Animal cruelty, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Rape, Animal death, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Suicidal thoughts
monica_moser's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Emily Habeck is such a phenomenal writer and seamlessly blends the fantastical elements with realism.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Death of parent
mdavis26's review against another edition
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Dementia, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, and Suicidal thoughts