Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher

104 reviews

savvylit's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

What Moves the Dead is a delightful gothic read with excellent pacing and plenty of creepiness. This novella is also populated by a cast of characters both loveable and memorable. My favorite was narrator Alex, a very smart nonbinary soldier and a loyal friend. The way the story is written made me feel as though I was sitting in a smoky pub, listening to Alex confess this dark tale over shared drinks. Kingfisher is a truly incredible world-builder and I can't wait to read more of her work.

What Moves the Dead is, in fact, a reimagining of Edgar Allan Poe's short story The Fall of the House of Usher. And it truly excels as a retelling. I do not think that you have to be familiar with the original work in order to enjoy this book. That being said, I would recommend reading Poe's story first (available for free online) to truly appreciate the ways that Kingfisher has expanded upon the original.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Alcohol, Animal death, and Body horror

Moderate: War and Murder

celery_chickenstorm's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

This book really examines fungal horror in its own way with a unique set of character dynamics and even with the way fungus is portrayed. Definitely recommend to fans of Mexican gothic, Edgar Allen Poe, or even the last of us. The only drawback was that It dragged a bit in the first half for me but I find that is often an issue for me with historical fiction. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

Minor: Alcohol

nyssa_jo's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Body horror, Animal death, and Death

Moderate: Alcohol and Grief

Minor: Vomit and Suicide attempt

rachelunabridged's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

While I didn't feel like this book was on the same level as The Twisted Ones or The Hollow Places, I still really enjoyed it! I love Kingfisher's classic horror retellings. Her style is horrifying, but also witty and fun. Absolutely recommend!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Body horror, Alcohol, Animal death, and Death

Moderate: Gun violence, War, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Sexism and Suicide

nekoshka's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Terminal illness, and Animal death

Moderate: Alcohol and War

sourkiwi's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

A great short read! I purchased the physical copy because I loved the cover so much. As a fan of EAP, this is an awesome retelling.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Terminal illness, Death, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Medical content, Blood, and Gore

Moderate: Murder, Cursing, Gun violence, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide

Minor: Alcohol and Fire/Fire injury

ellenigrace's review against another edition

dark mysterious

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Alcohol, Death, Gore, and Gun violence

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and War

szyca's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Gore, Blood, Animal death, and Medical content

Moderate: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Suicide

kate_mare's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This book is the definition of a perfect horror book. The plot coudve been predicted but it turned out to be even worse! The writer described the characters pain perfectly and described details in a perfect way. Definitly a 5 star read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Chronic illness, Murder, Animal death, Death, Medical trauma, Body horror, Violence, and War

Minor: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Fire/Fire injury, and Addiction

marthadude's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I really liked this retelling. I think it was an interesting exploration of the original story. The mystery aspect was kind of easy to guess but I didn’t mind that.  It was cool to see the characters figure out what you’ve already put together. I really thought that the way the mysterious aspects of the original were explained was also cool. However I thought the ending was a little anticlimactic and rushed. Overall it was a good short read I’d recommend 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Grief, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Body horror, Death, Alcohol, and Terminal illness

Minor: Mental illness, War, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content