Reviews with content warning for Gore - The Shuddering

Reviews tagging 'Gore'

The Shuddering by Ania Ahlborn

37 reviews

chloseencounter's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

The Shuddering was my only flop of this months reading but truly it was still entertaining, especially the second half of the book. This novel was about some friends getting snowed in at a cabin and some hungry and pretty intelligent creatures lurking in the woods, (not stated explicitly but this is very much a wendigo story.) I have read two other Ania Ahlborn books at this point and this was my least favorite so far but even so, it still had all the makings of an Ania Ahlborn story, including an ending that makes your stomach drop like she’s known for. My complaints really, are that the beginning of the novel was just a bit too drawn out and the characters were not very likable. Actually the character I think the reader was supposed to hate was the one I felt most sympathy toward. This book wasn’t bad but was pretty mid compared to Ania’s other works.

Content Warnings

patiencekerr's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

The book immediately puts you on edge within the first chapter. It is brutally gory and is full of scenes that build tension to the point you are afraid to turn the page.

Content Warnings

leonleoff's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

uchihas's review

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

2.0

Mostly untagged spoilers ahead, sorry!! Please read at your own discretion.

I’m giving this 2 stars instead of 1 because I like the writing style, it’s very smooth and easy to read while still being flowy and interesting. This author has been recommended to me SO many times and I will probably give her another chance because I do enjoy the way she writes, this book just wasn’t it for me.

I was invested in the beginning. The characters are good, mostly; they’re pretty one-note and there’s a bit of a heavy romance subplot but they were still likable, even the side characters who serve no purpose

(RIP Don and Jenny

. It lost me about 60% through when it became obvious that the plot was basically any isolation horror movie that’s ever existed, and then it felt like a waste of time so I just skimmed through the rest of it. Honestly it reminded me a lot of the video game “Until Dawn” which I also didn’t like, but I did like these characters more.

There is a dog,

she does die.

I LOVE monster stories and creature features but this just did not do it for me. The creatures reminded me too much of the Spooky Island monsters from the Scooby Doo movie, I couldn’t take them seriously.

Honestly, just read the summary and move on LOL that’s it, that’s the whole book. If you’ve never watched a movie in your life you’ll probably enjoy it though!!

Content Warnings

sambookishedition's review

Go to review page

dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No

4.0

Content Warnings

emmacartlidge's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

megmermaid's review

Go to review page

dark 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

4.5

Creepy, bloody, snowy monster mayhem with great characters! My first book by Ania Ahlborn and I loved it! It is gory but somehow in a good fun way? I was so stressed out about the dog the entire time, more than the characters lol. There is definitely some cliche situations where you are like no don't do that, don't go there. However it was exactly what I needed and wanted out of this book. The setting of the snow and winter also worked perfectly.

The ending was fantastic and heartbreaking at times.

Content Warnings

rachelunabridged's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.25

This started out really strong, but steadily declined the longer the story went on. I still enjoyed it, but not as much as I had hoped I would. Pretty much everything was great except the main characters. I just found them to be super unlikable + couldn't bring myself to care at all about their personal drama, which unfortunately took up a huge portion of the story.

Content Warnings

lovelydeadgirl's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional sad medium-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

3.75

Content Warnings

coeurloyal's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark tense 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? It's complicated

3.0

Content Warnings

More...