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insomniacsun's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thank you. I love you. I’m sorry. Thank you. I love you.
I’m sorry. For the things that still need to be written out.
Premetto che sono una mezza cartuccia quando si tratta di horror, ma se si parla di libri incentrati sul lutto, devo esserci.
Sono molto contenta nel vedere che l'autore ha sfoggiato il meglio della sua prosa nelle descrizioni del lutto che invade la vita di Thiago, e non mi sorprende il fatto che questo libro sia nato dall'elaborazione di una sua perdita.
I primi capitoli ambientati al funerale della moglie sono sicuramente la parte migliore del libro: per quanto l'elemento horror che ha seguito mi abbia raggelato il sangue nelle vene, quei passaggi mi hanno sviscerato come nessun demonio potrà mai fare. Kudos.
People cannot bear to think there are channels of human experience that are closed off to them, that they’ll never know. People want to believe their experience is universal, that nothing’s outside their scope.
Onestamente, dopo aver letto la trama, mi aspettavo un libro molto più incentrato sull'assistente Itza (stile AI che prende coscienza) invece è decisamente a tema sovrannaturale, che ho comunque apprezzato. L'autore ha gestito meravigliosamente la tensione e la confusione del protagonista di fronte a situazioni surreali, specialmente nel secondo arc.
Al momento sto ancora rimuginando sul finale, che mi ha lasciato un po' perplessa, e questo mi blocca dal dare 5 stelle al libro. Probabilmente rileggerò il libro per avere una visione più ampia fin dal principio. Alla fine, il fascino di un finale aperto come questo sta anche nel godersi una nuova esperienza con ogni rilettura. So che ci rifletterò su a lungo.
Comunque sia, Moreno mi ha stregato con questo debutto, per cui il suo nome è uno che terrò sicuramente a mente, aspettando di leggere altri suoi libri.
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EDIT: portato su a 4.5 perchè non riesco a smettere di pensarci su. Tra svariate interpretazioni sulla natura di certi avvenimenti, e la validità di tutte loro, mi sento in obbligo di dover lodare un libro del genere. Riflettere sugli intrighi di questa storia ormai è parte della mia routine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Animal death, Blood, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Body horror, and Gore
emilyrose486's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
5.0
What a gut wrenching gruesome story of grief. This book was awesome and terrifying and made me feel some really big feelings about loss, fear, death, and the hereafter. I highly recommend this book for anyone who needs a ghosty thrill or a good cry
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Murder, Suicide attempt, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Death
Minor: Alcohol and Drug abuse
bookishcookiemonster's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A solid exploration of what greif feels like.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Suicide, Gore, Medical trauma, Death, Murder, Body horror, Alcohol, Death of parent, Violence, Car accident, and Blood
Minor: Xenophobia, Racism, and Cursing
sylvestra's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Gun violence, and Suicide
Minor: Death of parent, Alcohol, and Car accident
kirahaycock21's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book was actually super well written. I literally couldn’t put it down- I read it in one sitting. It was confusing though, but I think that was deliberate on the authors part. There was a lot of symbolism, and it could be interpreted a lot of different ways. But I loved the simple writing style and the way it addressed the feelings behind losing a loved one. Some parts of it were genuinely scary too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Mental illness, Blood, Cursing, Gore, Animal death, Body horror, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Alcohol, Cultural appropriation, Deportation, Death of parent, Hate crime, and Cancer
Minor: Rape, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Vomit
kassiebee's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
grief, loss, family, and a some pretty cool mexican supernatural elements.
i was creeped out, my heart was heavy, i was taken to another world.. totally immersed, i finished this booked totally jaded. and i loved it.
a bit slow in the beginning but with a purpose. i sensed the slow descent of his mental health, still with a possibility that nothing is really happening. until its not.
im going to go watch some cartoons now ..
i was creeped out, my heart was heavy, i was taken to another world.. totally immersed, i finished this booked totally jaded. and i loved it.
a bit slow in the beginning but with a purpose. i sensed the slow descent of his mental health, still with a possibility that nothing is really happening. until its not.
im going to go watch some cartoons now ..
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Murder, Death of parent, Death, Gore, Grief, Body horror, Blood, and Alcohol
Moderate: Confinement, Cancer, and Medical content
Minor: Racism and Drug use
killmoore_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I finished this, looked at my husband and said "I can't wait to read this again".
This Thing Between Us gutted me. It is a horrific and heartbreaking take on the process of grief, and the isolation and guilt that so often follows losing someone we love in a way that we have convinced ourselves was preventable.
I loved the small reveal regarding the format of our story, and honestly the jumbled, erratic time line did it for me here - it was written as a memory and clearly comes across as such. The body horror is graphic, the imagery is beautiful, and the portrayal of grief is so spot on that I reached out to hold my partners hand multiple times throughout.
I was slightly disappointed that we didn't delve deeper into the "haunted itza" story line, and the reason behind the haunting itself fell a bit flat for me, which is why this isn't a 5 star read for me. However, I'm not disappointed, and I look forward to picking this up for a second time.
This Thing Between Us gutted me. It is a horrific and heartbreaking take on the process of grief, and the isolation and guilt that so often follows losing someone we love in a way that we have convinced ourselves was preventable.
I loved the small reveal regarding the format of our story, and honestly the jumbled, erratic time line did it for me here - it was written as a memory and clearly comes across as such. The body horror is graphic, the imagery is beautiful, and the portrayal of grief is so spot on that I reached out to hold my partners hand multiple times throughout.
I was slightly disappointed that we didn't delve deeper into the "haunted itza" story line, and the reason behind the haunting itself fell a bit flat for me, which is why this isn't a 5 star read for me. However, I'm not disappointed, and I look forward to picking this up for a second time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Self harm, Violence, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Animal death, Gore, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Blood, Body horror, Death, Mental illness, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts
maximauve's review against another edition
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Stalking, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical trauma
apollo0325's review
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
First, I'd like to say the length of this novel saved this from being a DNF for me. I almost DNF'd midway through part one, but I said fuck it, it's only a 6 hour audiobook and I decided to keep going. I'm glad I did. This book encompasses such a specific angle of grief that isn't explored enough in literature especially under the lens of psychological horror/body horror/cosmic horror (of sorts).
I won't lie, the beginning is VERY slow because it's setting up Thiago's relationship with Vera, his mental state at her loss, and what life was like with her. However, after part one, we really get a grasp of what this novel is going to be in a way. I kept seeing people online pitch this book as one about grief and a "haunted Alexa" but babes, the haunted Alexa part is maybe 10% of the novel within part one and mentioned later on. I'd pitch this book as a psychological horror examining grief and how one deals with loss as someone basically loses their grip on reality (psychosis). Thiago is someone who is absolutely stricken with bad luck 100% of the time, and you learn this very quickly in part one. It makes this book all the more tragic.
If you're sensitive to animal death/violence especially with dogs, please cautiously read this book. It doesn't occur until part two, but everything snowballs very quickly after that point.
The ending was simultaneously confusing and tragic. I knew Thiago was succumbing to his grief, but it was really unclear as to what was actually happening to him. That's more of a me problem + listening through the audiobook. NGL, I also kind of hate the idea that people's tragedies/fates are inescapable, especially when it is based on generational trauma. It makes it feel like there is no hope at all and instead you should just die to save the people around you. It's a very hopeless ending, but that's also my interpretation. Others may feel differently! I think the open ending allows the reader to draw their own conclusions on what was going on with Thiago.
This book was brutal, unsettling, and tragic. The audiobook narrator was also FANTASTIC. I loved his narration. I'd read another book with him narrating it for sure.
I won't lie, the beginning is VERY slow because it's setting up Thiago's relationship with Vera, his mental state at her loss, and what life was like with her. However, after part one, we really get a grasp of what this novel is going to be in a way. I kept seeing people online pitch this book as one about grief and a "haunted Alexa" but babes, the haunted Alexa part is maybe 10% of the novel within part one and mentioned later on. I'd pitch this book as a psychological horror examining grief and how one deals with loss as someone basically loses their grip on reality (psychosis). Thiago is someone who is absolutely stricken with bad luck 100% of the time, and you learn this very quickly in part one. It makes this book all the more tragic.
If you're sensitive to animal death/violence especially with dogs, please cautiously read this book. It doesn't occur until part two, but everything snowballs very quickly after that point.
This book was brutal, unsettling, and tragic. The audiobook narrator was also FANTASTIC. I loved his narration. I'd read another book with him narrating it for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Abandonment and Classism
If you are sensitive to animal death / viscera, I would not recommend this book unless you feel okay going in knowing it WILL be descriptive and detailed. The body horror in this one is also very well described.mlewis's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Animal death, Grief, Suicide attempt, Violence, Xenophobia, Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Suicide, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Medical content, and Alcohol
Moderate: Terminal illness
Minor: Miscarriage