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fl0w3rchld's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
threw up, would read again.
leahpandaa's review against another edition
Too much dead animals and gross worm stuff
teenagedeathsongs's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
arockinsamsara's review against another edition
4.0
This non-linear, queer, uncompromising body-horror novel is somehow vulnerable and gentle. Not to the reader, but to its characters, who may experience horror and trauma but never feel judged, never anything other than a survivor doing the best they can in a broken world. Are their gnarly scenes of kink and filth that will turn some off? Yeah, of course. Is there violence and trauma, physical and emotional, that doesn’t happen off-screen? Definitely. But none of these extreme or shock elements feel like they are done just for the sake of disturbing the reader. There is a story to be told that required this level of violent intimacy, and this is a broken mirror trying to reflect the pieces of that story.
I thought the central characters were great. They felt painfully, tragically real. The dialogue, both inner and outer, felt genuine and compelling. The writing style itself was strong, combining meta-narrative with non-linear story telling and flashbacks to keep the reader in a constant state of movement, never confident the ground under your feet wouldn’t slither away when you weren’t looking. It wasn’t so disorienting that it didn’t make sense, the narrative thrust was clear, but it was enough to push you away from the safety of normalcy. The world itself was our world, with just some of the veneer scraped off, which is perhaps the most frightening part of this story. I do think there could have been more of the world written out, though. The “Sinister, depraved conspiracy” that is mentioned in the book summary could have had some more meat on its bones. There is a lot left ambiguous, and while that does let the narrative keep one foot more solidly in our real world, I felt there could have been more set-up and specifics given to this element of the story. The overall themes and socio-political commentary, however, are clear. The narrative ambiguity doesn’t get in the way of that, and I appreciated the amount this story forces the reader to consider such huge topics through a lens stained with blood and other assorted bodily fluids. Some of the commentary could have been refined, maybe, but at the same time the oppression these characters face is so overwhelming and pervasive that maybe nothing should be refined, maybe there needs to be this miasma, a noxious cloud suffocating every page, staining every drop of ink, and reminding you that there isn’t a single, clear fight to be fought for equality and freedom and autonomy and justice and human decency, the forces of ignorance and oppression are constantly creating new, more insidious ways to infect, abuse and oppress all those who don’t fit a predetermined mold. As a reader of narrative I would have liked some things to be better explained or fleshed out, and maybe some of the commentary to be more pointed. As someone who enjoys exploring how art is a unique form of commentary and reflection that shouldn’t be expected to follow into existing models I appreciated the open-endedness and ambiguity. So if you need things clearly plotted out and explained in detail you might be underwhelmed, but if you don’t come in expecting that and instead try to feel what is being offered then you might find this story scratching under the surface of your skin long after you put it down.
I want to thank the author, the publisher Tor Nightfire, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I thought the central characters were great. They felt painfully, tragically real. The dialogue, both inner and outer, felt genuine and compelling. The writing style itself was strong, combining meta-narrative with non-linear story telling and flashbacks to keep the reader in a constant state of movement, never confident the ground under your feet wouldn’t slither away when you weren’t looking. It wasn’t so disorienting that it didn’t make sense, the narrative thrust was clear, but it was enough to push you away from the safety of normalcy. The world itself was our world, with just some of the veneer scraped off, which is perhaps the most frightening part of this story. I do think there could have been more of the world written out, though. The “Sinister, depraved conspiracy” that is mentioned in the book summary could have had some more meat on its bones. There is a lot left ambiguous, and while that does let the narrative keep one foot more solidly in our real world, I felt there could have been more set-up and specifics given to this element of the story. The overall themes and socio-political commentary, however, are clear. The narrative ambiguity doesn’t get in the way of that, and I appreciated the amount this story forces the reader to consider such huge topics through a lens stained with blood and other assorted bodily fluids. Some of the commentary could have been refined, maybe, but at the same time the oppression these characters face is so overwhelming and pervasive that maybe nothing should be refined, maybe there needs to be this miasma, a noxious cloud suffocating every page, staining every drop of ink, and reminding you that there isn’t a single, clear fight to be fought for equality and freedom and autonomy and justice and human decency, the forces of ignorance and oppression are constantly creating new, more insidious ways to infect, abuse and oppress all those who don’t fit a predetermined mold. As a reader of narrative I would have liked some things to be better explained or fleshed out, and maybe some of the commentary to be more pointed. As someone who enjoys exploring how art is a unique form of commentary and reflection that shouldn’t be expected to follow into existing models I appreciated the open-endedness and ambiguity. So if you need things clearly plotted out and explained in detail you might be underwhelmed, but if you don’t come in expecting that and instead try to feel what is being offered then you might find this story scratching under the surface of your skin long after you put it down.
I want to thank the author, the publisher Tor Nightfire, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
emmmmjay's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
rb8985's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
boe_zown's review against another edition
4.25
I don’t think I could ever recommend this book. however, I loved it. this was definitely the grossest book I’ve ever read, but there’s something so captivating about queer body horror. I couldn’t stop reading it, and even though I was horrified, I really enjoyed it.
killyourdarlings105's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0