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cinthiaurora's review against another edition
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I picked this up because I wanted something spooky, but still lighthearted and easy to read, and the good news was that this delivered. While Rachel Harrison’s writing WAS easy to read though, I found her writing flowed really well and was very introspective. Premise of the book sounds like a pitch for a sitcom, which for me is a plus. If it WAS a sitcom I would watch 10 seasons of it. Good read if you know what to expect!
I deducted .5 because Annie and Sophie never kissed. And another .5 because at a certain point it was just unbelievable to me that Annie moves to a pretty new town where she befriends a LITERAL WITCH who cooks for her and makes her dresses and shows her her own magic powers AND has a cute little spider side-kick….and she’s STILL thinking about her loser ex-boyfriend? She’s literally insane. Also I really thought for a minute there that all the character development we did manage to get from her would be undone when she decided to see Sam. I literally had zero faith in her. None whatsoever. So a pleasant surprise she turned it around in the end. Anyways, Annie and Sophie should have kissed. I don’t care if Sophie was a little toxic. I support women’s wrongs. Otherwise pretty solid read.
Moderate: Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, and Cursing
Minor: Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
sarahholliday's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I absolutely loved The Return (Harrison's first novel), but Cackle just didn't hit the right note for me. It felt like the story stayed very surface-level, possibly because we never go to really dig into the minds and lives of the other inhabitants of Rowan due to the close first-person narration.
While I liked that both Sophie and Annie defy categorization as "good" or "evil," and really appreciate the obvious feminist argument being made re: independent, confident women, I also felt like that approach was only possible because Harrison refused to interrogate the moral complexities of the women's choices.
That being said, this was still a delightfully creepy-without-being-scary read focused on female friendship and the importance of finding one's sense of self. Fun, spooky, and perfect for Fall reading!
While I liked that both Sophie and Annie defy categorization as "good" or "evil," and really appreciate the obvious feminist argument being made re: independent, confident women, I also felt like that approach was only possible because Harrison refused to interrogate the moral complexities of the women's choices.
That being said, this was still a delightfully creepy-without-being-scary read focused on female friendship and the importance of finding one's sense of self. Fun, spooky, and perfect for Fall reading!
Graphic: Blood, Alcohol, and Body horror
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Death of parent
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