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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
dark
tense
medium-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
Probably not a book that should have been written, but damn did it give me chills.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
The beginning of this book was so good, it probably should have just been a short story. It became so repetitive and started feeling like a white savior book.
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:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism
It's been a few months since a read a horror novel, and this was a great one to return to.
Stolen Tongues makes great use of creepy imagery, descriptions, and specifically some excellent use of sound. Our supernatural stuff is great, but the use of dreams, sleep walking, and just creepy behavior was also really well done. A lot of it comes right out from horror that has been done before, but it was described and used so well that I didn't care.
I have heard some readers complain that the pacing was an issue for them, feeling like it vamped up too fast, and then kept delivering the same types of scares. I'm not certain I agree. The story goes from 0-100 pretty fast, which I do think means we don't know our characters too well before all hell breaks loose, but I think each act of the book manages to dangle new reveals, behaviors, and scenes in ways that kept me engaged and excited.
The characters, particularly the main characters, felt pretty good. Maybe it is because I saw a lot of myself in the MC, and my wife in Faye. But I think being able to resonate with a character is evidence that characters were done well.
I do think our Native American characters were very likable; other then the main characters I think they were the Tiwe and his son were the only other fleshed out characters, but i'm not quite certain they are the nuanced characters that Blackwell thought they were. Hey speaks pretty eloquently about the reasons why he used Native American characters, despite some of the problematic grounds horror often assigns them too. His aren't stock spiritual savior characters, but I do think that they still sort of fell into "spiritual savior" even if they admit they don't have or know much more then Felix our MC. I don't think this was bad depiction, but I also don't think it is amazing either. I also respect the attempt, since Blackwell acknowledges that it would be wrong to erase Native Americans from the story, since the creature is from their mythology.
Final thing of note, important to all horror is the ending. Many MANY horror novels really fail to stick the ending. Stolen Tongues's ending isn't my favorite, but I found it acceptable. Blackwell leaves a lot of threads dangling, I think purposefully so, fully explained horror often ends up the least satisfying. But, things tied up fast, and a bit too neatly for me, and the twist I didn't find particularly shocking considering what the characters were going through.
Overall, I really loved this book. I couldn't put it down. Many moments had me nervously looking over my shoulder or in closets after reading. It was spooky, but fun spooky. I think people who love supernatural horror will have a blast with it.
Stolen Tongues makes great use of creepy imagery, descriptions, and specifically some excellent use of sound. Our supernatural stuff is great, but the use of dreams, sleep walking, and just creepy behavior was also really well done. A lot of it comes right out from horror that has been done before, but it was described and used so well that I didn't care.
I have heard some readers complain that the pacing was an issue for them, feeling like it vamped up too fast, and then kept delivering the same types of scares. I'm not certain I agree. The story goes from 0-100 pretty fast, which I do think means we don't know our characters too well before all hell breaks loose, but I think each act of the book manages to dangle new reveals, behaviors, and scenes in ways that kept me engaged and excited.
The characters, particularly the main characters, felt pretty good. Maybe it is because I saw a lot of myself in the MC, and my wife in Faye. But I think being able to resonate with a character is evidence that characters were done well.
I do think our Native American characters were very likable; other then the main characters I think they were the Tiwe and his son were the only other fleshed out characters, but i'm not quite certain they are the nuanced characters that Blackwell thought they were. Hey speaks pretty eloquently about the reasons why he used Native American characters, despite some of the problematic grounds horror often assigns them too. His aren't stock spiritual savior characters, but I do think that they still sort of fell into "spiritual savior" even if they admit they don't have or know much more then Felix our MC. I don't think this was bad depiction, but I also don't think it is amazing either. I also respect the attempt, since Blackwell acknowledges that it would be wrong to erase Native Americans from the story, since the creature is from their mythology.
Final thing of note, important to all horror is the ending. Many MANY horror novels really fail to stick the ending. Stolen Tongues's ending isn't my favorite, but I found it acceptable. Blackwell leaves a lot of threads dangling, I think purposefully so, fully explained horror often ends up the least satisfying. But, things tied up fast, and a bit too neatly for me, and the twist I didn't find particularly shocking considering what the characters were going through.
Overall, I really loved this book. I couldn't put it down. Many moments had me nervously looking over my shoulder or in closets after reading. It was spooky, but fun spooky. I think people who love supernatural horror will have a blast with it.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
fast-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes