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hillmert's review against another edition
4.0
A series of horror short stories with a Native American point of view, featuring a family across generations. Very creative and interesting. I found it addictive to listen to. Great storytelling.
turt_le's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-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? It's complicated
3.0
mkoehn's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
madkat320's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
lesserjoke's review against another edition
4.0
This is such a nifty idea for a short story collection, with every entry following different members of the same extended Cherokee family yet moving steadily forward in time, ultimately spanning from 1839 to 2039. (There are a few callbacks and recurring characters across the text, but mostly each tale stands fine on its own.) It's a horror and sci-fi project populated with plenty of pulpy monsters, from vampires to werewolves to zombies and more, while also centering author Andrea L. Rogers's #ownvoices cultural perspective and the insidious terrors of racism, domestic abuse, and intergenerational trauma. Despite these heavy themes, it's overall a quick read, and a shiver-inducing delight throughout.
Other reviews mention the gorgeousness of the accompanying illustrations and design choices in the printed book, but I was impressed even just listening to the digital audio version.
[Content warning for gun violence and gore.]
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Other reviews mention the gorgeousness of the accompanying illustrations and design choices in the printed book, but I was impressed even just listening to the digital audio version.
[Content warning for gun violence and gore.]
Like this review?
--Throw me a quick one-time donation here!
https://ko-fi.com/lesserjoke
--Subscribe here to support my writing and weigh in on what I read next!
https://patreon.com/lesserjoke
--Follow along on Goodreads here!
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/6288479-joe-kessler
--Or click here to browse through all my previous reviews!
https://lesserjoke.home.blog
bookishsystem's review
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
momokomoon94's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
erine's review against another edition
5.0
The first story surprised me, hitting hard and fast with terror and gore. I had very little time to connect to the characters before they were dead or devastated, and felt disoriented by the story. Then the story thread begins to skip, hop, and jump through this family tree, dipping in and then out of the family timeline.
Story formats and length vary, but each one offers another piece of the family history. It feels like a twisted genealogy project; you know you will never have a complete picture, but slowly the pieces offer the suggestion of a fully formed landscape even if much is still fuzzy.
Monsters abide in these stories, beginning with vampires and quickly moving through ghosts, werewolves, aliens, mad scientists, and zombies. But human monsters linger as well, committers of genocide, abusers, murderers, rapists, and the like. These stories carry weight, and some might be too heavy. But to share the stories helps to share the burden. And there are many moments of community care here, too: siblings and friends looking out for each other, ghosts offering warnings to the living, monsters watching out for worse monsters.
My favorite story was the least horror-filled and told of a mysterious ocean creature taking up residence in a family pool. Sadness and grief played big roles, but things ended rather hopefully. I also really appreciated the final story, a zombie story. While absolutely devastating, it tied everything back to the first character in a pretty satisfying way.
Thoughtful and worth discussing.
This book was one of the 2023-2024 Read Across America selections, which has been a great resource for finding interesting new books (https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/read-across-america/find-your-book/man-made-monsters).
Story formats and length vary, but each one offers another piece of the family history. It feels like a twisted genealogy project; you know you will never have a complete picture, but slowly the pieces offer the suggestion of a fully formed landscape even if much is still fuzzy.
Monsters abide in these stories, beginning with vampires and quickly moving through ghosts, werewolves, aliens, mad scientists, and zombies. But human monsters linger as well, committers of genocide, abusers, murderers, rapists, and the like. These stories carry weight, and some might be too heavy. But to share the stories helps to share the burden. And there are many moments of community care here, too: siblings and friends looking out for each other, ghosts offering warnings to the living, monsters watching out for worse monsters.
My favorite story was the least horror-filled and told of a mysterious ocean creature taking up residence in a family pool. Sadness and grief played big roles, but things ended rather hopefully. I also really appreciated the final story, a zombie story. While absolutely devastating, it tied everything back to the first character in a pretty satisfying way.
Thoughtful and worth discussing.
This book was one of the 2023-2024 Read Across America selections, which has been a great resource for finding interesting new books (https://www.nea.org/professional-excellence/student-engagement/read-across-america/find-your-book/man-made-monsters).
mikefromarkansas's review against another edition
4.0
I met this author at an author event in Little Rock and had to get her book. Andrea L Rogers is Cherokee and this book is a collection of short stories in the horror genre. What is unique about this collection is that it’s woven over a couple hundred years with the same extended family. It’s starts off strong in 1830s Texas as the Texas Rangers are pursuing a Cherokee tribe. Should they be worried about the lawmen or some vampires wandering into camp. My favorite is probably about alien sea creatures living in the families pool. And no horror collection can be complete without zombies.
There also profound monsters of man and colonialism too. I really loved being immersed in Cherokee folklore and horror from an indigenous family’s lens. I didn’t think it was too gory but haunting all the same.
There also profound monsters of man and colonialism too. I really loved being immersed in Cherokee folklore and horror from an indigenous family’s lens. I didn’t think it was too gory but haunting all the same.
easefcik's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
This was an incredible collection of stories connected with threads through the entire work. Fictional monsters blur with human monsters. It’s incredible.