Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Man Made Monsters by Andrea L. Rogers

3 reviews

katrinky's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense

3.5

too gruesome for me, and I didn't think the extensive family tree added much. there were several really beautiful (sakonige) and poignant (deer woman, Ama's appearance in the zombie story, the dad of the girl with the abusive ex, the cousin in the carbon monoxide story) moments, and the artwork is gorgeous. the vocabulary on the back was wonderful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Blood, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Chronic illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Child death, Terminal illness, Mass/school shootings, Animal death, Grief, Violence, and Sexual violence

rorikae's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense medium-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? Yes

4.25

Man Made Monsters by Andrea L. Rogers is a collection of horror short stories that incorporate classic horror creatures with the lived experiences of Indigenous teens. I really appreciated that the collection has a variety of stories of different lengths, both those that are short and horrifically to the point along with those that are longer and tell a more developed story. 
Rogers does a great job of creating subtly creeping horror elements that pair with more overt horror creatures . My favorite stories include the titular Man Made Monsters, which delves into ideas of literary monsters and bringing people and animals back from the dead. Maria Most likely, which delves into horrific memories and what would happen if they could be removed. Me and My Monsters, which is a monster love story that looks at how humanity can often be more monstrous than monstrous creatures. Ama's Boys which tackles how a seemingly young girl who is actually a vampire preys on teen boys. American Predators, which follows one boy's experience with shooting a movie and the racism that Indigenous people have to deal with on a daily basis. And Zombies Attack the Drive-In, which deals with domestic abuse, familial trauma, and of course zombies. 
I am fascinated to see what Rogers writes next as she has a great feel for atmosphere and creating creeping horror. I would love to read more of her work, particularly in a longer format as I really appreciate what she did in her longer stories with character development and painting a full picture of the characters' lives.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Gore, Terminal illness, Violence, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Colonisation

kayladaila's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious medium-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? N/A

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Death, Death of parent, Blood, Body horror, Grief, Toxic relationship, and Gore

Moderate: Alcohol, Abandonment, Toxic friendship, Genocide, Racial slurs, Animal death, Child death, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Cancer, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Homophobia, Rape, and Child abuse