Reviews tagging 'Death'

We Ate the Dark by Mallory Pearson

13 reviews

tspice24's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious slow-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

2.5


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cjeannette's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad tense slow-paced
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.0

I really wanted to like this book - it’s a gothic horror with thrilling elements, a women forward cast with diverse identities. And I just couldn’t get into it. I kept hoping for more each chapter so I kept reading but often found myself confused or lost in the writing.

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sovner736's review

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I really enjoyed the first 3/4 of this book, I thought it was easy to read and I loved the way the relationship between the characters was depicted. However, the final act of the book was extremely hard to understand with too many overlapping plots and an ending that was so dissatifying. It feels like the author was unsure of how she wanted to end the story and just kind of spilled all her ideas onto the page.

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nixkelley's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.5


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abitbetterbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I received an ELC of this book from the author via NetGalley as we are mutuals on bookstagram❤️

I am delighted to have finally read We Ate The Dark— it feels like forever ago and yesterday that the publication announcement was made! I always have said I’m not a horror person, but that was before I discovered queer horror. Now I think it’s one of my favourite genres.

I loved the setting of the story, and I could feel the muggy North Carolina summer even though it’s the dead of winter in Canada right now. I felt like I could smell the damp earth, hear the cicadas buzzing, it was so immersive. The prose was dynamic and deeply descriptive, positively overflowing with metaphor and emotion. The characters felt real and complicated and super messy. 

I feel like if you like the Raven Cycle, but wish it was sapphic, this is the perfect book for you. I think I’m still processing that ending (cause like wtf) and maybe need to read it again because I’m not sure I really got / understood what happened in the last few climactic scenes. 

My #1 complaint about the book is that I don’t think I really connected with the audiobook narrator. I’m not sure if it was an accent thing but the word “skull” was always pronounced like “scoll” and it took me out of the story every time!!! 

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ldockham's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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

2.0


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sarah_mcmullan_nz's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Lyrical but sometimes confusing. 
I'm not 100% sure I fully followed the details of the story but I got the general idea. I liked the lyrical language and the imagery painted. Also the way aspects of wicca and folklore were woven in. Interesting though occasionally frustrating. 

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semeyers's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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rogue_otter's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0


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tayler_morg's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This book was so beautifully written. The horror aspects of it weren't especially terrifying, but the language that Pearson used throughout the whole book gave it such a haunting atmosphere, and made the scary parts that much scarier. 
I truly loved the depiction of the women's relationships with each other. They were more than friends or sisters without being lovers, and they felt so real and raw through both generations. 

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