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sortabadass's review
challenging
dark
sad
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Physical abuse
jesssicawho's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Just not for me. It was messy and I didn’t like any of the characters. In my opinion, it was less of a story about vampires and more about family dysfunction. Not poorly written, just not something I enjoyed reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic, Blood, and Emotional abuse
sfdogmom's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Minor: Body horror
macncheese_pdf's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Blood
Moderate: Gun violence and Gore
nika_nix's review
dark
emotional
sad
fast-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
4.0
This had me hooked from the very beginning and I was very much enjoying thos unique take on a vampire story. It was great throughout most of the book and I was thinking it might be a 5 star read, but the ending lost me a bit, maybe I didn't pay attention well enough, bit I feel like it came from nowhere and while I like the way the story ends, I don't necessarily like the execution of it. But still a great read, maybe not very horror-y, but definitely twisted and makes you think. I'll probably read the sequel at some point this year, but I don't feel like it's necessary.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Toxic relationship
anothergirlanotherbook's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Blood, Abandonment, Addiction, Pandemic/Epidemic, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
aparker89's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Lesbophobia, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Medical trauma, Grief, Outing, Mental illness, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Gore, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Stalking, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Drug use, Alcohol, Death, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Death of parent, Violence, and Self harm
Minor: Religious bigotry
aubreyhi's review
challenging
dark
emotional
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 really liked this exploration of emotional abuse from a parent using a vampire metaphor. It’s very difficult and triggering, and also a visceral way to imagine this sort of abuse. Thoughtful and deep.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Emotional abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Physical abuse, Addiction, and Panic attacks/disorders
Definitely emotional abuse from a parent.kalventure's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
4.5
I read this book a month ago and am still thinking about it. Night's Edge is powerfully evocative, lyrically written, and gritty with a story that you won't be able to put down.
I adored Kerin's debut novel The Phantom Forest so I was thrilled to receive an ARC to read it early for review. Thanks to the worst reading slump of my life, it took me much longer to pick this book up than intended but when I finally did Night's Edge consumed me and I devoured this book in a weekend. Normally I annotate while reading for review, but the four comments I have are basically me screaming at plot points. It's been so long since I've had this experience reading!
I adored Kerin's debut novel The Phantom Forest so I was thrilled to receive an ARC to read it early for review. Thanks to the worst reading slump of my life, it took me much longer to pick this book up than intended but when I finally did Night's Edge consumed me and I devoured this book in a weekend. Normally I annotate while reading for review, but the four comments I have are basically me screaming at plot points. It's been so long since I've had this experience reading!
"The night is starless. Clouds suffocate the moon."
The narrative is instantly gripping and sinks its teeth into you on the first page. Kerin's writing is sharp and descriptive, lyrical without feeling heavy, and the book keeps a steady pace, keeping me glued to my chair to watch the horrors unfold.
I love when books are tightly written and every scene serves a purpose, and Night's Edge is intricately plotted. It comes to a natural conclusion while leaving you ready for more in its sequel (April 2024 cannot come fast enough!).
"Sometimes it feels like she's moving backward through time. But maybe that's just me. Moving forward."
At its core, this book uses vampires as an allegory to explore codependency in families. There's so much that I could gush about Mia's relationship with Izzy, but I wanted to keep this review surface-level so you can experience it for yourself. One part that struck a cord with me is how Mia was forced to grow up too fast and now that she's an adult herself, her mother sees her as a child. How we perceive time and how that perception becomes distorted through trauma - I found my heart aching for both Mia and Izzy.
"I wonder what that's like, to know someone can't fight back. To take their silence as concession."
No good vampire tale is complete with an exploration of personal agency, control, and power - and Night's Edge is a damn good vampire story. There are many intersectionalities, which introduces a lot of nuance into an analysis. Nothing is black and white, and no person is truly good or evil - almost every character in some way has their agency taken from them.
I especially enjoyed how Kerin took the vampire mythos and made a story wholly her own. The pandemic adjacent worldbuilding paints a scene that feels all too real: our modern world overrun by a virus, only this virus is responsible for turning people into vampires. I hope that there will be more focus on the Saras in the sequel, because I feel like there's so much here to explore - especially with the ending!
"We need to believe that everyone we give our love to is a good person. But if they change... and if that change hurts us... what then? Are they still good, deep down? Because 'they weren't always like this'?"
Night's Edge deals with codependent familial relationships and may be a difficult for some so please read the content warnings to ensure that you're in the right headspace before picking it up.
Overall, Night's Edge is a powerful and raw exploration of codependency through the lens of vampires that will stay with you long after reading. It's action-packed in a cinematic way that I was able to clearly picture the book's events in my mind. It's uncomfortable to read at times but beautiful all the same.
Content Warnings: Blood & gore depiction, Child abuse, Gun violence
ARC provided by the publisher for consideration. This does not affect my opinion or the contents of my review. Quotations are from an unfinished proof and are subject to change upon final publication.
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Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Gun violence, and Child abuse
grey_jayne's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Night's Edge is really cool, set in a parallel present day where safety from vampires is a daily concern and built into the society. The narrative alternates between 2010 (where vampire events skew the timeline to different than ours) and Now. And this makes the book sci-fi, even though most of the story is as human as you can get, a lesbian coming of age story when Mia was 10 and 23. I'd love a movie, a book sequel, whatever to get more time with Mia, she's such a great character.
I do want to bring up that it's 2023 and naming voices "male" or "female" is so dated. It happens several times and really took me out of it.
I do want to bring up that it's 2023 and naming voices "male" or "female" is so dated. It happens several times and really took me out of it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Self harm, Pandemic/Epidemic, Confinement, Child abuse, Blood, and Toxic relationship