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gorbon's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Terminal illness, and Suicide
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic and Vomit
seawarrior's review against another edition
4.0
Whalefall is a thrilling and tragic novel of a young man learning to let some of his anger toward his father wash away while attempting to survive insurmountable odds. I thought this story was well written, but the extremely brief chapters were sometimes jarring and made it difficult to feel drawn into the book until the terrifying journey inside the whale began. I appreciate Kraus' focus on scientific accuracy, which led an edge of realism to this tale. I would recommend this book to readers interested in body horror, and look forward to watching the upcoming feature film.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Grief, Terminal illness, Suicide, Child abuse, Confinement, Blood, Death of parent, Gore, and Vomit
majestictrilobite's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Medical content, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Terminal illness, Vomit, Bullying, Child abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicide
dlberglund's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Confinement, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicide
melitta's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Animal death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, and Confinement
Moderate: Terminal illness, Death of parent, Grief, and Cancer
sylvestra's review
adventurous
emotional
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Suicide, and Confinement
Moderate: Gore, Cancer, and Animal death
schnurln's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Death of parent and Suicide
dominiquediane's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
When Jay decides to dive to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean of the coast of Monastery Beach, he only has one mission: find his dead father’s remains and bring them home to the family. Maybe then he can unload some of the guilt he’s been shouldering - guilt over not being there as his father battled cancer. Guilt over not being there when his father begged to see him again. Over not being there when his father decided to take his own life rather than suffer any longer. His father was one of the best divers in the area and he taught Jay everything he knew. So Jay is pretty confident that a rescue mission for his father’s remains is something he can safely accomplish. But after only a short time in the water, the unthinkable - the seemingly impossible - happens. Jay is swallowed alive by a whale.
Thus begins one of the BEST books I have read since I first read the Zebulon Finch duology (also by Kraus). I honestly have no notes on how this book could be any better than it already is. Whales my favorite animal, and Kraus is my favorite author, so I had high expectations going in, but this book did not disappoint me in the slightest.
Not only is the story deep and profound, exploring the ways in which we feel and comes to terms with guilt and grief and parental relationships, but the *descriptions*. I could SEE the bioluminescent squid and jellyfish. I could FEEL the walls of the whale’s stomach grinding and pulsing. I could HEAR the whale's haunting, mournful call out into the wild ocean. If David Attenborough were to narrate a ocean horror documentary, it would be this book.
Also, I have to add that I rarely react visibly or out loud when reading a book, but the number of times I gasped, winced, and cringed throughout this story - I couldn’t help it. Parts of it even had me almost screaming in shock/horror. The writing had me so submerged in the story. The pacing was also absolutely brilliant, I could have read the entire book in one sitting but I forced myself to read it slower just to make it last longer. Even then, I only managed to make it last three days.
I still feel beyond lucky and grateful that I received an arc of this book - thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review it. I’ve already preordered my hard copy and absolutely cannot wait for it to arrive so I can read Whalefall all over again. Highly, highly recommend. 10/5 stars.
Thus begins one of the BEST books I have read since I first read the Zebulon Finch duology (also by Kraus). I honestly have no notes on how this book could be any better than it already is. Whales my favorite animal, and Kraus is my favorite author, so I had high expectations going in, but this book did not disappoint me in the slightest.
Not only is the story deep and profound, exploring the ways in which we feel and comes to terms with guilt and grief and parental relationships, but the *descriptions*. I could SEE the bioluminescent squid and jellyfish. I could FEEL the walls of the whale’s stomach grinding and pulsing. I could HEAR the whale's haunting, mournful call out into the wild ocean. If David Attenborough were to narrate a ocean horror documentary, it would be this book.
Also, I have to add that I rarely react visibly or out loud when reading a book, but the number of times I gasped, winced, and cringed throughout this story - I couldn’t help it. Parts of it even had me almost screaming in shock/horror. The writing had me so submerged in the story. The pacing was also absolutely brilliant, I could have read the entire book in one sitting but I forced myself to read it slower just to make it last longer. Even then, I only managed to make it last three days.
I still feel beyond lucky and grateful that I received an arc of this book - thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review it. I’ve already preordered my hard copy and absolutely cannot wait for it to arrive so I can read Whalefall all over again. Highly, highly recommend. 10/5 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement and Gore
Moderate: Suicide and Death of parent
shelby_7664's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
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
While diving in an attempt to find his deceased father's remains, Jay witnesses something that few people have ever seen- a giant squid, alive and floating in front of him. The situation quickly turns deadly when a sperm whale comes to eat the squid and Jay becomes entangled in the squid's tentacles and is swallowed along with it. Jay must figure out a way to escape before his oxygen runs out.
I really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced and great for readers who like scientific elements included in their thrillers. I appreciated author's attention to detail, although warning to anyone with a sensitive stomach- there are some pretty gnarly descriptions of injuries and the contents of a whale's stomach. The discussions and realizations surrounding Jay's tumultuous relationship with his father gave the story real depth (pun intended), made me cry, and I think will resonate with a lot of people.
I would recommend this to people who enjoyed Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, Devolution by Max Brooks, and Artemis by Andy Weir.
Disclaimer: I received an advance copy of Whalefall from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
I really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced and great for readers who like scientific elements included in their thrillers. I appreciated author's attention to detail, although warning to anyone with a sensitive stomach- there are some pretty gnarly descriptions of injuries and the contents of a whale's stomach. The discussions and realizations surrounding Jay's tumultuous relationship with his father gave the story real depth (pun intended), made me cry, and I think will resonate with a lot of people.
I would recommend this to people who enjoyed Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, Devolution by Max Brooks, and Artemis by Andy Weir.
Disclaimer: I received an advance copy of Whalefall from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, Vomit, Animal death, Body horror, Terminal illness, Confinement, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
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