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inirac's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Medical content, Cancer, Body horror, Blood, Grief, Terminal illness, Gore, Death, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Confinement, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, and Panic attacks/disorders
ryanwhitley's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Cancer, Terminal illness, and Abandonment
pvp_niki's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Grief, Animal death, Cancer, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Gore, Blood, Emotional abuse, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Vomit and Cursing
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic and Alcohol
evanmather's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Gore, Grief, and Blood
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Suicide, Vomit, Alcoholism, Death, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Cancer
annaxavila's review
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Suicide, Gore, Animal death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Blood, Terminal illness, Cancer, and Emotional abuse
nerdygnome's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
While unique in its own right, "Whalefall" feels a bit like the oceanic version of "The Martian" — a solo man, left to fend for himself under seemingly insurmountable survival odds. As you might then expect, "Whalefall" is atmospheric and tense. What you may not expect, though, is that along with this pervasive sense of adventure comes a good deal of quiet reflection. Readers are taken both deep into the ocean and deep into the protagonist's emotional growth.
Jay, a young man estranged from his family, is making an epic attempt at reconciling with his relatives. He's on a deep-dive quest to locate the remains of his deceased father, who committed suicide by leaping into the sea. Jay is convinced that by doing so, his mother and sister will forgive him for staying away from his father's deathbed even when his father was begging to see him. Just when it seems he may have succeeded, Jay is accidentally eaten by a 60-ton sperm whale and must try to battle his way out of the whale and to the surface before his oxygen tank runs out.
I enjoyed the clever, crisp writing that Kraus delivers. While I did sometimes feel that the graphic descriptions of his battles against whale flesh were long winded, it's safe to say I was suitably enchanted by the story throughout. Flashbacks to Jay's childhood experiences gave me a breather from his ardurous task of escaping the whale, and slowly revealed the complexities of his relationship with his dad. While it has the feel of an adventure story, at its core "Whalefall" is instead a beautiful testimony to the parent-child relationship (even, perhaps especially, when flawed), grief, reconciliation, and love.
Graphic: Death of parent, Suicide, Grief, Terminal illness, Gore, and Animal death
atalea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Confinement
Moderate: Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Animal cruelty, Blood, Alcoholism, Cancer, Suicide, Abandonment, Death, and Bullying
Minor: Homophobia, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny
cassie7e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
Warnings:
- Emphasis on "interminable" - if you're looking for a plot heavy thriller, this is not for you. Even for me it dragged on.
- Nonlinear timeline, mimics memories bubbling up. I love this style but it's polarizing.
- Many graphic descriptions of injury and slogging through slow confused obstinate thoughts.
The acknowledgement of covid in 2021-onward parts of the timeline was startling (how long until it isn't anymore?) but it's merely part of the setting, not part of the story at least.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Animal death, Body horror, Grief, and Gore
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Suicide, Cancer, Confinement, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Vomit, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic
meganpbell's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death of parent and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Terminal illness, Suicide, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Animal cruelty, Medical content, Grief, and Blood
limina's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Grief, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Terminal illness, Animal death, Suicide, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Death of parent
Minor: Vomit