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sabrinz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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
4.25
I really could not put this one down. Despite it being a bigger book the pages flew by.
The story is told from the point of view of different characters, but the different chapters all fit seamlessly together and provide a cohesive and continuous story.
The story mainly follows 14-year-old Lauren (typical teenager - and I mean this in a very convincing way that she is contrary, emotional and not as wise as she would like to be, but it's not in a way that would make reading her chapters annoying).
We are in the 90s and 1 year has passed since Lauren's father has been killed - allegedly by a drifter. While Lauren navigates teenage life and realized that she and her best friend are slowly drifting apart in their friendship and what they find important, there are strange things going on in this small town. When two young girls are found murdered in a backyard, it is only the beginning; and Lauren is determined to figure out what happened to them and why no one seems to care about their death - or her father's.
The story is told from the point of view of different characters, but the different chapters all fit seamlessly together and provide a cohesive and continuous story.
The story mainly follows 14-year-old Lauren (typical teenager - and I mean this in a very convincing way that she is contrary, emotional and not as wise as she would like to be, but it's not in a way that would make reading her chapters annoying).
We are in the 90s and 1 year has passed since Lauren's father has been killed - allegedly by a drifter. While Lauren navigates teenage life and realized that she and her best friend are slowly drifting apart in their friendship and what they find important, there are strange things going on in this small town. When two young girls are found murdered in a backyard, it is only the beginning; and Lauren is determined to figure out what happened to them and why no one seems to care about their death - or her father's.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Racism, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Eating disorder, Vomit, Death of parent, and Child death
sonygaystation's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Cool concept but muddy execution. Especially towards the end. Plus i felt the slurs and vitriol to express racism was so unnecessarily too much
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Death, Child death, Racial slurs, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Racism, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual content, Murder, Gun violence, Hate crime, Adult/minor relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Body shaming, Medical content, Emotional abuse, Deportation, Pregnancy, and Infidelity
thekissballad's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? No
2.5
The idea was good, but poorly executed, in my opinion. As much as it pains me, 2.5, and that .5 is a gift because of the potential. The rest of my review may contain spoilers so it's hidden just in case.
First and foremost, Mrs. Schneider deserved a lot worse than a shot in the foot and being slapped / punched. Her POV also felt pointless. The only time her BS mattered was right at the end, and that scene could have easily been rewritten or removed all together.
Second, Miranda's POV was completely unnecessary. Her "slutty" thoughts and behaviors had no real purpose. She was so vapid and shallow that when she died, I wasn't moved. I was actually kind of glad. Sorry, not sorry.
Third, the witchy aspects were completely wasted and not thought out very well. Hell, Lauren ignored it and refused to believe it until the very end. Then David, the one character who even did anything truly witchy, was a side character.
Not to mention the "end the curse" moment was so anti-climactic, and the ending itself left much to be desired.
Fourth, the whole dynamic between Lauren and her mom, Karen, is ridiculous. There's so much hate between them over the most pointless of shit, and then Lauren finally gets her first period and suddenly things are better? How tf does that make any sense? If this were a day or two thing, sure, I could see it, but the fact that Lauren alludes to their discourse having started shortly after (if not before) her father died, makes it such a cop out.
Additionally, Lauren suddenly switching personalities all because Jake expressed his feelings? Ugh.
Fifth, the repetition and abundance of minute details was the real killer of this book. I feel like you could have cut out all of this, plus Miranda's POV and a few others, and reworked Mrs. Schneider's existance, and you'd have a much better story. Possibly novella. And I'd probably have enjoyed it then. This just felt like an attempt to write a full novel, without having enough content to actually write the length needed.
Second, Miranda's POV was completely unnecessary. Her "slutty" thoughts and behaviors had no real purpose. She was so vapid and shallow that when she died, I wasn't moved. I was actually kind of glad. Sorry, not sorry.
Third, the witchy aspects were completely wasted and not thought out very well. Hell, Lauren ignored it and refused to believe it until the very end. Then David, the one character who even did anything truly witchy, was a side character.
Not to mention the "end the curse" moment was so anti-climactic, and the ending itself left much to be desired.
Fourth, the whole dynamic between Lauren and her mom, Karen, is ridiculous. There's so much hate between them over the most pointless of shit, and then Lauren finally gets her first period and suddenly things are better? How tf does that make any sense? If this were a day or two thing, sure, I could see it, but the fact that Lauren alludes to their discourse having started shortly after (if not before) her father died, makes it such a cop out.
Additionally, Lauren suddenly switching personalities all because Jake expressed his feelings? Ugh.
Fifth, the repetition and abundance of minute details was the real killer of this book. I feel like you could have cut out all of this, plus Miranda's POV and a few others, and reworked Mrs. Schneider's existance, and you'd have a much better story. Possibly novella. And I'd probably have enjoyed it then. This just felt like an attempt to write a full novel, without having enough content to actually write the length needed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Toxic friendship, Violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Racism, Vomit, Child death, Death of parent, Death, and Racial slurs
bastieboi's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Grief, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Xenophobia, Pedophilia, Death, Child death, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Toxic friendship, Racial slurs, Hate crime, Vomit, Sexism, Alcoholism, and Eating disorder
apersonfromflorida's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Murder, and Blood
Moderate: Eating disorder, Xenophobia, Vomit, Racism, Racial slurs, and Alcoholism
Minor: Sexual content
andromeda_1998's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The ghost tree is one of those books that isn’t really in my favorite genre but that I do like to read now and then. It’s refreshing to read something different. Now, what did I think of the ghost tree?
Summary
This book is about Lauren and the other residents of the little town named Smith’s Hollow. There town is a quite peaceful one. Nothing ever really happens is Smith’s Hallow accept for the murder of Lauren’s dad of course almost a year ago. While her family is still healing from his death, strange things are starting to happen. Two broken bodies of out of town teens are found in the backyard of a villager and now it’s up to Lauren to find out the truth about the murders.
Characters
This is a though one. These characters are very well done but the aren’t written to please. They symbolize all different kind of people from Bigots to friendly mothers. There are characters with toxic ideals and there are characters that you will want to root for. Christina Henry doesn’t shy away from racism as well. If your looking for a book with lovable characters then this isn’t it. Are you looking for realistic characters? This might be the book for you.
Worldbuilding
The ghost tree is set in a world like ours so there isn’t a lot of world building but it has some twists that are well done. The only thing I miss is clear rules for the “magic/supernatural ” parts of this book.
Plot
The book started really strong but in the middle of the book it lost its flow for a bit. I feel like that has something to do with the repetition of the storyline. Towards the ending the book finds its way back on track. Just hand in there!
Writing style
Christina Henry had a way with writing that makes all the story’s she writes read like a fairytale. It’s a really compelling way of writing that I don’t get enough of.
Overal thoughts
This book is a good read for readers that are looking for a start in the horror genre. It’s fast, witty, a bit creepy but not to scary. I would recommend it to ages 14-18 but 14 years old is on the younger side of things.
Summary
This book is about Lauren and the other residents of the little town named Smith’s Hollow. There town is a quite peaceful one. Nothing ever really happens is Smith’s Hallow accept for the murder of Lauren’s dad of course almost a year ago. While her family is still healing from his death, strange things are starting to happen. Two broken bodies of out of town teens are found in the backyard of a villager and now it’s up to Lauren to find out the truth about the murders.
Characters
This is a though one. These characters are very well done but the aren’t written to please. They symbolize all different kind of people from Bigots to friendly mothers. There are characters with toxic ideals and there are characters that you will want to root for. Christina Henry doesn’t shy away from racism as well. If your looking for a book with lovable characters then this isn’t it. Are you looking for realistic characters? This might be the book for you.
Worldbuilding
The ghost tree is set in a world like ours so there isn’t a lot of world building but it has some twists that are well done. The only thing I miss is clear rules for the “magic/supernatural ” parts of this book.
Plot
The book started really strong but in the middle of the book it lost its flow for a bit. I feel like that has something to do with the repetition of the storyline. Towards the ending the book finds its way back on track. Just hand in there!
Writing style
Christina Henry had a way with writing that makes all the story’s she writes read like a fairytale. It’s a really compelling way of writing that I don’t get enough of.
Overal thoughts
This book is a good read for readers that are looking for a start in the horror genre. It’s fast, witty, a bit creepy but not to scary. I would recommend it to ages 14-18 but 14 years old is on the younger side of things.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Vomit
sararainsberry's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Racism, Racial slurs, and Murder
Minor: Grief and Vomit
sheryl_macca's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
In Part 1 of The Ghost Tree we're introduced to siblings Lauren, 14 and David, 4. With the loss of their father still very fresh in their minds, they both start to experience unexplained visions but say nothing to anyone. They live with their frazzled mother in the small town of Smith's Hallow which in the mid 1980's is full of teen angst, bigotry and money worries. When two girls are brutally murdered the town has some strange ideas why.
Part 2 gives us the wisdom of Lauren and David's grandmother, Jo. She tells the children of the legend of Smith's Hallow. Her house on the hill, as the legend goes, was once home to three witches who placed a curse on the town.
Part 3 brings the tragic legend to life for the towns folk of Smith's Hallow and especially for Lauren and David. The founding families have been unknowingly bound together throughout the history of the town, until now. They are suddenly threatened by an anomaly in the curse which changes the future of Smith's Hallow and for everyone in it t .
The Ghost Tree is a fairytale mixed with lots of teenage drama. Although my copy of the book was listed as adult fiction it feels very YA. It reminded me of the TV series The Vampire Diaries but without the glossy beauty and sexiness. It's somewhat predictable and structurally simple but I enjoyed the escapism, the 1980's references and the budding awkward romances. The swearing is most definitely not YA appropriate but it's rare and shocking when it happens. The descriptions of the bodies are also too graphic for YA but not graphic enough for a horror devotee like me.
Part 2 gives us the wisdom of Lauren and David's grandmother, Jo. She tells the children of the legend of Smith's Hallow. Her house on the hill, as the legend goes, was once home to three witches who placed a curse on the town.
Part 3 brings the tragic legend to life for the towns folk of Smith's Hallow and especially for Lauren and David. The founding families have been unknowingly bound together throughout the history of the town, until now. They are suddenly threatened by an anomaly in the curse which changes the future of Smith's Hallow and for everyone in it t .
The Ghost Tree is a fairytale mixed with lots of teenage drama. Although my copy of the book was listed as adult fiction it feels very YA. It reminded me of the TV series The Vampire Diaries but without the glossy beauty and sexiness. It's somewhat predictable and structurally simple but I enjoyed the escapism, the 1980's references and the budding awkward romances. The swearing is most definitely not YA appropriate but it's rare and shocking when it happens. The descriptions of the bodies are also too graphic for YA but not graphic enough for a horror devotee like me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, and Vomit
Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, and Gun violence
sizzlingsaturn's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Racism, Violence, and Grief
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Xenophobia, and Racial slurs
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