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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
This is my first foray into this author’s books and I must say, I just couldn’t really get into it. Sure, I could get some of the broader concepts underpinning the story but it was just too convoluted for me. To be fair, this is not really my preferred genre... I like the sci fi but not the gothic horror. Too many ‘stranger things’ vibes for me. Sadly it was a two star read for me that I couldn’t wait to get to the end.
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I thought it was great! If you’re a fan of Stephen King, I think you’d like this story because it carries a lot of the dark/supernatural elements you might expect from one of his stories.
This taunted me from my shelves for so long but, with the audio, I finally got to it!
It was spooky and engaging and I even kind of understood the multiple universes kind of story. And it went way faster than I expected!
It was spooky and engaging and I even kind of understood the multiple universes kind of story. And it went way faster than I expected!
A haunted house story that is truly innovative and thoughtful. It explores family relationships, the things we do to each other, and the damage we suffer. Wendig continues to impress me with the way he combines horror, humor, and sensitivity to the human condition. I can’t wait for his next one.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
After moving back to their hometown for their sensitive son a family is forced to reckon with the intergenerational trauma seemingly haunted them past the grave as wicked magic coalesces around them and intends to collapse on their son.
Strengths: The beginning of this book was strong. The horror crept up well and the characters were well realized. I was left guessing and wondering what was happening. It would switch between physical real horrors, psychological horrors and paranormal and was ramped up in an interesting way. The tension was carefully built and placed with many possibilities for what was happening appearing and being expounded upon. This story also had clear themes and messages it was relaying and speaking about, I could see that Wendig spent time in crafting characters and a story that allowed him to discuss this and what he had to say.
Weaknesses: The length of this book does it a disservice. It is hard to not notice the clunkiness or scenes that feel unnecessary when a horror book is this long. I recognize that not everything can be shorter or reduced but a lot of what is going on in here felt like it was so complicated it was tying itself into knots and causing tangles with other plot threads throughout the story. This also causes scenes that are meant to be important or emotional becoming slightly more cheesy because they have to be rushed through and have a quick revelation because the page count is being taken up by all this stuff that the story introduces and feels a need to attempt to straighten out. I quickly lost interest past the halfway mark because of this.
Lesson: Emotional scenes should not have to fight for page space and should take precedence in word count and length. The worldbuilding and the complicated knot that you have created in your story should not take precedence in its unraveling that character moments, revelations, emotional scenes and thematic messaging has to be rushed through and minimized. Let the novel breathe. 3/5
Strengths: The beginning of this book was strong. The horror crept up well and the characters were well realized. I was left guessing and wondering what was happening. It would switch between physical real horrors, psychological horrors and paranormal and was ramped up in an interesting way. The tension was carefully built and placed with many possibilities for what was happening appearing and being expounded upon. This story also had clear themes and messages it was relaying and speaking about, I could see that Wendig spent time in crafting characters and a story that allowed him to discuss this and what he had to say.
Weaknesses: The length of this book does it a disservice. It is hard to not notice the clunkiness or scenes that feel unnecessary when a horror book is this long. I recognize that not everything can be shorter or reduced but a lot of what is going on in here felt like it was so complicated it was tying itself into knots and causing tangles with other plot threads throughout the story. This also causes scenes that are meant to be important or emotional becoming slightly more cheesy because they have to be rushed through and have a quick revelation because the page count is being taken up by all this stuff that the story introduces and feels a need to attempt to straighten out. I quickly lost interest past the halfway mark because of this.
Lesson: Emotional scenes should not have to fight for page space and should take precedence in word count and length. The worldbuilding and the complicated knot that you have created in your story should not take precedence in its unraveling that character moments, revelations, emotional scenes and thematic messaging has to be rushed through and minimized. Let the novel breathe. 3/5
Chuck Wendig's books have for a long time been among some of my favourites but with this book he really out did himself. This book is beautiful and bloody in the best ways. Please keep writing horror, Chuck. You are SO good at it.
I'm definitely in the minority of this one, because I really wanted to like it more than I did. I really enjoyed the first half of the book, but then I found myself losing interest because it seemed like the book was dragging. I kept putting the book down, reading other books, and then trying to come back to this one. I finally finished it, and it felt like it could have been 100 pages shorter.
I am trying to articulate my problems with the book. It started off strong, and I enjoyed the mystery around the characters and locations. Then, I just could not care about the characters. This may have been a problem with listening to the book and not reading it.
I skipped the middle and read the ending, and the ending was just an end. The most enjoyable part of the ending was the author explaining his process of starting and stopping the book. I felt more emotion for the author on his hero's journey than for the characters in the book.
I may try this one again as a physical book because it started so strong, and there are some cool visuals.
I skipped the middle and read the ending, and the ending was just an end. The most enjoyable part of the ending was the author explaining his process of starting and stopping the book. I felt more emotion for the author on his hero's journey than for the characters in the book.
I may try this one again as a physical book because it started so strong, and there are some cool visuals.
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Felt too similar to Stephen King - I enjoyed the concepts and the character development but felt like I’ve read this before.