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fionamclary's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book was funny and full of heart. I loved our main characters and especially related to Mallory given that a chronic illness has been increasingly disabling me for the past year and a half. I enjoyed the take on a magical culture/society that maps nicely onto the human diversity of the real world.
However, I found the lore to be frustratingly thin. It didn't make sense to me how many seemingly basic aspects of magic were unknown to Occulture before the events of the story(such as spells and people being able to travel via witchlight) , and the history of the Ternion remained vague and confusing throughout. It meant that by the end I still didn't understand what it would actually mean for someone to summon or join the Ternion , and what the motivation/thought process would be that would lead someone to this decision. I also felt that the details of how the ritual murders themselves worked were very poorly fleshed out. E.g. how does one make the death blade ? How does it work? This was super frustrating and majorly detracted from the quality of the story. However, I think this author has a lot of potential, and I'd be intrigued if a second book happens, as the ending of this book seemed to be allowing for. There's still some mysteries unsolved!
Also, I really want a movie version now just so that Nathan Foad can play Theodore. I think that would go so hard.
However, I found the lore to be frustratingly thin. It didn't make sense to me how many seemingly basic aspects of magic were unknown to Occulture before the events of the story
Also, I really want a movie version now just so that Nathan Foad can play Theodore. I think that would go so hard.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Animal death, Ableism, Toxic relationship, Blood, Body horror, Cursing, and Murder
Minor: Medical content, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, and Violence
blewballoon's review
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Really struggling to rate this one, there are a lot of things I liked about it conceptually, but something also felt off the whole time. I think the dialogue sometimes didn't flow right and bent unnaturally to accommodate humor or to obfuscate a plot point. I figured out most of the pieces of the mystery really early on, and it was frustrating how much the book put those reveals off, even though I usually don't mind when that happens for me in a mystery book. It made The Undetectables seem incompetent. I appreciated the fibromyalgia representation, and I sympathize with Mallory, but I did find her hard to like from the beginning when she lashes out at Theodore . I loved Theodore, and Diana was pretty great as well. If there are more books in this universe I'll probably check them out. It's kind of like Halloween town for adults, which is fun, and maybe the off vibes I felt won't be as much of an issue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Grief, Death, and Chronic illness
Minor: Body horror, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, Animal death, and Ableism
madamenovelist's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Chronic illness, Body horror, Cursing, Medical trauma, Medical content, Gore, and Grief
Moderate: Confinement
analenegrace's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
As a reader with Fibromyalgia, I thought reading a book where the MC had the same disability would be enjoyable, but unfortunately (in the best way possible), Mallory was so relatable that certain sections of the book made me put it down because I was so emotional seeing myself and my disability reflected on the page. Smythe, as a fibro-having author, is an amazing author, and I cannot thank them enough for putting themself and myself on the page.
Plotwise, the first half of this book is quite slow, and it took me a while to get into the mystery part, but at about the 50% mark, it picked up, and I flew through the second half. Mysteries are not my favorite genre, but this, a fantasy setting with queer and disabled characters, was very enjoyable. The twists and turns were engaging, and although I figured out who did it before the reveal, it was less than ten pages before the reveal when I said, "Oh shit wait what if it's this character!?!?" so Smythe did a great job of keeping the reader on their toes with who the murderer was.
I felt like some of the dialogue between these characters felt too young for how old they are, but I appreciated Mallory's internal dialogue beyond her disability; her relationship with her best friends was very relatable and understandable as a disabled queer reader. I was a little unhappy with the last little bit as I was hoping that the character would stay gone, but I understand that for the sequel to work, this character needed to return. Lastly, I was not particularly a fan of how they decided to continue working with the cops, even if they weren't signing a contract, simply Fuck the Police...
I am really looking forward to the sequel, even with my criticisms!
Best Line: "Mallory was sick of grinning and bearing every little thing that came her way. Sick of accepting help and pretending it didn't make her feel like shit, sick of also being afraid to ask, never quite able to smush the feelings down, never quite able to contain her grief, her rage, her loneliness. Sick of having a career on a plate and not being able to grasp it with both hands. Sick of being sick."
Plotwise, the first half of this book is quite slow, and it took me a while to get into the mystery part, but at about the 50% mark, it picked up, and I flew through the second half. Mysteries are not my favorite genre, but this, a fantasy setting with queer and disabled characters, was very enjoyable. The twists and turns were engaging, and although I figured out who did it before the reveal, it was less than ten pages before the reveal when I said, "Oh shit wait what if it's this character!?!?" so Smythe did a great job of keeping the reader on their toes with who the murderer was.
I felt like some of the dialogue between these characters felt too young for how old they are, but I appreciated Mallory's internal dialogue beyond her disability; her relationship with her best friends was very relatable and understandable as a disabled queer reader. I was a little unhappy with the last little bit as I was hoping that the character would stay gone, but I understand that for the sequel to work, this character needed to return. Lastly, I was not particularly a fan of how they decided to continue working with the cops, even if they weren't signing a contract, simply Fuck the Police...
I am really looking forward to the sequel, even with my criticisms!
Best Line: "Mallory was sick of grinning and bearing every little thing that came her way. Sick of accepting help and pretending it didn't make her feel like shit, sick of also being afraid to ask, never quite able to smush the feelings down, never quite able to contain her grief, her rage, her loneliness. Sick of having a career on a plate and not being able to grasp it with both hands. Sick of being sick."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Grief, and Death
se_wigget's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wow, what a book! I love the main characters--the Undetectables themselves, three witches and a ghost. I love the queer and disabled rep, too. Maybe the author will continue writing about the Undetectables--that would be delightful.
I've never seen the expression "arsebadger" before. I like it. Now I can say, "fascist bigot arsebadgers."
"... tradition is just peer pressure from dead people."
(p. 238)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Death, and Medical content
lbelow's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
5.0
I am a person with fibromyalgia in a flare reading about a fantasy character with fibromyalgia fighting off a flare and it is everything. This book made me feel so seen! I love the complex relationships between Mallory and her friends, and how they all vow to do better in the future. I love the little nuances sprinkled through that seem inconsequential but become turning points in the book. I love the humour and the love and the depiction of grief. Everything, EVERYTHING in this book was just magical!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Chronic illness, Ableism, Grief, Kidnapping, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Cursing, Death, and Murder
displacedcactus's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This could have been a perfectly OK debut novel except the main character did something crappy for a crappy reason which I found pretty unforgiveable and her friend who she did it to completely forgave her without even a proper grovel.
Spoilers ahoy!
Due to a chronic pain condition, the MC has been kind of left behind by her friends, and one night she's holding the queen of her friend's beloved magic beetle colony and the beetle bites her, and she SQUISHES THE BEETLE QUEEN which causes the rest of the beetles to go into a frenzy, killing each other, and the survivors go dormant waiting for a new queen to emerge. It takes her DAYS to confess to doing this, at which point her friend was all "Oh I already knew you did it because of how sad and guilty you looked anytime someone mentioned the beetles, and I understand you did it because Other Friend and I went to a concert without you, it's ok, I forgive you." And I was like "DOUBLE YOU TEE EFF in what world is it ok to KILL SOMEONE'S PET because you're sad your friends have fun without you?"
Like seriously. If Mallory had killed a cat or a dog, no reader would forgive that. But because it's "just a bug" it's ok? But it's not ok. It wouldn't be OK if someone was upset at being left out by their friends and smashed one friend's car up, or destroyed their favorite sweater or deleted their video game file, let alone killing an important if miniscule living creature, causing serious damage to that creature's colony.
I almost DNFed right when the beetle squishing happened, but I kept reading, because the way it was written with a bit of distance, I almost thought that it would come out that some magic was making her extra volatile, but no. We're never given a satisfying reason beyond "I was pain and my life sucks and my friends have fun without me and this tiny animal did me a tiny hurt so I killed it."
Spoilers ahoy!
Like seriously. If Mallory had killed a cat or a dog, no reader would forgive that. But because it's "just a bug" it's ok? But it's not ok. It wouldn't be OK if someone was upset at being left out by their friends and smashed one friend's car up, or destroyed their favorite sweater or deleted their video game file, let alone killing an important if miniscule living creature, causing serious damage to that creature's colony.
I almost DNFed right when the beetle squishing happened, but I kept reading, because the way it was written with a bit of distance, I almost thought that it would come out that some magic was making her extra volatile, but no. We're never given a satisfying reason beyond "I was pain and my life sucks and my friends have fun without me and this tiny animal did me a tiny hurt so I killed it."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death, Animal death, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Cursing
purplepenning's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
A unique serial killer thriller in an urban fantasy setting that follows a trio of Gen-Z magical folk as they investigate — a fresh, spooky season read for murder mystery fans!
I picked it up for the tagline: "Be Gay. Solve crimes. Take naps." The writing didn't immediately click for me because I couldn't quite get a feel for the setting and characters, but I stuck with it for the absurdly endearing character of Theodore (an irrepressible ghost stuck in the ridiculous cat costume he died in on Halloween), the excellently portrayed chronic pain rep, and the Gen Z voice of it all. By the end, I found myself hoping that this is going to be the first in a series.
I picked it up for the tagline: "Be Gay. Solve crimes. Take naps." The writing didn't immediately click for me because I couldn't quite get a feel for the setting and characters, but I stuck with it for the absurdly endearing character of Theodore (an irrepressible ghost stuck in the ridiculous cat costume he died in on Halloween), the excellently portrayed chronic pain rep, and the Gen Z voice of it all. By the end, I found myself hoping that this is going to be the first in a series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Body horror, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Ableism, Animal death, Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Gore, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Medical content
Minor: Alcohol
ramreadsagain's review
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I was gifted a copy of this book by Titan Books. This is my honest review.
A book about three witches and a ghost in a cat costume trying to catch a serial killer? And it’s queer? Sign me up.
I really enjoyed this, the characters are great and the humour is on point (though won’t be for everyone, I’m just corrupted by tumblr). I loved the world-building too, particularly all the little details about the different groups (witches, faeries, vampires…) and their customs.
The main character is disabled, having fibromyalgia. This is at the forefront of the book and she has to deal with the limitations this imposes on her. I really liked this aspect, as well as how queer everything in the book was. The world seems to be queernormative, or at least there are no homophobia plotlines.
The mystery was entertaining, despite me guessing the major reveals. I still like how it was done though.
My main pet peeve about this book is the use of “goddess” where in our world we would say “god”. eg ‘oh my goddess’. This is a general ick of mine in books as it always feels forced to me. Not holding it against the book too much though!!
This is currently a standalone, but had a fairly open ending and I can absolutely see this world being turned into a series where The Undetectables have to solve more crimes!
A book about three witches and a ghost in a cat costume trying to catch a serial killer? And it’s queer? Sign me up.
I really enjoyed this, the characters are great and the humour is on point (though won’t be for everyone, I’m just corrupted by tumblr). I loved the world-building too, particularly all the little details about the different groups (witches, faeries, vampires…) and their customs.
The main character is disabled, having fibromyalgia. This is at the forefront of the book and she has to deal with the limitations this imposes on her. I really liked this aspect, as well as how queer everything in the book was. The world seems to be queernormative, or at least there are no homophobia plotlines.
The mystery was entertaining, despite me guessing the major reveals. I still like how it was done though.
My main pet peeve about this book is the use of “goddess” where in our world we would say “god”. eg ‘oh my goddess’. This is a general ick of mine in books as it always feels forced to me. Not holding it against the book too much though!!
This is currently a standalone, but had a fairly open ending and I can absolutely see this world being turned into a series where The Undetectables have to solve more crimes!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Blood, and Grief
Minor: Cursing, Animal death, and Toxic relationship
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