Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

All the White Spaces by Ally Wilkes

5 reviews

jackbifrost's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Physical abuse, Suicide, Blood, and Stalking

Minor: Homophobia

anarmandameg's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, and Cannibalism

ezwolf's review against another edition

I really really really wanted to like this. I love queer horror and this seemed like exactly what I’ve been trying to read. But oh my gosh I was so incredibly bored. I kept thinking “okay once I hit 20% the pace will pick up”. It did not. The plot is probably about to actually start but I just can’t make myself keep going. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Vomit, and Dysphoria

Minor: Alcohol and War

anniereads221's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

thebakersbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was one of only two books I managed to read during Pride month, but it was definitely a "quality over quantity" situation; All the White Spaces is a masterclass in survival horror and offered up all the trans-masc feels. Set in the wake of WWI, the story features protagonist Jonathan Morgan, who talks his best friend into helping him stow away on the Antarctica-bound ship of a famous explorer. Jonathan's fascination with polar exploration is largely impressed on him by proxy: his two older brothers, who died in the war, spent their lives dreaming of going to Antarctica. The expedition is thus fraught with not only Jonathan's desire to prove himself in such a masculine pursuit, but his need to fulfill his brothers' dreams however possible.

The aspect of this book I liked most was that Jonathan maintaining his gender identity and concealing his assigned-at-birth sex was not a main plotline. He occasionally has to remind his friend of his correct name, etc., but the dire straits in which the expedition finds itself, coupled with everyone being perpetually bundled up against the cold, render it a nonissue. As such, this was a story that centered the survival-horror aspect, not the MC being transgender.

My second-favorite thing about the book is how the nature of the threat is left open to interpretation. In many books like this, the mysterious scary thing turns out to have a natural explanation, but in this case, the apparitions and voices in the wind are strongly implied to be supernatural.

Jonathan wasn't necessarily a relatable protagonist, but he was easy to root for. His sheer audacity and determination were a joy to watch. Author Ally Wilkes did a stellar job of establishing the atmosphere of the Antarctic (thinking about the aurora still freaks me out months later) and chipping away at all the characters' sanity over the course of their attempt to survive the winter. All the White Spaces is a fantastic read for lovers of survival horror, particularly in historical settings. Be ready for lots of gruesome deaths, though!

Content warnings: graphic depiction of death by frostbite; off-page implications of people eating dogs; setting-typical animal cruelty; accidental outing (not of main character); brief period-typical homophobia 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Animal death and Grief

Minor: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Homophobia, and Outing