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christinaoperez's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- 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
3.0
menastarr's review
2.0
nothing but blackened teeth was rushed, confusing and difficult to follow, and honestly not that frightening as the cover made me believe it was going to be. i mean, come on, that cover art is horrifying in the best way possible! i think all the effort that was supposed to go into the book went into the cover, which was a major letdown.
mars_loves_books's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Gore
huntermartina's review against another edition
fast-paced
1.5
This book was just not good. It did not give me anything I was looking for from a thriller. It feels over-edited, but also not thought out enough. I did not have any kind of connection with the characters. I read this alone, in the dark, in the middle of the night and did not feel one ounce of fear or suspense. The poor writing and storytelling really just pulled me out of the story and left me wishing for it to be over.
desireeslibrary's review
2.0
Lowkey confused on how this was a horror story. I finished this two months ago and I literally remember nothing other than I was bored and very disappointed.
readingtravesty2313's review
1.0
Honestly I had to file DNF only because I felt the reactions between the characters felt awkward… not estranged awkward. It was more so just weirdly placed and the small moments of that were supposed to be haunting a from the entity practically go unnoticed. It was bland and not a favorite.
eriiica's review
2.0
This was just an okay horror read for me. I kind of expected more of a "slasher film" kind of vibe going into it, but really it was just kind of a jumpled bag of spooky elements. The writing is kind of hard to get past for me as well. It just seems kind of drawn out and leaves gaps in the story.
babs_reviews's review against another edition
4.0
After looking at some reviews, it appears a lot disliked it. At first, I was also a bit thrown off but I shifted my mindset after the first chapter.
This doesn't read like a novel to me, more like an episode of a television show where you get new people each time and it's just a story. Kind of how Supernatural has it's main storyline but each episode gives us a smaller plot line and characters to unravel, then never see again.
It's a pretty short read and its reads so flowery. It's riddled with metaphors and the like. It does read very beautifully if you enjoy that style.
I liked that we get a horror story wrapped up in a fairytale (rumor) surrounding a haunted palace. It was quick and crazy how it unfolded and I was just along for the ride. I thought it was interesting. I say if you like horror, especially the old cheesy horror, read this. Keep an open mind.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for allowing me the advanced copy to read and give my own opinion in review.
This doesn't read like a novel to me, more like an episode of a television show where you get new people each time and it's just a story. Kind of how Supernatural has it's main storyline but each episode gives us a smaller plot line and characters to unravel, then never see again.
It's a pretty short read and its reads so flowery. It's riddled with metaphors and the like. It does read very beautifully if you enjoy that style.
I liked that we get a horror story wrapped up in a fairytale (rumor) surrounding a haunted palace. It was quick and crazy how it unfolded and I was just along for the ride. I thought it was interesting. I say if you like horror, especially the old cheesy horror, read this. Keep an open mind.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for allowing me the advanced copy to read and give my own opinion in review.
bethmorvant's review
2.0
The cover is A+. For that alone, I wouldn’t mind physically owning this book. Everything else tho, not so much.
This story follows five twenty-somethings that were all pretty unlikable. It was supposed to be a surprise elopement in a haunted house, but it turned into… a bitch fest amongst other things.
My main complaint here is the writing. It is way too flowery and the metaphors were too over-the-top that some were just a bit ridiculous, to the point where it would pull me out of the story. Big words were used just for the sake of using big words. Not a fan.
Was this story creepy? Not even a little bit.
We’re the characters likable? Not even a little bit.
Would I recommend this book? Not even a little bit.
This story follows five twenty-somethings that were all pretty unlikable. It was supposed to be a surprise elopement in a haunted house, but it turned into… a bitch fest amongst other things.
My main complaint here is the writing. It is way too flowery and the metaphors were too over-the-top that some were just a bit ridiculous, to the point where it would pull me out of the story. Big words were used just for the sake of using big words. Not a fan.
Was this story creepy? Not even a little bit.
We’re the characters likable? Not even a little bit.
Would I recommend this book? Not even a little bit.
starfleeting's review
1.0
This was a book I had been looking forward to since I first saw it here on Goodreads. This was a book I was excited for even after seeing how short it was.
This book was not at ALL what I was wanting.
To say it is "verbose" is a generous thing. It's fucking overwritten and pretentious to the point that any decent to good sentences it has are choked out or buried by descriptors and similes that make no sense. This book should've taken me a day to read. A few hours. It took me a week because it was so overwritten it was almost unreadable.
I thought for a time that it was me. That I was too dumb to understand it or just wasn't used to a writing style like this so I had to give it some grace, right? The whole style had felt weird for me to get through because while some sentences flowed, others would just keep going on and on. And others I kept tripping over.
Until I finally realized: no, this writing is just Bad. That's why it feels weird. That's why it makes me feel like I'm missing something. Because the story itself is missing something very important: quality.
We're taught how books using description and big words make it "better". But this is a case of a writer trying too damn hard to make a book sound better than it is -- and it snuffs out the potential it had in the process.
The characters were insufferable and I didn't know why any of them were friends. The two women failed the Bechdel test in a book by a woman. And the bisexual narrator pines over 3 asshole men (and only men) when she clearly needs to just move the fuck on.
A lot of people said they had problems with all the Japanese terms and I think it's really just a testament to my being entrenched in Japanese culture and folklore for the better part of two decades that I had zero issue knowing what was being talked about or referred to. The words I had the problems with were dozens of words ripped from a goddamn thesaurus when the better punch to her writing would've been the simpler terms.
Man, this book needed a fucking red pen taken to it at least two more times before seeing print. What a fucking waste of a good premise.
This book was not at ALL what I was wanting.
To say it is "verbose" is a generous thing. It's fucking overwritten and pretentious to the point that any decent to good sentences it has are choked out or buried by descriptors and similes that make no sense. This book should've taken me a day to read. A few hours. It took me a week because it was so overwritten it was almost unreadable.
I thought for a time that it was me. That I was too dumb to understand it or just wasn't used to a writing style like this so I had to give it some grace, right? The whole style had felt weird for me to get through because while some sentences flowed, others would just keep going on and on. And others I kept tripping over.
Until I finally realized: no, this writing is just Bad. That's why it feels weird. That's why it makes me feel like I'm missing something. Because the story itself is missing something very important: quality.
We're taught how books using description and big words make it "better". But this is a case of a writer trying too damn hard to make a book sound better than it is -- and it snuffs out the potential it had in the process.
The characters were insufferable and I didn't know why any of them were friends. The two women failed the Bechdel test in a book by a woman. And the bisexual narrator pines over 3 asshole men (and only men) when she clearly needs to just move the fuck on.
A lot of people said they had problems with all the Japanese terms and I think it's really just a testament to my being entrenched in Japanese culture and folklore for the better part of two decades that I had zero issue knowing what was being talked about or referred to. The words I had the problems with were dozens of words ripped from a goddamn thesaurus when the better punch to her writing would've been the simpler terms.
Man, this book needed a fucking red pen taken to it at least two more times before seeing print. What a fucking waste of a good premise.