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stephanieluxton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book is about vampires that live in tunnels under NYC in the 70's. Our main character is a "14 year old boy vampire" named Joey. Obviously he's older than 14 but that's the age he was turned at. He lives with a group of vampires in the tunnels. Their group has a hierarchy and rules. Things get messy when Joey encounters a vampire child, triggering a wild series of events with a lot of twists and turns and wtf moments. That's all you need to know.
I loved this book because it totally defied my expectations. I didn't find it predictable. The characters were colourful and the setting was fun. The authors take of vampires was also really fun. There were plenty of horrifying moments. My favorite thing about this book is that you truly felt like the stakes were high. It was easy to feel genuinely afraid for the characters that you care about so much.
Definitely read this. Also, part way through if you feel a bit icky, just keep going. The second half of this story is a wild ride.
Graphic: Child death, Violence, Murder, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and War
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual content, and Sexual assault
imaginary_space's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"He gets away with it because he's strong."
"This is the story of mankind."
"I thought you were going to be a priest at one point."
"Yes. But then I read the newspaper."
I love me some good vampire horror and Christopher Buehlman delivered. I wasn't sure if I would give it 3 or 4 stars, until the end, which pushed it firmly to 4 stars.
A lot to like about this book:
- the whole world building around the vampires, how they work as a species and (how they live in) the tunnels makes for great atmosphere from the get-go
- the characters are very flawed and lovely
- Cvetko
- unreliable narrator
- creepy kids are creepy and cute
- the stakes exist and are very real
- those nice scenes of real horror and tragedy in between, absolutely loved them
- the ending really elevates the story
Why I didn't give it 5 stars:
- Even though I liked the ending, it did feel a little like the author
wasn't sure which ending would be best received by his audience and decided to offer all of them instead, placing the responsibility of whether you liked it or not on the reader. - I couldn't establish a strong emotional connection with the narrator, this might be different when I read it again in the future.
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Gore
Minor: Classism, Pedophilia, and Racism
bohboh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Buehlman did a great job keeping me guessing through the whole read. He kept teetering the line between a punk and wholesome protagonist. Themes of abuse and racism appeared and were handled brutishly but obviously as intended, which left me uncomfortable. The writing style(s) were super well executed.
Moderate: Drug use, Xenophobia, Vomit, Sexual content, Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Antisemitism, Blood, Body horror, Car accident, Rape, Violence, and Suicide
Minor: Excrement, Child abuse, and Pedophilia
catsy2022's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Death, Vomit, Torture, Blood, Gore, Violence, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Sexual content
epsyphus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Racial slurs, Body horror, Gore, Racism, and Sexual content
perkyanda's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The ending was so fucking
Anyone this book is about a bunch of morally dark grey monsters with ethics of self-preservation and I liked it. My book club didn’t but hey, I’m the odd one out this time.
Graphic: Gore, Torture, and Body horror
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, and Transphobia
Minor: Rape and Pedophilia
e_asw_97's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Gore, Death, Blood, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
expertbooksmuggler's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
And a happy family was going home, only the children weren’t children, and Daddy had dying to do.
I am sitting in front of the screen, slightly in awe because this book was simultaneously AMAZING and INFURIATING! That ending just about did me in. I could feel my heart dropping into my stomach as I kept reading.
There are so many things I could say in regards to praise for this book, but they are all just a liiiitttle dampened by the end. The narrator did <b>WARN ME</b> that they were unreliable, but <b>STILL</b> my HEART. Don’t fall in love with any of these characters because
Seriously- throughout the book I just couldn’t get over these characters, their interactions with one another… I mean hell, I called Cvetka a cinnamon roll.
“Have you been watching television?”
“No,” I lied. “Why?”
“Because you are exhibiting signs of mental atrophy.”
Graphic: Murder and Gore
niyou's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Gore
Minor: Antisemitism