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jessicalarson125's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
The first 1/4 ish was interesting, and I was intrigued about where the story would go. The middle 1/2 seemed to drag on and on and on and I wasn’t enjoying any of the characters or their decisions or motivations. The last 1/4 got my attention again. But when we’re talking about a nearly 1000 page book (~20 hour audiobook), for around half of it to be laggy, that’s a lot of time and energy that I felt was wasting my time.
BUT HONESTLY — the worst part for me was the fact that this novel was an obvious and glaring example of men writing female characters. This is a literal quote from the book in the perspective of one of the main characters, a woman:
Men, she thought, were one of the world's few sure comforts, like a fire on a cold October night, like cocoa, like broken-in-slippers. Their clumsy affections, their bristly faces, and their willingness to do what needed to be done - cook an omelette, change lightbulbs, make with hugging - sometimes almost made being a woman fun.
Overall:
Audio: 5/5, the narrator was incredible, she was literally the only thing that made this book not feel like a waste of my time
Characters: 2.5/5, I didn’t really like any of them tbh and I’ve already discussed my issues with the women
Plot: 2.5/5, I actually had more issues with the plot besides that it felt way too drawn out (in my opinion). The concept of the “real” world versus the imaginary (“inscape”) world was fascinating. It was also an interesting take on vampires and I thought that was really clever. It just kind of felt like there were a lot of revolving parts that made the story overly convoluted.
Also, I’m a medical professional and some of the medical/injury/surgical (especially) aspects of this book lowkey pissed me off haha
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halfway update: I’m bored. Idk I just don’t really care about any of the characters and this book is SO long. I for sure would have given up a long time ago except that the audiobook narrator is FANTASTIC.
And like, by no means would I consider myself a prude but there are just so many gratuitous and crude mentions of genitalia (the same issue I have with King’s work) and like oh my god, we get it, you’re obsessed with “mommy tits” but we don’t need to hear it again!!! And again!!! And again!!!
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Gore, Rape, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Chronic illness and Self harm
Minor: Drug use
aposthuma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
wrensreadingroom's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail