Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
Bleak. Depressing. Hopeless.
The Incendiaries is the story of a relationship: its birth, growth, decay, and death. The lovers are drawn in exquisite detail. The prose is outstanding. The plot, though, is less than compelling. It dwells on themes of faith and losing faith, but it doesn't probe the depths of these themes, treating them superficially and failing to deliver any interesting or unique insights.
I wanted to love this novella. It has so much potential. But the story falls flat, and even though the characters are very well developed, the novel did not make me care about them. I found the writing to be quite good, yet I cannot rate this novella higher than three stars because, more than anything, it left me with an ugly feeling in the pit of my stomach. The story is permeated by a grim pessimism that made the reading experience palpably unpleasant.
The Incendiaries is the story of a relationship: its birth, growth, decay, and death. The lovers are drawn in exquisite detail. The prose is outstanding. The plot, though, is less than compelling. It dwells on themes of faith and losing faith, but it doesn't probe the depths of these themes, treating them superficially and failing to deliver any interesting or unique insights.
I wanted to love this novella. It has so much potential. But the story falls flat, and even though the characters are very well developed, the novel did not make me care about them. I found the writing to be quite good, yet I cannot rate this novella higher than three stars because, more than anything, it left me with an ugly feeling in the pit of my stomach. The story is permeated by a grim pessimism that made the reading experience palpably unpleasant.
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This isn’t the book I expected it to be, but I devoured it! Breathtaking prose, and a weird and unsettling story about faith, love, belonging and achievement.
I was interested in the concept of a book that explores a character falling into a cult but I could not move past the writing style. The characters didn’t feel fleshed out and it frankly wasn’t enjoyable to read. Cool concept but poor execution.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Suicide
dark
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A somewhat interesting story, although the front flap synopsis painted a much more exciting story than what I read. Overall, I couldn’t latch onto any of the characters, so I wasn’t all too shocked or saddened with the ending.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced