Reviews - Old Wounds | The StoryGraph

465 reviews for:

Old Wounds

Logan-Ashley Kisner

4.11 AVERAGE

ezra_rain's review

3.75

adventurous dark hopeful fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

this was a really good book. it examined trans identity without ever flinching away from the realities of trans experiences. i absolutely loved erin, she was a badass and unafraid of doing what had to be done. i think this is a really well executed ya horror novel that has important representation.

geopiercet's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

sophiedavis's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

trifurus's review against another edition

4.5

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Content Warnings

ruminations_reverie's review against another edition

3.0

This cover gets a 10/5...the story, however, loses some ground.

I want to be the first to say that this books scores big for representation in the trans horror and trans literature space. My issue doesn't lie with the content, nor the characters really. My issue is with some of the gaping plot holes and lack of cohesion in the story. Some elements just don't add up and it detracted from the overall read for me.

Erin and Max aren't without their flaws, but I think that is genuinely by design. They are 18 years old and, as a former 18-year-old myself, I know how insufferable that age can be. Add in a complicated past-relationship and then pop on a double dose of coming out in a climate that is downright dangerous for trans-folk as a cherry on top. All of that adds and the result is complex and challenging character dynamics, complete with anger, fear, shame, and confusion all around. Not to mention a generally tough demeaner attempting to protect a vulnerable core.

The story itself carries a lot of weight in depicting the true plight of modern trans today. It doesn't even really dive into the political side of things, but rather the hurt and betrayal inflicted by those closest to them; family, friends, and the community. Then pile on top a story about a monster that only eats "girls", and a community that traps and offers these young "girls" to the monster as sacrifice in order to prevent catastrophe. Now you have yourself an interesting conundrum. Does the monster somehow recognize the gender assigned at birth or the true gender in which the person identifies. It was a very interesting premise, but I think the pacing and some pieces of the puzzle were missing leading to a rather unsatisfying and slightly confusing result.

If this story had attempted to paint the monster with more ambiguity and rather focused its attention on the human "monsters" I think it would have been better off. However, it had a story to tell and in terms of shining a light on these issues and the vitriol that exists for the trans-community, I think it did a good job.

It was a decent story and a debut at that. I look forward to seeing what else Kisner is able to cook up with future reads.