Reviews - Old Wounds | The StoryGraph

472 reviews for:

4.5 stars, rounded up

Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC of this title!

Holy shit, this book is brutal. I was not prepared for how emotionally wrecked I was gonna be after. I loved Erin and Max, they're probably some of the most compelling characters I've read in a while. The book makes it clear that the trans experience is not a monolith, and that sometimes we must face reality when escape is not possible. Kisner does not pull his punches, and I cannot wait to see what else he publishes.

peroxide_princes's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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: Yes

As a trans horror/thriller enthusiast, this book really did a great job of marrying the genre with the reality of what it’s like to be a trans person and navigate your personal relationships in your life. Excellent writing of the action, the prose is a bit juvenile at times but it is a ya book so I think it’s fitting. An excellent read for someone truly struggling with accepting themselves for who they truly are.

Content Warnings

bookmeabreak's review against another edition

2.5

tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I have a review coming but this week has been draining. I'll review when I have a second though.

rachellohello's review

3.0

Parts of this book I liked and other parts were just eh. I love seeing more trans rep in teen books and I thought this did a good job for the most part. I enjoyed the characters and how the horror was not just this big scary monster running through the woods, but also how society is sometimes even scarier than monsters. (However, there definitely needed to be more balance between the two because we didn’t get enough of the monster imo.) The beginning was very slow and it took me a long time to get through it, but once I got to the horror it was better, although some parts were confusing or felt too convenient. Overall I would recommend it for those who want to read more trans teen horror.