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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5 stars out of 5. Wow. I did not know what to expect going into this book with limited information -- and that's exactly how you should go into it, too. Without knowing much.
The suspense, the unpredictable plot, the intriguing characters, the unhinged chaos of it all. It's disturbing, it's confusing, it's absolute fucking madness. And I loved all of it.
I didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did, and it was such a nice surprise -- to see it have such a low rating (3.42 average) is such a bummer, because I think it is one of the most unique horror stories I've encountered in recent years.
Brb, still picking my jaw up off the floor with this one!
The suspense, the unpredictable plot, the intriguing characters, the unhinged chaos of it all. It's disturbing, it's confusing, it's absolute fucking madness. And I loved all of it.
I didn't expect to enjoy this book as much as I did, and it was such a nice surprise -- to see it have such a low rating (3.42 average) is such a bummer, because I think it is one of the most unique horror stories I've encountered in recent years.
Brb, still picking my jaw up off the floor with this one!
The Bright Lands eventually goes full-tilt horror, but before it does, it exposes the gnawing terrors and crippling horror that can be found in isolated, small-minded American towns. Using rural Texas as a case study, with its community emphasis on football and tradition, The Bright Lands is merciless and clear-eyed at documenting the generational horrors of homophobia, racism, poverty, toxic masculinity, repression, religious intolerance, drug use... Before it takes a lurching shift into Lovecraft Country-style ancient evils (while looking like a small-town gay Eyes Wide Shut), The Bright Lands shines as a study in the suffocation that can stifle the lives of entire communities. A few too many characters, stretching back generations, require the author to quickly sketch in decades of characterization, often ineffectively. A lot of the plot gets lost in recollected exposition. But when the book focuses on the here-and-now, and its characters' flawed and flailing attempts to find the best of themselves despite the world they find themselves trapped in, the book is at its scariest.
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Need to reread.
I know that I am going against the norm of reviews here, but this book just felt ridiculous to me. Like it doesn’t know what it wants to be. Is it a crime drama? Is it a supernatural thriller? I love reading books set in Texas, but this one just didn’t work for me.