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brookebatesratesbooks's review against another edition
I think I had about one and a half hours left when I decided to just DNF it. I went into the story thinking it was going to be more of a thriller/suspense story. Maybe even horror. Only the reveal was really interesting to me. Everything else that happened in this book, I found it rather boring. And the see sexual scene between the main character and her new friends uncle was just nasty and I wish I could erase it from my brain.
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Mental illness, Sexual content, and Cannibalism
madimarshmallow's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The book has an interesting concept, but I did not enjoy its execution. The prose was clunky at times and took me out of the story. I didn't see the twist coming, but the ending fell flat.
Moderate: Cursing and Cannibalism
emilywemily6's review
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I was underwhelmed by this book based on my expectations. In general I found a lot to like about it, but felt that it was neither comic nor a true horror novel, as this book was described. It felt much more like a literary fiction novel with a sprinkle of horror elements. There wasn’t much suspense throughout the story even though the truth was hinted at being mysterious the whole time. I wasn’t even phased when the truth came out. I didn’t like particularly like the main character and found that she became more hypocritical throughout the book, like she was trying so hard to appear woke but then failed to see her own classist/racist/etc. shortcomings. The narrative felt very intimate, but because my dislike increased throughout the book for the main character, that intimacy was not my favorite. I found the discussions on language/linguistics interesting, and also the basic premise of The Centre. I also like how the narrative showed that the main character was actually recording for The Centre. The novels she translated also sounded super interesting! The ending was anticlimactic though, and her decision in the end didn’t really fit with her character up until that point in the story. I think I was hoping for more suspense and horror throughout this book, and even the big reveal was lacking. If you love literary fiction and want to tread lightly into horror, this is for you.
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, Cannibalism, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Hate crime
Minor: Drug use, Pedophilia, and Medical content
typedtruths's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Cannibalism
Moderate: Cursing, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Body horror, Medical content, and Classism
I’m putting ‘cannibalism’ in the graphic section because it is quite shocking without prior knowledge (which is all well and good but holy hell, I shouldn’t have been listening to this on my lunch break).
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