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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
I wish the ending had been different and really turned things upside down more.
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Minor: Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Murder
Lovecraft Country follows an African-American family in the 1950s through a series of horror-tinged adventures, where some of the horror stems from the family's fortuitous connection to a cult that seeks to unlock ancient knowledge of dark magic rituals, and other terrifying events are simply a result of being a black family in 1950's America. The story is told episodically, shifting perspectives from different family members, with each sequence playing off of a different classic horror trope (e.g. a Jekyll and Hyde-style formula, a creepy possessed doll, and, as suggested by the title, a Lovecraftian pursuit of elder gods). As someone who is hesitant about horror stories, I found this to be perfectly calibrated to my tastes--some scary and bad things happen, but it's never mean-spirited in the way that horror books/movies tend to strike me. For all the danger and fear inflicted on the protagonists, Lovecraft Country is fairly gentle with its characters. The ending was a bit abrupt and perhaps too neat, relying on a bit of a deus ex machina for the resolution, but then again, the story was full of both deus-es and machina-s, so it was not exactly inappropriate. A really enjoyable read.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
A phenomenal read. I would even say this is a modern classic. Spell-binding, action-packed, and brutally honest about the United States' ugly racist history. I will be reading this one again!
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The strongest part about this book was the concept for me- tying together jim crow era racism and vaguely lovecraftian themes (though I wished they were more overt at times) in a compelling narrative that engaged me throughout the majority of the book, though the pace did drag a little at times.
I wasn’t aware going into this that this book, at its core, is a short story collection, a choice which although it allows the author to dive into different facets of scifi/horror tropes, can feel a bit piecemeal in parts, especially as I was expecting a continuation of the first short story to begin with. There is an overarching narrative that I think wraps up ok in the ending, but it didn’t wow me.
My favourite stor was Jekyll in Hyde Park, a play on the Stevenson novella where a black woman can drink a potion to turn her white (something she continues to do throughout the novel), and dreams of which house, where our protagonist there ends up making tentative peace with the malevolent spirit that exists there. My least favourite is horace and the devil doll, it really could’ve been taken out and the plot would be unaffected.
All in all an enjoyable read, just not exactly what I was looking for.
I wasn’t aware going into this that this book, at its core, is a short story collection, a choice which although it allows the author to dive into different facets of scifi/horror tropes, can feel a bit piecemeal in parts, especially as I was expecting a continuation of the first short story to begin with. There is an overarching narrative that I think wraps up ok in the ending, but it didn’t wow me.
My favourite stor was Jekyll in Hyde Park, a play on the Stevenson novella where a black woman can drink a potion to turn her white (something she continues to do throughout the novel), and dreams of which house, where our protagonist there ends up making tentative peace with the malevolent spirit that exists there. My least favourite is horace and the devil doll, it really could’ve been taken out and the plot would be unaffected.
All in all an enjoyable read, just not exactly what I was looking for.
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