Reviews tagging 'Gore'

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

30 reviews

brewdy_reader's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺 • 𝘎𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘤 • 𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺
𝘜𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘰𝘨 • 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 • 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘭
𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 3 𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ (3.75)

"𝑪𝒐𝒛𝒚 𝒉𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓" may sound like an oxymoron but is a perfectly fitting description for this book. 𝕊𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 ℍ𝕠𝕦𝕤𝕖 had me from the jump: the atmopshere, the scenes and the setting of rural Appalachia - poor "backwater" Kentucky - the underdog narrator (Opal), the sentient house, the depth of the writing, the nuance, the civil war battle references, the witty banter between Arthur and Opal, the sarcasm and the strife, the mystery and the misery.... loved it all. Until the last 20% which was a lackluster fever dream of a final act. No spoilers here, but it fell flat for me relative to the rest of the book. I had to dock a star for that. 

I still think this was worth the read and would recommend, because the rest of the book was well done and the atmosphere perfectly gothic. How many times can you say you read a cozy horror novel? I also loved how Arthur and Opal are not your traditional "beautiful" and "handsome" heroes. They are hardened, cunning, ruthless, flawed, shunned, and maybe even a bit ugly. They don't always make the right choices, and yet even these outcasts may make a house a home.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Gore, Incest, Physical abuse, and Child abuse

seaton44's review

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Death, Gore, Death of parent, Blood, Domestic abuse, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Classism, Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Homophobia, Racism, Slavery, and Suicide

Minor: Vomit and Sexual assault

chelly_reads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective 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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Violence, Death of parent, Gore, Car accident, Misogyny, and Vomit

bookswithbethx's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Death of parent, Body horror, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

dianaschmidty's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This story has the feeling of a retelling, but it’s also one of the most unique stories I’ve ever read. It feels like modern day folklore and I loved it! I think one of my favorite things about this book is the vibes, specifically the idea that the evil will get their justice, even in a supernatural matter.

I really liked both Opal and Arthur. I liked that neither of them were supposed to be seen as likable, which honestly made them more likable. I like how Opal was unapologetically a thief, doing whatever she needed to survive. Her story was really sad, but moving in how she dealt with her lot in life. I’m also a sucker for a grump, so that’s why I was going to love both of them, but especially Arthur. I think his use of being a grump to hide himself from the world and his pain made his journey throughout the book a lot sweeter.

I also really liked how the book was written in both first and third person, for Opal and Arthur respectively. I also liked how Arthur’s POVs, especially at the beginning, felt like he was representing the house in the narrative. I thought it was a creative way of capturing the story.

I think the only thing I didn’t totally love about the book was how the first half was really confusing, but I also think that that was on purpose, because Opal was just as confused as we were, so it made us closer to her as a character.

I also really liked the narrator! Her voice is one of the most soothing narrators I’ve listened to and I’d love to listen to another book narrated by her.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Alix E. Harrow for providing me access to this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Grief

Moderate: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Classism, Car accident, Blood, Abandonment, Violence, and Gore

Minor: Sexual content

maryellen's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gore, Death, Alcohol, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Body horror, Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief

Minor: Vomit

crystalleighwrites's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Grief, Blood, Death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Car accident, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Violence, Classism, Deportation, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts

heytherekaity's review against another edition

emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

if you want a book about the difference between wants and needs, about what's right and what's wrong and all the things that fall somewhere in between (and all the things that definitely do NOT fall in between), about home and family and legacy; and you want it all framed in fairy tales, folklore, and mythology, crafted by a master storyteller- then I have some fantastic news.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gore, Grief, Misogyny, Racism, Classism, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Grief, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Xenophobia, Gaslighting, Cursing, Death of parent, Abandonment, Car accident, and Sexism

Minor: Alcohol, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Incest, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Slavery, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia

minniepauline's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This is my third favorite of Harrow’s novels. Which is still pretty good.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gore, Grief, and Death of parent

sariereads's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Death of parent, Blood, and Grief

Moderate: Vomit, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Colonisation, and Murder

Minor: Homophobia and Lesbophobia