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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Indian Burial Ground is horror is the most real way anything can be. It’s the real terrifying fears we have to deal with daily, death, accidents, failing to save someone, failing to be the person you want to be, finding out hard truths about people, crippling alcoholism, depression, insanity, murder, suicide, poverty.
This was an excellent book. The only reason it was not 5 stars is because I thought it would be MORE literal scary movie horror and while it has lovely supernatural “mythological” and spiritual elements I was a little disappointed. However that is all to do with my own expectations and not the book itself.
I kept expecting something that never came.
The ending also left me with some questions unanswered and some threads left unfinished.
I would put a hard trigger warning for alcoholism and parents with alcoholism in this book.
It was scary in all the ways I didn’t want. This is clearly speaking the author’s truth and a reality for so many people so on that point it’s great.
It was just a little too real and horrifying in a true life kind of way for me to fully enjoy.
I’ve also read a lot of books recently where I’m not sure I can trust the narrator (is the narrator insane?) which this book does excellently. I’m just a little exhausted with the concept.
I also listened to the audio book and although his voice is lovely, there were times when I’d have preferred a younger narrator for Louie.
So overall really good well written realistic horror but I personally didn’t enjoy it that much.
This was an excellent book. The only reason it was not 5 stars is because I thought it would be MORE literal scary movie horror and while it has lovely supernatural “mythological” and spiritual elements I was a little disappointed. However that is all to do with my own expectations and not the book itself.
I kept expecting something that never came.
The ending also left me with some questions unanswered and some threads left unfinished.
I would put a hard trigger warning for alcoholism and parents with alcoholism in this book.
It was scary in all the ways I didn’t want. This is clearly speaking the author’s truth and a reality for so many people so on that point it’s great.
It was just a little too real and horrifying in a true life kind of way for me to fully enjoy.
I’ve also read a lot of books recently where I’m not sure I can trust the narrator (is the narrator insane?) which this book does excellently. I’m just a little exhausted with the concept.
I also listened to the audio book and although his voice is lovely, there were times when I’d have preferred a younger narrator for Louie.
So overall really good well written realistic horror but I personally didn’t enjoy it that much.
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The first 50% of this book is just set up and background, which made it hard to get through. The dual POV didn’t add much into the story in terms of having “old supernatural curses” coming back to life 40 years later. Each character had an insane level of immaturity, most of them feeling like caricatures. Noemi herself is supposed to be 40 but her words and actions put her at around 18-20. I would’ve liked her and Louie to be aged down, because I think the plot would make a lot more sense.
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
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
The fat phobia stopped this from being a perfect 5
(Note: I received an advanced reader copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley)
I’m usually not a horror fan, but Indian Burial Ground turned out to be quite the exception to my usual genre preferences. The themes of mythology, intergenerational trauma, and some of the major challenges of reservation life (with both suicide and alcoholism receiving a great deal of blunt focus) were intertwined into the plot that made the story not just indigenous, but complexly so on multiple levels. It’s something I personally appreciate as a reader who’s always trying to get new exposure through the titles I pick. However, that’s just one side of the coin - it’s also still very much a horror novel. Not in a gory, slasher kind of way, but in a way where the narrative ran at a baseline anxiety-provoking hum, punctuated by moments and scenes that stood out shockingly and vividly in the mind.
Both the native and the frightening side aspects of the book were well-done in their own respective rights. And together, they complemented one another excellently in a way that makes me want to both keep an eye out for Medina’s next book and also see if I can get my hands on his previous indigenous-horror-thriller (Sisters of the Lost Nation) in the very-near future.
I’m usually not a horror fan, but Indian Burial Ground turned out to be quite the exception to my usual genre preferences. The themes of mythology, intergenerational trauma, and some of the major challenges of reservation life (with both suicide and alcoholism receiving a great deal of blunt focus) were intertwined into the plot that made the story not just indigenous, but complexly so on multiple levels. It’s something I personally appreciate as a reader who’s always trying to get new exposure through the titles I pick. However, that’s just one side of the coin - it’s also still very much a horror novel. Not in a gory, slasher kind of way, but in a way where the narrative ran at a baseline anxiety-provoking hum, punctuated by moments and scenes that stood out shockingly and vividly in the mind.
Both the native and the frightening side aspects of the book were well-done in their own respective rights. And together, they complemented one another excellently in a way that makes me want to both keep an eye out for Medina’s next book and also see if I can get my hands on his previous indigenous-horror-thriller (Sisters of the Lost Nation) in the very-near future.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Suicide, Grief
Moderate: Fatphobia
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
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