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nikkijazzie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
katykelly's review against another edition
3.0
Didn't click for me, not sure how I felt about it.
I didn't feel the tension in this the way others have seemed to. It just maybe isn't a genre I really enjoy very much but I was interested in the idea of horror for young people (and one that wasn't over-the-top and obvious like Goosebumps/the Point series of my own teen years).
It's about an 11 year old boy living with his parents in a rather idyllic wetland area, with his dog. His grandfather comes to visit. You're aware there's unspoken feelings, you see the strain between his dad and grandfather.
Then there's some scenes clearly denoting the boy changing physically and his grandfather encouraging this... with some horrific results. But I just didn't like it, feel it was well enough explained, and that it ended before we really become invested and can see what's going to be the likely result of all this.
Maybe just not for me.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.
I didn't feel the tension in this the way others have seemed to. It just maybe isn't a genre I really enjoy very much but I was interested in the idea of horror for young people (and one that wasn't over-the-top and obvious like Goosebumps/the Point series of my own teen years).
It's about an 11 year old boy living with his parents in a rather idyllic wetland area, with his dog. His grandfather comes to visit. You're aware there's unspoken feelings, you see the strain between his dad and grandfather.
Then there's some scenes clearly denoting the boy changing physically and his grandfather encouraging this... with some horrific results. But I just didn't like it, feel it was well enough explained, and that it ended before we really become invested and can see what's going to be the likely result of all this.
Maybe just not for me.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.
readingtheend's review against another edition
3.0
oooh this was weird and cool. the relationship between the grandfather and the kid was really compelling, and I loved the creeping wet monstrosity that always lurked at the edges of the story
frozenmullet's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
akalexyb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
5.0
avvamapia's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
jeanbigurra's review
dark
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
madmooney's review against another edition
5.0
Thank you to Tor Publishing Group, S.L. Coney and NetGalley for providing allowing me early access to this title.
S.L. Coney's Wild Spaces is a chthonic coming of age story protraying an idyllic family landscape rent asunder due to the visit of a stranger who brings the timeless truth of 'what is bred in the bone will come out in the flesh' with him.
A boy and his family lives near the sea. They go out in archaeological excursions and tell each other stories of pirates. Then they find a dog and bring it into the family hearth, and one month the boy's grandfather shows up from out of the blue to live with them for a while.
The tension of having this new strange relation living among them builds. The imposition of this grandfather seems very subtle:
...his physical presence in the small household makes it difficult for regular family time...
...his drives a wedge between father and mother...
...he is not 100% happy with how his grandson is being raised...
...he is trying to force a familiarity with his grandson...
...but these sorts of conflicts have been played out on many stages in many stories, surely there is nothing odd or sinister going on here? Names are not given to the human characters (only the Dog, Teach), surely this can imply that the drama played out here is archetypal?
It is at this point that you get a sense of an unspoken secret of the boy's matrilineal heritage ekeing its way out of the background.
And while the boy does not understand, he starts to feel the weight of this unnatrual truth.
One thing that I admired about this story is how little space is needed to tell it. If Covey can pack this wallop in less than 100 pages, then I am excited to see what they can do with a more fully realized novel.
One final point I would like to make (and would love to hear thoughts on from the GR community): I maintain that both dog and grandfather are components of the same force (even though they appear opposed to each other). I feel that the final pages of the book confirms this.
S.L. Coney's Wild Spaces is a chthonic coming of age story protraying an idyllic family landscape rent asunder due to the visit of a stranger who brings the timeless truth of 'what is bred in the bone will come out in the flesh' with him.
A boy and his family lives near the sea. They go out in archaeological excursions and tell each other stories of pirates. Then they find a dog and bring it into the family hearth, and one month the boy's grandfather shows up from out of the blue to live with them for a while.
The tension of having this new strange relation living among them builds. The imposition of this grandfather seems very subtle:
...his physical presence in the small household makes it difficult for regular family time...
...his drives a wedge between father and mother...
...he is not 100% happy with how his grandson is being raised...
...he is trying to force a familiarity with his grandson...
...but these sorts of conflicts have been played out on many stages in many stories, surely there is nothing odd or sinister going on here? Names are not given to the human characters (only the Dog, Teach), surely this can imply that the drama played out here is archetypal?
It is at this point that you get a sense of an unspoken secret of the boy's matrilineal heritage ekeing its way out of the background.
“You know, being a boy in our family is special. The sea runs in your veins.”
And while the boy does not understand, he starts to feel the weight of this unnatrual truth.
One thing that I admired about this story is how little space is needed to tell it. If Covey can pack this wallop in less than 100 pages, then I am excited to see what they can do with a more fully realized novel.
Spoiler
Another thing that I really enjoyed was the graphic description of the transformation from the persepctive of the boy, especially that first time. Shapeshifting should not be a simple matter of magical glitter encircling a person between forms so you don't have to do the work of describing it. It needs to be messy and painful and Covey does a great job here.One final point I would like to make (and would love to hear thoughts on from the GR community): I maintain that both dog and grandfather are components of the same force (even though they appear opposed to each other). I feel that the final pages of the book confirms this.
kt_jams's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Animal death and Violence