Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

Leech by Hiron Ennes

66 reviews

thecriticalreader's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

4.0

 

Context:

I added Leech by Hiron Ennes to my TBR after hearing Kayla from BooksandLala recommend it. I borrowed it from my library through the Libby app.

 

Review:

I approached Leech with some trepidation based on the reviews I’ve encountered. However, I am immensely impressed by the book’s originality—in fact, Leech is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read. I mean that as a compliment. Ennes crafts a world completely unlike anything I’ve ever read before with the precision of a surgeon. Everything feels deliberate and focused, from the French-inspired dialect spoken by some of the characters to the peculiarities of the setting. They use this specific setting and cast of characters to explore parasitism in many different forms, from the supernatural to the everyday.  I am also impressed with the book’s writing style, which is powerful and effective without being flowery. 

 

Despite my fascination with the world and my appreciation for Ennes’s writing, I did find myself somewhat reluctant to pick up the book at times. The book does not provide a strong “hook” for the reader to latch onto, either narratively or through its characters. Even well into the book, it is unclear which characters, if any, deserve our sympathy. Additionally, the narrative style of the book is inherently confusing due to the protagonist’s situation (I’m being intentionally vague here to avoid spoilers), and the murky positions of the side characters. If you’re looking for a book that prioritizes clarity and accessibility, you might want to look elsewhere.

 

There are a couple of other minor aspects of this book that didn’t quite work for me. The first is that it uses two characters that are twins in a very stereotypical and dehumanizing manner common to horror books that, in my opinion, did not add much to the story. The second is that the ending appears to abandon the character journey of the protagonist for another character; I would have liked a little bit more closure for the protagonist.

 

Leech will not be for everyone, but I loved its thematic explorations, writing style, and unique premise and worldbuilding. These elements were strong enough to overcome some problems I had with the narrative. 

 

The Run-Down: 

You might like Leech if . . . 

·      You are looking for a book with a very unique premise and world

·      You prefer deliberately crafted settings and characters to sweeping, epic fantasy/sci-fi tales

·      You are interested in a thematic exploration of parasitism

·      You like eerie, gory horror stories that do not deign to explain everything to the reader

 

You might not like Leech if . . . 

·      You are sensitive to the book’s triggers (please look at them before reading; they won’t spoil anything!)

·      You dislike experimental narrative premises

·      You like a story with a strong narrative driving force

·      You dislike complex plotlines that leave many questions unanswered

 

 

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Miscarriage, Child abuse, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual assault, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Violence, Blood, Pregnancy, Child death, Death, Medical trauma, and Gun violence

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Infertility, Animal death, and Vomit

Minor: Classism, Ableism, Racism, Suicide, and Sexism

bumblebeefarts's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Miscarriage, Infertility, Medical trauma, Murder, Violence, Pregnancy, and Medical content

Moderate: Rape, Child death, Death, Sexual assault, and Classism

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Racism, and Chronic illness

kaylasbewks's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

stars ,, 5.0
cawpile ,, 9.14

this book was outstanding from the completely unique plot, fantastically fleshed out characters and mesmerising writing. it became so much more than i ever expected it to be, i'm still in awe. i will admit that at times i was confused, but by the end of the book i believe i pieced together everything,, even if i haven't, i still loved the experience - the last 25% or so of this book was a rollercoaster of emotions and i couldn't put it down. wow.

i have so many thoughts about this book, 99% of which are positive, but my brain is so frazzled. simply, i'd recommend this book to anyone and everyone who's even remotely interested, but please check the trigger warnings first.

wow. wow? wow. wow. wow.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Miscarriage, Death, Body horror, Child death, Grief, Gore, Medical content, Violence, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Sexual assault, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, and Fire/Fire injury

50shadesofrae's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Gothic and weird (complimentary). The first 2/3 feels like a different book from the last 1/3? Somehow both hard science and haunted house logic. It’s a trip.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Self harm, Incest, Pregnancy, Medical content, and Body horror

Moderate: Miscarriage, Adult/minor relationship, and Injury/Injury detail

athenian_frog's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.25

The book can get very slow but when the horror kicks in it’s usually pretty engaging. My main issue is with the lulls in between, especially in the first half of the book.

BUT think there’s some really interesting reflection from the perspective of such a complex organism that Hiron Ennes includes! That and the character of Émile in general were highlights. The story went in a direction I was really not expecting—in a good way—and the ending was pretty rewarding.

Some of the ideas that strengthen the conclusion that I found in the book—like the value of one’s bodily autonomy—could have been better weaved throughout the book but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

PLEASE READ the content warnings below. Thanks! <3

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical content, Pregnancy, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death, Violence, Vomit, Misogyny, Self harm, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Medical trauma, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Body horror, Toxic relationship, Blood, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury

-the baron’s family (whose mansion is where the majority of the book takes place) generally holds pretty misogynistic beliefs of a woman’s role in the family, specifically that they are “responsible” for having children/a son in particular -a female character has a history of miscarrying, makes one or two dark jokes about it -descriptions of medical procedures that might upset readers including: several instances of needle insertion in various places, sedated/paralyzed patients during a procedure, often without consent, the removal of a parasite fragment from the optic nerve post mortem, descriptions of childbirth - suicide is examined as a possible and very plausible reason that a character dies (via scalpel to the throat) -In the latter half of the book it is implied that a character ends up in an emotionally abusive relationship with a member of the barony. The sex they have (very vague) reads very much as coercive/non consensual because of the power the barony holds over the rest of the people living in the chateau. There are moments of physical abuse as well. - at least two characters vomit, and a couple more have something crawl out of their mouth

cadence99's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.25

A twisty turny fever dream like read. Liked this overall, though the ending felt a bit lackluster and not in keeping with the rest of the book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Gore, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Chronic illness, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Ableism, Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Self harm, Sexual assault, Child abuse, and Medical content

awainwright's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Torture, Sexual assault, Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, and Medical content

ribbenkast's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated

3.75

This book really impressed me with the way it is wirtten, Hiron Ennes really manages to write from the perspective of a super intelegent hivemind and sell it. The world building is amazing and is probably the best part of the book. It's got to be one of the most creative uses of the ghotic genre I've seen so far.

However the books suffers a bit from the gothic pitfall where in the first half it's just vibes and nothing much really happens. The pace really picks up near the ending though! Admittedly I do think the book ends on a bit of a weak note. I think there's space for a sequel I'll gladly pick up if it ever gets published. 

All in all, this was a great debut. I'll be certainly be on the lookout for any books that Hiron Ennes writes in the future. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Body horror, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Ableism, Xenophobia, Racism, Racial slurs, Mental illness, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, Classism, Chronic illness, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Rape

hmstaab's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Loveable characters? No

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gore, Body horror, Medical trauma, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Murder, and Suicide

Minor: Physical abuse, Excrement, Infertility, Miscarriage, Colonisation, Death, and Rape

fionamclary's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

This book has one of the most fascinating concepts I've ever encountered. I spent the first chapter so confused about what was going on, and then the next chapter cleared it all up and I was floored, and so excited to see how the premise would develop. It did not disappoint. Leech is a clever, fierce, and disturbing exploration of the ways in which people have their bodily autonomy taken from them and they ways in which they take it back. It also raises the question of to what degree our bodies are truly our own.

I often struggle with stand-alone SFF because I find that there is not enough room for the requisite world-building, but Hiron Ennes populated this book with numerous small lines that fit seamlessly into the narrative and yet did wonders to flesh out the world.

I did find that the pacing changed rather suddenly about 2/3 of the way through, from a contemplative dread punctuated by brief bursts of action, to suddenly everything kicking off, with revelations and major plot developments happening left and right. This sharp change is my only real quibble with the book.

Bonus: This book has a nonspeaking major character who is never portrayed as needing to be "fixed." There's also just casually a trans old man side character.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Medical content, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Ableism, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, and Rape

Minor: Suicide, Gore, and Miscarriage