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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Gorgeous gothic prose and a really intriguing take on some classic fantasy elements.
The only thing brining this down from a 5 star for me is the pacing, this took a long time to hook me but once it did I sped through the second two thirds in one evening!
Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group for the ARC
The only thing brining this down from a 5 star for me is the pacing, this took a long time to hook me but once it did I sped through the second two thirds in one evening!
Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group for the ARC
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
To start with the positive, I think this book is beautifully written. We are promised an atmospheric, gothic world and that's exactly what we got. It was also surprisingly nice to see a gothic world that was not dreary and rainy but stiflingly hot.
However, I found this book difficult to get through. I felt it took so long to just get to the point and idk if I'm just stupid or if the book was too scientific at times, where I felt I had to google the words being used to understand what they were talking about. I only found one of the characters likeable, and unfortunately it was not our main character. The book started to get interesting towards the end but then just stopped - it was incredibly abrupt and I'm not sure if it was purposefully left open for sequel?
I really thought I was going to love this book and unfortunately for me, this was a miss.
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a dark gothic novel with academia vibes and a sapphic romance that gives “Where the Wild Things Are” episode of Buffy (iykyk).
The main character is kind of toxic, but that didn’t necessarily make me hate her. We need toxic gays just as much as the sweet ones. She is constantly in her head. We get her thoughts more than anything, but there are plenty of times where her thoughts and actions don’t line up. There really wasn’t much character development either.
Unfortunately, the romance fell a bit flat for me. Both of them have horrible communication skills to the point it is painful to read. I just don’t see them staying together for very long. I usually don’t vibe with slow burns, but the premise of them not being able to touch due to poison was interesting and I think really helped lessen the frustration that I usually feel during a slow burn. However, I didn’t feel that rush when they finally acted on their feelings. I found myself not wanting to ship these two characters because of the toxic way the main character blamed the love interest for the main character’s own actions.
I also found the pace to be slow. This is more of a character than a plot story and we spend a lot of time in the main character’s head. That being said, the ending felt sudden and left me filling unfulfilled. I would have preferred something more closed ended especially since I was just starting to get into the plot.
The main character is kind of toxic, but that didn’t necessarily make me hate her. We need toxic gays just as much as the sweet ones. She is constantly in her head. We get her thoughts more than anything, but there are plenty of times where her thoughts and actions don’t line up. There really wasn’t much character development either.
Unfortunately, the romance fell a bit flat for me. Both of them have horrible communication skills to the point it is painful to read. I just don’t see them staying together for very long. I usually don’t vibe with slow burns, but the premise of them not being able to touch due to poison was interesting and I think really helped lessen the frustration that I usually feel during a slow burn. However, I didn’t feel that rush when they finally acted on their feelings. I found myself not wanting to ship these two characters because of the toxic way the main character blamed the love interest for the main character’s own actions.
I also found the pace to be slow. This is more of a character than a plot story and we spend a lot of time in the main character’s head. That being said, the ending felt sudden and left me filling unfulfilled. I would have preferred something more closed ended especially since I was just starting to get into the plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood
Minor: Death of parent
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Homophobia, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Animal death, Fire/Fire injury
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I very much enjoyed this beautifully rich and Gothic novel. The pacing was excellent, she really made you sit in the atmosphere and emotion on every page.
I really appreciated having a slow flowing story that let the tension and obsession slowly build instead of rushing to the exciting parts. How I wouldn't give to be in such an academic setting even if I have to put up with so many men and an overbearing gothic atmosphere.
I do have to say that the dynamic was frustrating and miscommunication is not a favorite trope but I will still always read about women obsessed with each other and all of their wrongs.
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for this ARC!
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
slow-paced
I really wanted to enjoy This Vicious Hunger. The gothic vibes, the morally gray characters, and the promise of dark academia with sapphic tension were all right up my alley. Unfortunately, it didn’t meet my expectations.
Despise the lush prose, the pacing felt sluggish, I often felt confused instead of intrigued. The worldbuilding lacked clarity, which made it hard for me to feel connected to the setting or the characters. While the central mystery seemed interesting, the slow reveal of answers and lack of excitement made it hard to stay engaged. I was waiting for a captivating moment, but it never happened.
I also struggled to connect with the main character; her motivations were unclear. Even though the story tried to be complex, it often felt unfocused.
That said, I think this book will appeal to readers who enjoy a slow burn and are okay with some ambiguity in the story. However, it just wasn’t the right fit for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Despise the lush prose, the pacing felt sluggish, I often felt confused instead of intrigued. The worldbuilding lacked clarity, which made it hard for me to feel connected to the setting or the characters. While the central mystery seemed interesting, the slow reveal of answers and lack of excitement made it hard to stay engaged. I was waiting for a captivating moment, but it never happened.
I also struggled to connect with the main character; her motivations were unclear. Even though the story tried to be complex, it often felt unfocused.
That said, I think this book will appeal to readers who enjoy a slow burn and are okay with some ambiguity in the story. However, it just wasn’t the right fit for me.
Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Another Gothic lesbian fantasy that fell flat to me. I think the prose is absolutely stunning and heart wrenching, and a bit disgusting /pos, but prose doesn’t matter if you’re not actually telling a story with it. Thora and Olea are not compelling characters. The world that they exist in is surface level at best. I think there was so much more potential to explore the rituals and traditions, the school and Thora‘s academics, even the characters existed to fill some sort of archetype instead of being developed. The plot and conversations were overly repetitive to the point that I had to check that there wasn’t an issue with my copy of the book and it felt like there really wasn’t a conclusion to the story. It just ended with no buildup or any sort of feeling of this is the end very disappointing
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I was intrigued to start reading this book as the description sounded unusual.
The first half of the book read quite slow but, once it started to increase the pace, it finally got interesting.
The elements of botany and dark academia drew me into the story.
I feel there were a few missed opportunities around world building and where the story was going as it is not clear where and when the book is set, and I feel this could have been explored more.
I didn’t connect much with the characters but you could see their growth throughout the book. You could really feel the passion and hunger thanks to some beautiful descriptions.
Unfortunately this book didn’t live up to my expectations, with a very anticlimactic ending which was quite disappointing.
Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for this ARC.