Reviews

Harrison Squared by Daryl Gregory

branch_c's review

4.0

I should know by now that I always enjoy books by Gregory, even though his subjects so far have been rather dark for my taste. This one is a bit less so, having a somewhat YA feel, with a teenaged protagonist as its serious yet cleverly humorous narrator. The setting and supporting cast of eccentrics make for an original take on the prototypical Lovecraftian town where horror lurks. And when things get darker toward the end, the sharply written bantering dialogue keeps things light and enjoyable. All in all a fun story, the best new fiction I've read so far this year. I have to say that the ending is a bit unsatisfying, and apparently this book is a sort of prequel to We Are All Completely Fine, so even though that one promises to be darker than this one, I'll probably be on the lookout for it.

100pagesaday's review

5.0

Harrison Harrison, or Harrison Squared is on his way to the small town of Dunnsmouth, Massachusetts to accompany his marine biologist mother on a research trip. She is searching for a large squid who shouldn't be this far North. Soon after Harrison's arrival and a very strange first day of school in a cathedral like building with unwelcoming teachers and a student body that all seems to look the same, Harrison's mother disappears at sea. Harrison lost his father and a leg in what seems like an awfully similar accident when he was a toddler. Since then, he has had a healthy fear of the water. Now, Harrison is determined to find his mother, no matter what. As he digs around Dunnsmouth, Harrison begins to discover a strange history of the town: a series of disappearances and people left in comas for no reason, a worship of an unknown set of gods and beings that aren't entirely human. With his new friends, Harrison is determined to find his mother and battle the monsters of Dunnsmouth.

I have always loved Daryl Gregory's writing and how it completely envelops me into the setting. Harrison Squared is no exception; I could easily imagine the dreary, sparsely populated coastal town and the people there. Another brilliant aspect are the characters. Not everyone that you would expect to be a monster is, and some of the things that should be easily identifiable as monsters aren't. Harrison is far from perfect, he is fearful and has a short temper; yet, his determination, curiosity, and open-mindedness are perfect for the strange tasks he must complete. Some of the side characters were amazing as well, Lydia, Lub and Aunt Sel were all great to get to know. I liked that the horror and monsters were teased out slowly, they were so ingrained into Dunnsmouth that it wasn't obvious what to be afraid of all the time. An intense an exciting ending only left me wanting more from Harrison and the crew.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

srhhelm's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

holly_117's review

5.0

Another excellent entry in the series. This book gives us some of the back story of Harrison Harrison, the main character of "We Are All Completely Fine". I can't give a lot of detail in this review without getting super spoiler-ish, so suffice it to say, if you're into supernatural mysteries, you'll like this series. I look forward to the next installment, and will be reading "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" in the meantime.

adru's review

Äge Chtulhu-noortekas, Kalle Blomkvist Dunnsmouthis.

bluebeereads's review

4.0

Istyria book blog ~ B's world of enchanted books

The first word that pops up in my head when I think of this book is creepy. Seriously, it's kinda weird and creeped me out a lot. I didn't really know what exactly to expect when I started this but in the end I did really, really enjoy this one.

I'd love to give you a summary of the story, but I recommend going into this book having read nothing more than the blurb, so I'm not going to do that in this review. I'll just say that I found the story very original and like I said, weird and creepy. In a very good way. Even though it may be "boring" at times, it never really bored me because it was weird and creepy in a fascinating way. I wanted to keep reading. And I did. Two nights in a row until 2.30 am. Sigh.

I looooved the characters in this book! They were all so original and fantastic! I loved Harrison and Lydia, but my favorite is Lub. He's just so adorable! Seriously. The end of the book did kinda have a cliffhanger, a bit. It's enough for me to want to read the sequel right now.

This is a short review, but I really don't know what else to say without spoiling the whole thing. I'll recommend this to fans of... paranormal mystery? Yeah, something like that. Creepy paranormal mystery books. I think.



This review is also (or -soon- will be) posted on Istyria book blog

seagullsaga's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny 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? No

4.0

nicolemhill's review

3.0

The prequel to "We Are All Completely Fine" is H.P. Lovecraft's Percy Jackson.

marpesea's review

4.0

A solid story made even better by a top-notch narrator. This feels like it exists on the line between YA and adult literature-- probably a good read for the more mature teen (sex is alluded to and there are some intense/gory bits). Fast paced action, a mystery, lovecraftian nightmares and a refreshing cast of sidekicks made this hard to pause. Even better? The female characters in this are complex.

Recommended for fans of haunted high schools, swim team, and lovecraftian nightmares.

abmgw's review

5.0

Outstanding nice book, full of very subversive humor.