Reviews

A Light Most Hateful by Hailey Piper

thickthighs_no_lies's review

3.0

Thanks to Charlotte at Titan for my #gifted copy and my spot on the tour.

I found the first couple of chapters a little bit slow but when the action starts it is quite surprising it comes from seemingly nothing.

This is quite a wordy book and I found myself skimming parts to get to the actual content of the story. I’m not saying the writing is a bad thing but at the point I was reading this, I was ready for a quick read and the writing felt a bit too much for me.

I can definitely see where the comparison to Stranger Things comes in and think this would make a great Halloween special for TV.

It’s definitely is a great book for the spooky season with its creepy vibes and horror theme so if you are looking for something to hear you up for Halloween then this could be your book!

haleycarle's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.25

abaranes's review

1.0

There wasn't a single thing about this book that I enjoyed. It felt like the author was trying to write this grand, important story chock full of morals and lessons so that the reader is fundamentally changed by it, but I found everything to fall horribly flat.

I had such a hard time following what was going on - with the writing style and complete plot change half way through the book not helping at all (that's right - about half way through the book the plot goes completely off the rails). Every character was a two dimensional cliche, and I found nothing to be particularly engaging or memorable.

There were many times I thought about DNFing and, in retrospect, I should've. I'm sure there are people who would like this book, but I'm not one of them.

jozhik's review

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-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? Yes

3.5

Annoying to the point of almost dnfing in the beginning, but kinda won me over by the  middle enough to give it a pass. It’s strange, it’s gory, it’s confusing and frustrating at times, but I ended up finding some charm in its imaginativeness. Really solid body horror and a good mind-fuck that has a bit of a schlocky feel in the most positive sense of the word. Idea is not unique, but I applaud a unique execution of it. Truly felt like the authors (the dreamers? hehe) fever dream put on paper and despite some frustration along the way, after finishing I’m more positive than not. Nice surprise. 

thegrimreaders's review

4.0

This was real fucking weird and real fucking good. It took me a hot sec to get into it as we don’t find out what’s truly happening until a ways in, but once I was hooked I was HOOKED. My first time reading Hailey Pieper and will definitely not be my last, I already can’t wait to get my hands on more of her work.

Highly recommend this one to lovers of sci-fi themes in horror and especially those that enjoy body horror and descriptive creature-ish feature. The only comparison I can think to make is the Molly Southbourne series by Tade Thompson - so if you enjoyed those I think you’ll have a hell of a lot of fun with this one.

Thank you so much to Titan Books and Hailey for my copy! Definitely do yourself a favor and pick up a copy when it publishes October 10th.

thesustainablebookshelf's review

5.0

Olivia works at the drive-in in Chapel Hill. She ran away from home at 15, and for the last 3 years has settled into the town only because of her best friend, Sunflower. Except that one night before her shift, she could swear she hears the hill screaming. That is, before all quite literally, goes downhill.

Wow. This was just an incredible, strange, unique, and imaginary book. If you liked the stomach flipping feeling at the end of a twisted episode of The Twilight Zone or Black Mirror, the adventure of Stardust and beauty and terror of The Wizard of Oz, then A Light Most Hateful is for you.

This indie author's mind is insane. Go into it with an open mind, and let her yellow brick road of prose lead you through to the end. Bonus points for sapphic vibes and non-binary representation

dezthereader's review

dark fast-paced

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

4.0

inkychaotics's review

medium-paced

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

4.0

Deeply imaginative and compelling. 

When I was in college, I took a slipstream genre course where we read some of the strangest works of speculative fiction -- I think about the stories from that class all the time! A Light Most Hateful would fit in quite well with this genre of the fantastical that pushes past conventional genre boundaries. It's dreamy and odd, difficult to explain, yet also beautifully written and clearly heartfelt. It showcases Hailey Piper's untamable imagination in so many distinct ways (I adored the stained glass imagery, especially). 

I admit there were a few times where I had to reread some passages and got a little lost since there was so much going on, but it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book. I could see this book as inspiration for a trippy video game -- the storylines and characters are all quite cinematic.

One of the comp books that was marketed for A Light Most Hateful was Mona Awad's brilliant novel Bunny (one of my favorite books!), and if you've read Bunny, you might end up like me and guess the twists a bit early in this novel. I kind of wish publishers would dial back on the need for comp books in every piece of marketing. I'd rather go in with just the back cover blurb and nothing else! So, that's a personal gripe really with publishers, not the book.

A bold novel with so much to offer! Piper always delivers the unexpected, and I am always here for the ride! 

laura_et's review

fast-paced

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

4.25

vanmeers's review

5.0

i love hailey piper’s mind!!! i haven’t read everything by her (yet) but what i’ve read so far has had such a distinct voice and there’s just elements that feels very piper’ish — making for some really excellent horror books with undertones of queerness, body horror and supernatural elements. 

this is probably one of my most anticipated reads this year and it didn’t disappoint one bit! a light most hateful is such a captivating read i barely wanted to put it down for such boring fake things as “work”, “dinner, and “sleeping” when unbelievable mysteries are being unravelled. it’s literally a tense read from start to finish, full of descriptive horrors and unique characters facing terrors beyond their imagination. there’s so much to this book i didn’t expect and i really didn’t think i’d be so in love with these characters.  

i am also the number one fan of christmas and their cool ass vibes and i just know a teenage me reading this would’ve crushed hard on them lmqo but i genuinely loved the way christmas and olivia worked together. it’s a rare feeling but i’m really gonna miss reading this book and being part of this small universe 💔 

borrowed this from the library but i absolutely need a physical copy for my bookshelf right now!!