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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It took me a long long time to finish this book and although I did in the end quite enjoy it I am not at all sure I would recommend it. Some sections seemed to really drag but Iris is a kind of compelling character and I did care about her and what was to become of her so I persevered. The second half was much more readable and compelling.
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I've read all of Ward's other novels and loved them, so I figured it was time to read her debut novel.
If you like gothic horror, then I imagine you might really get into this book. It absolutely seeps with it. The prose is just as good as any of her later novels, and I was pulled in from the opening pages.
Much like her other novels, this one asks the reader to think beyond just the words written on the page.
Ultimately this is a book about emotional and psychic pain, wrapped up in a ghost story about a haunted house. The story is told over multiple different POVs and points in time and the ending wraps everything up nicely as it all comes together.
If you like gothic horror, then I imagine you might really get into this book. It absolutely seeps with it. The prose is just as good as any of her later novels, and I was pulled in from the opening pages.
Much like her other novels, this one asks the reader to think beyond just the words written on the page.
Ultimately this is a book about emotional and psychic pain, wrapped up in a ghost story about a haunted house. The story is told over multiple different POVs and points in time and the ending wraps everything up nicely as it all comes together.
The pacing was incredibly slow, it felt Gothic for the sake of being Gothic, everything was still so obfuscated this far in, and I didn’t really care about any of the characters.
The Girl from Rawblood (or simply 'Rawblood' as the book was called when I originally read it) is a gothic thriller that in places reminds me of the wild setting and wild characters of Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. The main story features a dual narrative set across different time periods. I enjoyed more of Iris' chapters but mainly because it was through her that we uncovered the mystery. The chapters set some decades previous from her father Charles' perspective were far too slow-paced for me to enjoy. And I'll admit that the confusing array of flashbacks in the last third of the novel left me complete lost. The novel does have a truly shocking twist at the end but for me this was not enough to save the rest of the novel.
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes