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A review by justagirlwithabook
Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Overview:
A group of long time friends who seem to love the thrill of haunted, ghosty adventures, settle on a Heian-era mansion as the location for one of the existing couple's wedding venue (which has been a childhood dream of the bride-to-be). The friends' individual relationships are already a bit complicated, and after a night of settling in, drinking, eating, and swapping ghost stories, things begin to intensify and reach a terrifying peak. Before the wedding even has begun, the night turns horrifying, and no one will ultimately walk out the mansion the same as they walked in (and in some cases ... fail to walk out at all).
What I loved:
- I loved the Japanese folklore incorporated seamlessly in this story. I kept my phone close and did a lot of translating and Googling as I progressed, and I loved every bit of it!
- I will forever be impressed by authors who can create a strong mood and atmosphere in a short amount of time and just jam-pack what could be a full novel's worth of content into less than even 200 pages. Cassandra Khaw does this so well. There were moments I found myself physically cringing in response to some of the descriptions. This story sets you up with eerie "something's not right" vibes right of the bat and never lets go.
- It's creepy, and it's creepy well-done.
- I could easily see this play out as an hour and a half horror movie on Netflix and it do phenomenally well.
What I didn’t love:
- Honestly, my only complaint is that I wanted MORE of it. I would've been entirely happy with another 100 pages and not even blinked about it.
Overall:
Fantastic Japanese-centered haunted house/horror tale in under 200 pages! It had me feeling creeped out at times, physically repulsed at others, and overall very satisfied. If you're in the mood for a solid creepy tale that won't take too long to read but scratch that horror itch, this one is so worth picking up! I've thrown it in my "favorites of 2021" as I think this one has left me lingering and wishing for more.
A group of long time friends who seem to love the thrill of haunted, ghosty adventures, settle on a Heian-era mansion as the location for one of the existing couple's wedding venue (which has been a childhood dream of the bride-to-be). The friends' individual relationships are already a bit complicated, and after a night of settling in, drinking, eating, and swapping ghost stories, things begin to intensify and reach a terrifying peak. Before the wedding even has begun, the night turns horrifying, and no one will ultimately walk out the mansion the same as they walked in (and in some cases ... fail to walk out at all).
What I loved:
- I loved the Japanese folklore incorporated seamlessly in this story. I kept my phone close and did a lot of translating and Googling as I progressed, and I loved every bit of it!
- I will forever be impressed by authors who can create a strong mood and atmosphere in a short amount of time and just jam-pack what could be a full novel's worth of content into less than even 200 pages. Cassandra Khaw does this so well. There were moments I found myself physically cringing in response to some of the descriptions. This story sets you up with eerie "something's not right" vibes right of the bat and never lets go.
- It's creepy, and it's creepy well-done.
- I could easily see this play out as an hour and a half horror movie on Netflix and it do phenomenally well.
What I didn’t love:
- Honestly, my only complaint is that I wanted MORE of it. I would've been entirely happy with another 100 pages and not even blinked about it.
Overall:
Fantastic Japanese-centered haunted house/horror tale in under 200 pages! It had me feeling creeped out at times, physically repulsed at others, and overall very satisfied. If you're in the mood for a solid creepy tale that won't take too long to read but scratch that horror itch, this one is so worth picking up! I've thrown it in my "favorites of 2021" as I think this one has left me lingering and wishing for more.