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A review by elerireads
Beyond the Black Door by A.M. Strickland
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Pretty good. Gripping story that took some twists and turns to keep me hooked right to the end. Some solid creepiness and suspense - slightly regretted reading this at night when I was alone. Nice worldbuilding and belief system construction.
I found the gender and sexuality framework a bit confusing but I liked the idea of it - that a different society would have set up different ways of thinking about these things and terminology that reflected their belief system. But it did that classic thing of making all the characters confused and ashamed and then suddenly claiming that all these things were completely accepted and normalised, as if those feelings have nothing to do with existing in a prejudiced oppressive society.
For some reason I was really rooting for Jidras to be redeemed. Something about the way his character was built up made me feel like there was some hidden extra depth to his story that was going to be uncovered, but there never was. Bit unsatisfying because I thought there was more to be unpacked there.
I found the gender and sexuality framework a bit confusing but I liked the idea of it - that a different society would have set up different ways of thinking about these things and terminology that reflected their belief system. But it did that classic thing of making all the characters confused and ashamed and then suddenly claiming that all these things were completely accepted and normalised, as if those feelings have nothing to do with existing in a prejudiced oppressive society.
For some reason I was really rooting for Jidras to be redeemed. Something about the way his character was built up made me feel like there was some hidden extra depth to his story that was going to be uncovered, but there never was. Bit unsatisfying because I thought there was more to be unpacked there.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Deadnaming, and Misogyny
Minor: Suicide attempt