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A review by mar_gier
Deeplight by Frances Hardinge
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
3.75
I liked this book, but it was... weird. Like, really weird. A good-weird, but also a weird-weird. Like, Unraveller this book should really be considered a horror book as well as a fantasy book. (Also this book should definitely be classified in the dark fantasy subgenre of fantasy.) Deeplight was honestly even more dark and unsettling to read than Unraveller.
But yeah, I don't know, I guess it's cuz I found creepy Lovecraftian sea monster-gods and evil magical purple-black not-actually-seawater more disturbing than a dark fantasy about a dark magic forest with a mind of its own. I guess the latter just felt less unnatural to me for whatever reason. (Plus, the deep ocean is super freaky.)
Even though I did enjoy it, it also kind of disturbed me the same way that Subnautica does, so I couldn't quite give it four stars. But if you like Frances Hardinge's other books, and weird, unsettling fantasy is your thing, you'll probably like this book.
But yeah, I don't know, I guess it's cuz I found creepy Lovecraftian sea monster-gods and evil magical purple-black not-actually-seawater more disturbing than a dark fantasy about a dark magic forest with a mind of its own. I guess the latter just felt less unnatural to me for whatever reason. (Plus, the deep ocean is super freaky.)
Even though I did enjoy it, it also kind of disturbed me the same way that Subnautica does, so I couldn't quite give it four stars. But if you like Frances Hardinge's other books, and weird, unsettling fantasy is your thing, you'll probably like this book.
Moderate: Murder, Body horror, Death, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse