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A review by lostlenore_
The Devouring Gray by C.L. Herman
4.0
I'm a sucker for fairytale-gone-wrong books with a heavy dose of dark horror and this one really succeeded in meeting almost all of my expectations!
The author uses lots of tropes in YA literature and some cliches to rewrite the "small-town community, dark problems ahead" premise (much like Stranger Things creator did in the first season before the fall began) and it places teenagers in the center of the community's problems. The writing is effortless and the strongest asset of this book is the way the author uses the surroundings to set the tone and atmosphere of her story. It's creepy and mystical and nicely done on that front.
Something that I didn't enjoy so much was the feeling I got every time the author introduced why the heroes must work together, even if some of them were sworn, enemies. It reminded me of all D&D sessions where the party must come together in the first or second session to fight off what comes next. I don't like it at all when the plot is being forced and when the author uses said plot to force the characters' arcs and their relationships.
Another thing that bugged me a bit was the way some characters, especially Violet, sounded way more incosistent than what she should have. In her attempt to include mental health awareness, the author sometimes misjudges Violet and makes her say things and think things that don't make any sense with her trauma and who she is.
Something else that is worth mentioning is that there's strong LGBTQ+ rep since almost all characters are Bi. What this means though is that at the very end, the story focuses mostly on who will hook up with whom and not the real deal which is a monster potentially being on the loose.
Of course, romance is always a boost for any book, at least this is my opinion, but when we're concerned with the sexual desires of all the heroes and their relationships with each other define their next steps, then the book stays away from the original expectations and simply becomes a sort of Riverdale drama. (I do enjoy Riverdale but this book missed some marks in being so much more than this.)
I don't want to sound negative though--this book is clearly a 4-star read for me. It's fast-paced, very clearly written, very atmospheric, mysterious and very addictive. It's definitely a book whose sequel I'll read and Christine Lynne Herman has become an autobuy author for me. But I'm always in favour of expressing my honest opinion about some things that went wrong so that the author can fix them in her next books.
This is an underappreciated book in the bookstagram family and book community which is sad considering that it clearly deserves more attention and hype than it received!
The author uses lots of tropes in YA literature and some cliches to rewrite the "small-town community, dark problems ahead" premise (much like Stranger Things creator did in the first season before the fall began) and it places teenagers in the center of the community's problems. The writing is effortless and the strongest asset of this book is the way the author uses the surroundings to set the tone and atmosphere of her story. It's creepy and mystical and nicely done on that front.
Something that I didn't enjoy so much was the feeling I got every time the author introduced why the heroes must work together, even if some of them were sworn, enemies. It reminded me of all D&D sessions where the party must come together in the first or second session to fight off what comes next. I don't like it at all when the plot is being forced and when the author uses said plot to force the characters' arcs and their relationships.
Another thing that bugged me a bit was the way some characters, especially Violet, sounded way more incosistent than what she should have. In her attempt to include mental health awareness, the author sometimes misjudges Violet and makes her say things and think things that don't make any sense with her trauma and who she is.
Something else that is worth mentioning is that there's strong LGBTQ+ rep since almost all characters are Bi. What this means though is that at the very end, the story focuses mostly on who will hook up with whom and not the real deal which is a monster potentially being on the loose.
Of course, romance is always a boost for any book, at least this is my opinion, but when we're concerned with the sexual desires of all the heroes and their relationships with each other define their next steps, then the book stays away from the original expectations and simply becomes a sort of Riverdale drama. (I do enjoy Riverdale but this book missed some marks in being so much more than this.)
I don't want to sound negative though--this book is clearly a 4-star read for me. It's fast-paced, very clearly written, very atmospheric, mysterious and very addictive. It's definitely a book whose sequel I'll read and Christine Lynne Herman has become an autobuy author for me. But I'm always in favour of expressing my honest opinion about some things that went wrong so that the author can fix them in her next books.
This is an underappreciated book in the bookstagram family and book community which is sad considering that it clearly deserves more attention and hype than it received!