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A review by pastelwriter
I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Another banger from Stephen Graham Jones! I absolutely loved this! It made my heart ache š
This was very close to being another perfect book by this author for me. It got super close! It nearly could have beaten The Only Good Indians as my fave book by him, but it didnāt mostly because of a pacing issue. There was a very clear moment in this novel (when Amber and Tolly were testing Tollyās āabilitiesā) that dragged on for too long. I literally found myself thinking, āWhen are we gonna get back to the part about actively being a teenage slasher?ā Sure, shortly after I had this thought, we got back to slashingā¦but I wish I hadnāt thought it at all.
Apart from that detail, though, I loved this. My favorite thing was the relationship between Tolly and Amber. It was so clear from the beginning how much he loved his best friend. The two of them really had each otherās backs! Amber was a real MVP, and Tolly tried his best to protect her as well.
Another thing I enjoyed was how scenes that felt like they would be funny in a movie, absolutely emotionally devastated me. Because this novel explores the absurdity and convenience of slashers, thereās several scenes with a funny tone but an undercurrent of sadness because these same scenes are solidifying the horrors Tolly has committed and will commit. It was interesting too because I buddy read this with a friend, and she was laughing at those scenes, while I was holding back tears. We understood why we were having different reactions even as they were polar opposites.
As a whole, this was a very emotional reading experience for me. Although I must admit that the only characters I truly bothered remembering the names of were Tolly and Amber, they really stuck with me. I think this is precisely because of their close friendship. The strength of it reflected how I feel about my friends. I would do anything for them. Seeing that on the page was painful because of how real it felt. If I knew a friend was doing bad things, I would want to be certain without a shadow of a doubt while also not being able to put a final end to it all because I love my friend too much.
I just have a lot of feelings š„ŗ and Iām glad this was as good as I was hoping it would be!
This was very close to being another perfect book by this author for me. It got super close! It nearly could have beaten The Only Good Indians as my fave book by him, but it didnāt mostly because of a pacing issue. There was a very clear moment in this novel (when Amber and Tolly were testing Tollyās āabilitiesā) that dragged on for too long. I literally found myself thinking, āWhen are we gonna get back to the part about actively being a teenage slasher?ā Sure, shortly after I had this thought, we got back to slashingā¦but I wish I hadnāt thought it at all.
Apart from that detail, though, I loved this. My favorite thing was the relationship between Tolly and Amber. It was so clear from the beginning how much he loved his best friend. The two of them really had each otherās backs! Amber was a real MVP, and Tolly tried his best to protect her as well.
Another thing I enjoyed was how scenes that felt like they would be funny in a movie, absolutely emotionally devastated me. Because this novel explores the absurdity and convenience of slashers, thereās several scenes with a funny tone but an undercurrent of sadness because these same scenes are solidifying the horrors Tolly has committed and will commit. It was interesting too because I buddy read this with a friend, and she was laughing at those scenes, while I was holding back tears. We understood why we were having different reactions even as they were polar opposites.
As a whole, this was a very emotional reading experience for me. Although I must admit that the only characters I truly bothered remembering the names of were Tolly and Amber, they really stuck with me. I think this is precisely because of their close friendship. The strength of it reflected how I feel about my friends. I would do anything for them. Seeing that on the page was painful because of how real it felt. If I knew a friend was doing bad things, I would want to be certain without a shadow of a doubt while also not being able to put a final end to it all because I love my friend too much.
I just have a lot of feelings š„ŗ and Iām glad this was as good as I was hoping it would be!