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A review by pamshenanigans
White Smoke by Tiffany D. Jackson
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
White Smoke is one of those books where the blurb/promo was pretty accurate! In this case, it was “The Haunting of Hill House meets Get Out”. That’s literally how I would describe it as well, but more of on the “Get Out” side.
Tiffany Jackson’s writing is just as riveting and exhilarating as her other book, Grown. Granted that that was the only previous work of hers that I’ve read, I just have this feeling that Tiffany’s writing is pretty consistent. I was super creeped out, especially at the beginning of the story up until before the reveal was made. It was just so eerie and mysterious that I found it very hard to stop reading.
I think my most favorite thing about White Smoke is the audiobook! It really added to the creep factor of the book because the narrator did such a fantastic job narrating! Even as simple as the word “CREAAAAAAK” it was read so creepily that I felt extra anxious reading the upcoming scenes.
White Smoke is more than just a thrilling horror book though as it dives into social themes and issues like poverty, racism, flawed justice system, unjust criminalization of Black folk, and gentrification.
The only thing keeping me from giving this a perfect rating is the ending. It had an open-ended conclusion that didn’t really have any resolution (i.e. getting justice for the people oppressed, taking down the culprits). Given that, I’d still recommend this to people looking for something creepy and mysterious to read!
Tiffany Jackson’s writing is just as riveting and exhilarating as her other book, Grown. Granted that that was the only previous work of hers that I’ve read, I just have this feeling that Tiffany’s writing is pretty consistent. I was super creeped out, especially at the beginning of the story up until before the reveal was made. It was just so eerie and mysterious that I found it very hard to stop reading.
I think my most favorite thing about White Smoke is the audiobook! It really added to the creep factor of the book because the narrator did such a fantastic job narrating! Even as simple as the word “CREAAAAAAK” it was read so creepily that I felt extra anxious reading the upcoming scenes.
White Smoke is more than just a thrilling horror book though as it dives into social themes and issues like poverty, racism, flawed justice system, unjust criminalization of Black folk, and gentrification.
The only thing keeping me from giving this a perfect rating is the ending. It had an open-ended conclusion that didn’t really have any resolution (i.e. getting justice for the people oppressed, taking down the culprits). Given that, I’d still recommend this to people looking for something creepy and mysterious to read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Violence