A review by marywahlmeierbracciano
The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

In Victorian England, Silas is an autistic sixteen-year-old boy facing imminent marriage and the expectation to reproduce, for he was born with a womb and the coveted violet eyes which mark him as a medium.  When a last ditch effort at survival goes wrong, Silas is sent to a (very haunted) reformatory school for wives-in-training.  Andrew Joseph White writes about trans characters with such tenderness and beauty while utilizing horror to discuss the persecution of the othered, cruel medical experimentation, “hysteria,” and fear of trans magic.  Stitched with rabbit imagery and the gory realities of humanity throughout, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is a knockout.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Transphobia and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Vomit, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Dysphoria