alphabetseeds 's review for:

The Library at Hellebore by Cassandra Khaw

3.5

challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I loved the concept of this story so much, but the execution left me wanting more. I enjoyed the nonlinear approach to the storytelling, switching back and forth between the "before" when Alessa and her classmates were simply moving through the haunted house attraction and when they become the main event of the haunted house attraction, being actively threatened and hunted by the carnivorous faculty. However, Khaw withheld too much information, and the worldbuilding felt underwhelming and incomplete; I felt like they kept introducing intriguing concepts only to provide an obtuse or anticlimactic answer. And I wish we had spent more time with characters rather than a few scattered scenes so that their eventual impact on the main events held more emotional weight. However, I get the sense that this was the point; that this was designed to be character-driven, but the characters were literally and figuratively swept up into plots against their wills (as demonstrated by Alessa trying to leave graduation and immediately finding herself back in her seat as if she had never stood). I just don't know that Khaw totally hit the mark here.

This book is a series of scenes ranging from the mundane and strange to gory body horror, and while I generally enjoyed the set pieces and Khaw's verbose, rich writing style, I was left wanting more. Any time I expected a concrete answer or bit of knowledge to arrive, I was put back on the wrong foot, wondering if I was maybe missing something or if the story was.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder