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A review by trishupaper
The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass
Did not finish book. Stopped at 43%.
I just wasn’t getting into it as much as I’d like. What really threw me off about the story was the cartoonish behaviour of the supernatural elements. It’s clear that the book takes the horror/scary aspect of it seriously, but the way ghosts and ecto-mists and just anything to do with the supernatural were portrayed in this book was just so…unserious. Jake levitating at the whims of a quasi-demonic entity should’ve been terrifying, but it wasn’t. It was corny and cartoonish.
The plot was also very draggy and imbalanced. Whenever it built up, the pay off was never worth it. I skimmed through to the ending and didn’t find the turn of events to be satisfying enough to keep me reading. There were also some reveals that I thought were not hinted or worked on, so the reveal felt unearned. Like it was just out there for convenience.
The plot was also very draggy and imbalanced. Whenever it built up, the pay off was never worth it. I skimmed through to the ending and didn’t find the turn of events to be satisfying enough to keep me reading. There were also some reveals that I thought were not hinted or worked on, so the reveal felt unearned. Like it was just out there for convenience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Murder, Suicide, Racism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Domestic abuse