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A review by anastasia_raf
Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Thank you very much to Netgalley and Granta Publications for providing me with an e-arc of this book.
"Spanning the brutal decades of Argentina's military dictatorship and its aftermath, Our Share of Night is a haunting, thrilling novel of broken families, cursed inheritances, and the sacrifices a father will make to help his son escape his destiny."
This is how the book is described, and for the most part I agree with the statement! But, I would also like to add that this book is cleverly executed, it's full of horrifying demons and sinister ghosts, merciless cults and hidden secrets. Shall we move to my complaining?
"Spanning the brutal decades of Argentina's military dictatorship and its aftermath, Our Share of Night is a haunting, thrilling novel of broken families, cursed inheritances, and the sacrifices a father will make to help his son escape his destiny."
This is how the book is described, and for the most part I agree with the statement! But, I would also like to add that this book is cleverly executed, it's full of horrifying demons and sinister ghosts, merciless cults and hidden secrets. Shall we move to my complaining?
I will not comment on the disability rep since it's not my place to judge that, and WE should definitely read reviews from disabled reviewers on that topic.
I felt the usage and presence of queer people is mostly sexual and I'm honestly offended by it. I felt queer people were dehumanized in a way. As much as sex with and between queer people was normalized I think we should be allowed to exist outside and beyond it. We are more than our sexual partners.
I would say that "sexchange" surgery is an inappropriate word and its usage is hurtful towards the trans community, so I would advise you to connect with and contact trans people about the correct and appropriate terminology.
The CONSTANT f slur usually directed at homosexual/erotic people. I get it, this is how we were treated, this was most common name for us and all that but half of it felt totally unnecessary.
S
ome commentaries left me wondering about their purpose and intentions and found them problematic.
Now, a few observations about the characters.
Gaspar not feeling akward or "disgusted" by gay people is nothing. It doesn't make him a descent being. It just doesn't make him an ignorant bigot.
I found a lot of them problematic, none of them lovable, although I think that was intentional. They were...real. In a terrifying and masterful way, real.
I felt the usage and presence of queer people is mostly sexual and I'm honestly offended by it. I felt queer people were dehumanized in a way. As much as sex with and between queer people was normalized I think we should be allowed to exist outside and beyond it. We are more than our sexual partners.
I would say that "sexchange" surgery is an inappropriate word and its usage is hurtful towards the trans community, so I would advise you to connect with and contact trans people about the correct and appropriate terminology.
The CONSTANT f slur usually directed at homosexual/erotic people. I get it, this is how we were treated, this was most common name for us and all that but half of it felt totally unnecessary.
S
ome commentaries left me wondering about their purpose and intentions and found them problematic.
Now, a few observations about the characters.
Gaspar not feeling akward or "disgusted" by gay people is nothing. It doesn't make him a descent being. It just doesn't make him an ignorant bigot.
I found a lot of them problematic, none of them lovable, although I think that was intentional. They were...real. In a terrifying and masterful way, real.
Now, to the good parts. It is very very clear that the writer of this book is talented. The story she has crafted is deliciously haunting and masterfully horrifying.
The atmosphere is honestly astounding, the writing even more so. Excellence.
The horror? Incredible.
The plot? Unique, and surprise surprise, excellent.
Am I having nightmares because of this book? Absolutely.
Do I still see Moira in my sleep? You bet I am.
I will be thinking about this book for a long long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexism, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail