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A review by exorcismemily
Isaak by Jeremy Johnson
2.0
I was excited to check out a new cult horror book, but I struggled with Isaak. It started out really well, but got so convoluted, and I feel like a lot of things were never explained. There was little information on the cult that the book was about, and I wish there would have been more context for what was happening. It was almost like jumping into a second book when you haven't read the first one, except I'm pretty sure this is a standalone.
The characters were flat, and no one stood out. It was hard to keep everyone straight because there were so many characters, and new ones kept showing up.
The writing often felt juvenile - for example, explaining that a character's "farts always smelled like breakfast food", describing wine as "pee-water colored", a "fog of sphincter-filtered liquor", and more. I feel like there were some good ideas in the framework, but it got lost with a confusing story and odd phrasing.
Thank you to the author for my copy.
CW - drugging, mention of suicide
The characters were flat, and no one stood out. It was hard to keep everyone straight because there were so many characters, and new ones kept showing up.
The writing often felt juvenile - for example, explaining that a character's "farts always smelled like breakfast food", describing wine as "pee-water colored", a "fog of sphincter-filtered liquor", and more. I feel like there were some good ideas in the framework, but it got lost with a confusing story and odd phrasing.
Thank you to the author for my copy.
CW - drugging, mention of suicide