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A review by taratearex
Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I picked this up based on the blurb and recommendation from Carmen Maria Machado. I was interested in a more nuanced take on the "gender apocalypse" idea even though I generally don't think we need more in this genre. After reading this I really don't think we need more in the genre, I think this one handles it as best the genre can be handled and it was still somewhat lacking.
The characters are all unlikeable and problematic, I generally have a hard time when characters aren't likeable, and I get that it can work in this end of the world desperate times, but in apocalypse books I'm always looking for some hope and someone to root for and I think the characters were just a bit too flat, underdeveloped or unlikeable to get me there. Which is fine, just not to my taste. And there are SO many characters that come in and out of scenes, new ones appear, I was not sure who I was supposed to remember or who was brand new many times.
I think the raw end-of-the-world, desperation and hopelessness is very strong in this, which gave it a mood, but wow was it depressing to read- because a lot of the politics are happening right now with anti trans reactionary laws, and politicians and billionaire authors spouting hateful anti trans rhetoric. If you pick this up, just know it's very heavy.
As a fan of horror I did appreciate just how gross this world is, violence and gore and gross out scenes galore, there is not much relief from these scenes, which makes it a quick read. Even with this sort of relentless action, it still just fell a bit flat for me. Sometimes the prose just left some descriptions and scenes confusing, sometimes things were underexplained and sometimes things were way overexplained.
Obviously, because this book is written by a trans woman the author is getting a lot of hate from anti trans people. There is a scene where it's mentioned how JKR dies in this apocalypse, because she's a famous TERF. The anti trans folks making it into anything bigger is just the same anti trans rhetoric that makes this book relevant.
CW: gore, violence, rape, death, gun violence, transphobia, suicidal thoughts, fatphobia, racism
The characters are all unlikeable and problematic, I generally have a hard time when characters aren't likeable, and I get that it can work in this end of the world desperate times, but in apocalypse books I'm always looking for some hope and someone to root for and I think the characters were just a bit too flat, underdeveloped or unlikeable to get me there. Which is fine, just not to my taste. And there are SO many characters that come in and out of scenes, new ones appear, I was not sure who I was supposed to remember or who was brand new many times.
I think the raw end-of-the-world, desperation and hopelessness is very strong in this, which gave it a mood, but wow was it depressing to read- because a lot of the politics are happening right now with anti trans reactionary laws, and politicians and billionaire authors spouting hateful anti trans rhetoric. If you pick this up, just know it's very heavy.
As a fan of horror I did appreciate just how gross this world is, violence and gore and gross out scenes galore, there is not much relief from these scenes, which makes it a quick read. Even with this sort of relentless action, it still just fell a bit flat for me. Sometimes the prose just left some descriptions and scenes confusing, sometimes things were underexplained and sometimes things were way overexplained.
Obviously, because this book is written by a trans woman the author is getting a lot of hate from anti trans people. There is a scene where it's mentioned how JKR dies in this apocalypse, because she's a famous TERF. The anti trans folks making it into anything bigger is just the same anti trans rhetoric that makes this book relevant.
CW: gore, violence, rape, death, gun violence, transphobia, suicidal thoughts, fatphobia, racism
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail