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A review by caughtbetweenpages
Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I mean, just fucking incredible. This book is not for the faint of heart, and if body horror isn't for you, keep away. Otherwise, if you can read through the trigger warning list and still feel okay to pick Manhunt up, I feel like this book should be required reading. I didn't realize what a perfect backdrop a sexed and gendered bio-apocalypse would be for the exploration of womanhood, but goddamn if it isn't. Also, any book wherein JK Terfling gets mauled in a castle of privilege by a zombie TERF friend of hers is a good book imo.
The bloody, beating heart of this story is the relationship between Fran and Beth, for me. There's a very specific sort of sisterhood they share, one full in turns with unwavering support, bone-deep jealousy, secret disdain, shared shame, and deep, complex love that kept Fran sympathetic even in her worst times (i.e. treating with the TERF army on behalf of a classist, murderous nepo-baby because she passes for cis where Beth is forced into sex work where she has to playact a man )... okay, in retrospect, maybe she wasn't all that sympathetic. But Beth loved her all the same, so I did, too.
Reading this felt like being on a rollercoaster. Not necessarily in terms of ups and downs, but in the sense that when you get off a ride that makes your heart pound, you are more predisposed to loving the person you were on the ride with. The bonds between these people, growing and strengthening and breaking, set against a breakneck plot/backdrop of a rapidly approaching genocide against trans women by a TERF army was an absolute thrill. I will be reading more from this author (and I will be doing so on an empty stomach, because goddamn does she know how to turn your stomach with a well placed description).
The bloody, beating heart of this story is the relationship between Fran and Beth, for me. There's a very specific sort of sisterhood they share, one full in turns with unwavering support, bone-deep jealousy, secret disdain, shared shame, and deep, complex love that kept Fran sympathetic even in her worst times (i.e.
Reading this felt like being on a rollercoaster. Not necessarily in terms of ups and downs, but in the sense that when you get off a ride that makes your heart pound, you are more predisposed to loving the person you were on the ride with. The bonds between these people, growing and strengthening and breaking, set against a breakneck plot/backdrop of a rapidly approaching genocide against trans women by a TERF army was an absolute thrill. I will be reading more from this author (and I will be doing so on an empty stomach, because goddamn does she know how to turn your stomach with a well placed description).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Gore, Cannibalism, Body horror, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Transphobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Rape, Misogyny, and Murder