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beesbookhaunts's reviews
231 reviews
Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I was surprised by this one! Going to add spoiler tags because it’s hard for me to describe my feelings without giving away too many plot details.
Normally I am not into religious horror that has a happy ending, God saves the day type of thing. But I loved the characters so much! And the horror elements? Perfectly done. Instead of it just being standard temptations for our heroes, they were faced with some truly terrifying things, which got to me a few times. Having a happy ending just felt right after all they went through!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Religious bigotry, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Homophobia and Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual violence
You Will Speak For The Dead by R. A. Busby
dark
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I received a free digital copy of this book through NetGalley to review.
What a fun novella! Well…if you can call what happens to the main character fun. I love horror as told through grief, but won’t get into it any deeper than that to avoid spoilers. The care and empathy used to talk about hoarding? An attempt to understand, rather than judge? Wow, wow wow! Anyone who has known someone that has an issue with hoarding will know what I’m getting at.
The casual writing style made You Will Speak For The Dead a quick read, I just wish it had been a little bit longer! Give me more!
What a fun novella! Well…if you can call what happens to the main character fun. I love horror as told through grief, but won’t get into it any deeper than that to avoid spoilers. The care and empathy used to talk about hoarding? An attempt to understand, rather than judge? Wow, wow wow! Anyone who has known someone that has an issue with hoarding will know what I’m getting at.
The casual writing style made You Will Speak For The Dead a quick read, I just wish it had been a little bit longer! Give me more!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Child death and Grief
The Truest Sense: Stories by Laura Keating
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
As with all short story collections, some of the stories hit better than others.
Overall, I loved the writing! Each story had its own voice and writing style, so they stood apart from each other.
I would love to see a few of these stories fleshed out into something longer!
Overall, I loved the writing! Each story had its own voice and writing style, so they stood apart from each other.
I would love to see a few of these stories fleshed out into something longer!
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder
The Devil and Mrs. Davenport by Paulette Kennedy
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Blew through this one because I couldn’t put it down!
Loretta was written so well, I genuinely was afraid for her at times.
I’m not usually a fan of happy endings in horror/thriller but I just wanted Loretta to be happy! She deserved so much better than Pete, it was infuriating seeing him treat her badly.
Truly satisfying in every way.
Turns out the real horror was the patriarchy all along.
Loretta was written so well, I genuinely was afraid for her at times.
Truly satisfying in every way.
Turns out the real horror was the patriarchy all along.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Sexual assault
We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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? Yes
2.0
Wow what a slog. Listened to the audiobook on 1.5 speed but it still felt like an eternity!
Since you know what ultimately happens, the build up is not nearly as anxiety-inducing as it should have been. The main character is insufferable.
What a disappointment
Since you know what ultimately happens, the build up is not nearly as anxiety-inducing as it should have been. The main character is insufferable.
What a disappointment
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mass/school shootings
American Rapture by CJ Leede
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
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? No
4.5
Maeve Fly was one of my favorite books from 2023, so hearing that CJ Leede was working on a religious horror book? Hell yeah! I received an advanced reader’s copy to review and couldn’t be more happy that I didn’t have to wait any longer to read it.
American Rapture ramped up quickly and stayed there, giving the reader little rest between scene after scene of violence and mayhem. Sophie is an extremely sheltered girl in Catholic school, dealing with normal teenage problems. She’s processing her developing sexuality and beginning to question her Faith for the first time, so why not throw an apocalypse into the mix? From there we’re constantly moving forward in an attempt to find her twin brother and just one tiny moment of safety between scenes of violence as the world quickly falls apart.
I was drawn into the frantic pacing and had a sense of anxiety the whole time, barely able to process the horrible events before the next thing was happening. When it begins to feel like too much, Leede slows down. Not to give respite-we would be so lucky! No, we’re then treated to the most heartbreaking moments of the book, drawing out the gory details that made me squirm a few times. The very few bits of peace provided insight into Sophie’s inner thoughts about her twin brother who she’s desperately trying to find, her feelings for a boy, her growing doubt in the Catholic Church and whether or not sin is even real. As someone who grew up religious but has moved on from that life, I knew exactly how Sophie was feeling. Deconstructing your religion is hard enough without living through a violent pandemic sweeping the world.
As you can see, I loved American Rapture. CJ Leede, you know what you’re doing-please don’t stop.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Homophobia, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Religious bigotry
Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book is absolutely wild from start to finish. I could not see where it was going and loved every twist and turn.
Loved seeing Mary go through the ringer and come out on top.
The Low, Low Woods by Carmen Maria Machado
challenging
dark
hopeful
sad
medium-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
3.5
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
Sayaka Murata is a master at writing people who just don’t fit in with society.
Keiko just wants to be a convenience store worker, everyone needs to leave her alone!
Keiko just wants to be a convenience store worker, everyone needs to leave her alone!