blackcatkai's reviews
897 reviews

Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy

dark funny tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

CW: blood, animal death, murder, misogyny, sexual violence, ableism (casual and otherwise), demonization of mental illness, cults, gaslighting, bullying, abuse, ageism, gun violence, racism (don't get me started on the only latina character being blamed for things she didn't do), body shaming/fatphobia, fire, forced institutionalization

too long and drawn out.

I NEED people to get fucking abelistic words & such out of their vernacular. stop using words like schizophrenic to describe things. demonizing and minimizing mental illness & the like is gross & annoying af. the horror genre needs to let this shit go, especially from people who don't deal with or do actual research into the things they're writing about, ok? good talk.

feels like a swing and a miss in an attempt to write a novel about ageism & sexism against cis-women in particular. kudos for trying, I guess? could've used a lot of adjusting at least in length and making the story a bit more cohesive. lots of things seemd thrown at the wall in an attempt to make them stick but ultimately come across feeling muddled & incomplete, for me.

personally feel the afterword made it worse. nothing like a male author admitting to having thoughts like a violent misogynistic serial killer to make you go yikes, bro... imma need a bit more specifics there & less vagueness please, cuz that can NOT be what he meant, even if that's exactly what it sounds like.

idk, the more I think about it, the less I like it, and I kinda wish I could get my time back.... I have read worse books, the beginning of Mary & the parts between Mary & Eleanor while working in the hospital basement were decent. some of the cult portions were fun for me. but overall, I just didn't like this one.

Into the Night by Chasity Bowlin

lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

this was a cute historical romance with a little spoopy ghosts thrown in for fun. loved it! 🩷

CW: sex, toxic relationship mentioned (between the FMC, her brother, & his wife)

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Toxic relationship and Alcohol

The Haar by David Sodergren

dark emotional funny sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

CW: blood, death, classism, ableism (casual & otherwise), ageism, big eat the rich energy (literally & figuratively), body horror, gore, violence, mentions of suicide, self harm, sex, gaslighting, gun violence, murder, grief & loss

this was so so good. Muriel is funny & strong & I adored her as a character. this broke my heart, made me cheer, and I didnt want to put it down. highly recommend to others who enjoy cosmic/monster horror, body horror, or an unconventional & weird love story. 

Tinfoil Butterfly by Rachel Eve Moulton

dark tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

CW: fire, violence, child abuse, self harm, drug use/addiction, alcohol use, transphobia, homophobia, ableism, sexism, sexual assault, minor/adult relationship (non graphic, mentioned briefly), suicide, mental illness, cancer, blood, gun violence, step sibling romance/attraction, death, murder, toxic relationships (romantic, mother/daughter, friendship), kidnapping, trauma

this was interesting. ill probably read from Moulton again in the future. there are a lot of topics in this plot and I can't say that all were handled well, but mainly because I am not sure. it wasn't terrible, but I didnt completely love it. was a bigger fan of the beginning than the end.

Dark Harvest by Norman Partridge

medium-paced

3.0

CW: blood, violence, murder, body horror, child death, suicide, gun violence, bullying, sexism, fire, fatphobia, body shaming, ableism, some outdated terminology (it WAS written in 2006 and takes place in 1963 so there's that), gore

this was pretty fun overall and I'd read from this author again. a good horror novel for Halloween, even though I read it in May.

Transmuted by Eve Harms

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

CW: transphobia (including dead naming), body horror, gore, medical content, fatphobia/body shaming (internal & external), violence, human experimentation, blood, ableism, death, chronic illness, manipulation, sexual content, dysphoria, kidnapping, toxic relationship, abuse.

loved the body horror, the set up, the characters, just not the biggest fan of the ending, really. overall really good and I'd absolutely read more from Eve Harms in the future! 1000%

Hypnagogia by Michael F Simpson

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

CW: body horror, depression, suicide, ableism, body shaming, mental illness, grief, blood, gore, violence

after my own very recent bout of severe depression that had me extremely unable to look in mirrors at all for a couple different reasons, this book resonated so much. i loved the surrealism, horror, & cosmic otherworldiness to the prose, setting, & story. it broke my heart in so many ways and was so so good. the ending had me crying and inadored the authors note.

will absolutely be reading more from Simpson in the future. just take care if you choose to give this one a try, yourself.

The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister's Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine by Lindsey Fitzharris

informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

CW: medical content, blood, death (child,  adult, animal), gore, graphic injuries & surgeries, cancer, terminal illness, misogyny, violence, domestic abuse, ableism, mentions of war, bodily fluids, bullying, all around gross stuff that comes with the Victorian age

this was fascinating and seriously entertaining. highly recommend if the subject matter intrigues you.

Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented Racism and Wrecked the Middle Class by Ian Haney López

informative slow-paced

4.0

Oak Avenue by Brandi Reeds

medium-paced

4.0

cw: gaslighting, domestic abuse, violence

bits at the end felt more rushed than the rest of the story, but overall I liked this one.