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ribbenkast's reviews
86 reviews
Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I'm not giving this book a low rating because it's gross and gory. I love gross and gory and I've read things more gross and gory than this. I have to commend the book for its effective use of the gore. It wasn't too overly gory just to be shocking, it used the gore effectivly to make its point.
However, the world building is really flimsy. The main story is fine but the whole world falls apart with one single kick to its legs. The premise was great, but the author fails to present the premise as a plausible. There is just no way that if all meat becomes inedible tommorow we'll just switch to human meat. Not because I believe we as humans are incapable of doing the evils described in the book, but for the simple fact that capitalism will find a more profitable and cost effective solution. The story was build on a shaky foundation which made it hard to take the whole book seriously.Whether the virus that killed all the animals or not was real remains a mistery. The explanation given for this to be a 'hoax' is that the goverment wants to solve overpopulation. Again, capitalism will find a more cost effective way.
Furthermore, the author tries so hard to be 'literary'. The book tried to make a point about society at large, but it fell flat. Both me and the author desperedly wanted to have this book have a message beyond: fuck the meat industry. It didn't really.
Maybe it works better in the original Spanish but the author never uses the main characters name to describe him. just 'he'. I get that she probably was trying to make a point about dehumanisation by this, but instead it just made the book read like a bulletpoint list of the main characters day. Also the scenes with multiple men in them (which is almost all) became very confusing to read as it's unclear who's speaking. Also, the desired effect doesn't work if you have other characters clearly adres him by his full name.
The ending though, was perfect. I am glad I finished this book just for the ending.
However, the world building is really flimsy. The main story is fine but the whole world falls apart with one single kick to its legs. The premise was great, but the author fails to present the premise as a plausible. There is just no way that if all meat becomes inedible tommorow we'll just switch to human meat. Not because I believe we as humans are incapable of doing the evils described in the book, but for the simple fact that capitalism will find a more profitable and cost effective solution. The story was build on a shaky foundation which made it hard to take the whole book seriously.
Furthermore, the author tries so hard to be 'literary'. The book tried to make a point about society at large, but it fell flat. Both me and the author desperedly wanted to have this book have a message beyond: fuck the meat industry. It didn't really.
Maybe it works better in the original Spanish but the author never uses the main characters name to describe him. just 'he'. I get that she probably was trying to make a point about dehumanisation by this, but instead it just made the book read like a bulletpoint list of the main characters day. Also the scenes with multiple men in them (which is almost all) became very confusing to read as it's unclear who's speaking. Also, the desired effect doesn't work if you have other characters clearly adres him by his full name.
The ending though, was perfect. I am glad I finished this book just for the ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Hate crime, Dementia, Body horror, Slavery, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Violence, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Cannibalism, Grief, Excrement, Emotional abuse, Child death, Pregnancy, Blood, Confinement, Torture, Medical trauma, Infidelity, Pandemic/Epidemic, Murder, Trafficking, Sexual assault, Rape, Medical content, Gore, Death of parent, and Death
Het personeel by Olga Ravn
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
Chainsaw Man, Vol. 1 by Tatsuki Fujimoto
dark
funny
fast-paced
4.0
Excellent, everything I want from a manga
Milk Fed by Melissa Broder
funny
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
The book cover, the blurb on the back and some of these reviews prepared me for a really weird gross and unhinged book. I was fully prepared for some type of breast milk feederism stuff or something. None of this came through. The book was enjoyable nonetheless but this was a severe case of mismanagement expectations.
Instead we just got an overely honest internal dialogue. The weirdness comes from the main character Rachel having a severe eating disorder, mommy issues and some slightly more uncomen kinks but nothing as wild as I was let to expect. She's slowly coming to terms with the fact that not everyone lives the way she does. All of this sone through in a scene where she unhingedly eats a sundae early in the book. Which admittedly was incredibly funny.
The promised weirdness reaches its peak very early on and kind off flat lines after. This makes the book drag a bit in the middle.
The ending makes up for it though, every piece of the book comes together perfectly. I found the ending very worthwhile.
This book is also very much about being Jewish and what it means to be and to be raised (American) Jewish. I myself am not Jewish and i suspect that I lack a bit of cultural context to fully take in that part of the book.
Instead we just got an overely honest internal dialogue. The weirdness comes from the main character Rachel having a severe eating disorder, mommy issues and some slightly more uncomen kinks but nothing as wild as I was let to expect. She's slowly coming to terms with the fact that not everyone lives the way she does. All of this sone through in a scene where she unhingedly eats a sundae early in the book. Which admittedly was incredibly funny.
The promised weirdness reaches its peak very early on and kind off flat lines after. This makes the book drag a bit in the middle.
The ending makes up for it though, every piece of the book comes together perfectly. I found the ending very worthwhile.
This book is also very much about being Jewish and what it means to be and to be raised (American) Jewish. I myself am not Jewish and i suspect that I lack a bit of cultural context to fully take in that part of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Religious bigotry, Fatphobia, and Xenophobia
There zionists views being expressed by some of the characters. Whilst the text is leaning on anti-zionism I can imagine a character voicing those ideas can be pretty triggering.
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
V.E Schwab is good in writing villains. Holland, Astrid and Anthos where the absolute highlight of the book. They where a lot of fun and I couldn't put the book down when they were on screen.
19 year olds are annoying because they are coming of age. Lila is unfortunately, very much 19 years old. It got better near the end of the book. But for someone who the text keeps describing as clever, she does a lot of dumb stuff.
It wasn't that deep but it's definitely a fun romp and I'll be picking up part 2 later.
19 year olds are annoying because they are coming of age. Lila is unfortunately, very much 19 years old. It got better near the end of the book. But for someone who the text keeps describing as clever, she does a lot of dumb stuff.
It wasn't that deep but it's definitely a fun romp and I'll be picking up part 2 later.
Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Read this with the Dutch setting but with the new 'American' ending. A joy and a thrill to read. Would definitely recommend picking this up if you're looking for a unique story with a new take on your classic Stephan King-esqe small town horror.
Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield
dark
emotional
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
This book is going to haunt me for a long while.
Leech by Hiron Ennes
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.75
This book really impressed me with the way it is wirtten, Hiron Ennes really manages to write from the perspective of a super intelegent hivemind and sell it. The world building is amazing and is probably the best part of the book. It's got to be one of the most creative uses of the ghotic genre I've seen so far.
However the books suffers a bit from the gothic pitfall where in the first half it's just vibes and nothing much really happens. The pace really picks up near the ending though! Admittedly I do think the book ends on a bit of a weak note. I think there's space for a sequel I'll gladly pick up if it ever gets published.
All in all, this was a great debut. I'll be certainly be on the lookout for any books that Hiron Ennes writes in the future.
However the books suffers a bit from the gothic pitfall where in the first half it's just vibes and nothing much really happens. The pace really picks up near the ending though! Admittedly I do think the book ends on a bit of a weak note. I think there's space for a sequel I'll gladly pick up if it ever gets published.
All in all, this was a great debut. I'll be certainly be on the lookout for any books that Hiron Ennes writes in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Body horror, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Ableism, Xenophobia, Racism, Racial slurs, Mental illness, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Medical content, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, Classism, Chronic illness, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Rape
Outlawed by Anna North
adventurous
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
First of all: I would recommend reading this book. It's a well written book, it's fast passed and it's very enjoyable.
Unfortunately the marketing of this book makes for a slightly disappointing read. It's not a western handmaid's tale or an epic western for that matter, the story was really small.
This book could've benefited from being a little longer. The story takes place over the course of just a few months. The character growth feels rushed. None of the other characters seem to like Ada, let alone care for her. Personally I would've liked to see the complicated relationship between Ada and her gang members be explored more and grow, that would've made the ending more satisfying to me at least.
Unfortunately the marketing of this book makes for a slightly disappointing read. It's not a western handmaid's tale or an epic western for that matter, the story was really small.
This book could've benefited from being a little longer. The story takes place over the course of just a few months. The character growth feels rushed. None of the other characters seem to like Ada, let alone care for her. Personally I would've liked to see the complicated relationship between Ada and her gang members be explored more and grow, that would've made the ending more satisfying to me at least.
Brainwyrms by Alison Rumfitt
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Had to sit with this book for quite while before settling on the 5⭐ rating.
This book is loud, its metaphores anything but subtle. It's vile, and it absolutely demands your attention. often times horror writers are in a competition to write the grossest thing out there just for the sake of it. This book is gross and nauseating but uses that to make it's point and it makes it point well. I couldn't put it down. It's not for everyone, but it definitely was the book for me.
Despite the book's subject and message, Allison Rumfitt shows off some amazing writing skills. They way she utelizes different perspectives, breaks the 4th wall, uses punctuation, all of it should be studied by any aspiring writer no matter which genre.
This book is loud, its metaphores anything but subtle. It's vile, and it absolutely demands your attention. often times horror writers are in a competition to write the grossest thing out there just for the sake of it. This book is gross and nauseating but uses that to make it's point and it makes it point well. I couldn't put it down. It's not for everyone, but it definitely was the book for me.
Despite the book's subject and message, Allison Rumfitt shows off some amazing writing skills. They way she utelizes different perspectives, breaks the 4th wall, uses punctuation, all of it should be studied by any aspiring writer no matter which genre.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Torture, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Infertility, Mass/school shootings, Child abuse, Confinement, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Classism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Vomit, and Dysphoria