rmnedder's reviews
47 reviews

Bullet Tooth by Grant Wamack

Go to review page

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

2.5

Disclaimer: thank you to NetGalley and Broken River Books for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review! 
I really enjoyed the premise of the novella. I’m a huge fan of analog horror, and was really excited by the combination of analog and supernatural horror. I wish we had seen more of Bullet Tooth, but what I did see of him I really liked; he’s creepy, he’s eldritch, and I really enjoyed his parasitic relationship with violence. I just wish he and the analog horror featured more. The analog horror in particular felt like a background idea, which felt weird since this is a horror novella. 
The characters were alright, if a bit two-dimensional. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the pacing though. The plot itself was fine, but it felt like there were a lot of things that were rushed or weren’t given the appropriate narrative weight; not everything felt justified. The ending felt very rushed. 
My biggest issue with this book is honestly the writing style. There are editing errors left and right: missing or unnecessary punctuation, fragmented sentences, incorrect words. The dialogue feels very stilted and unnatural at times; it just didn’t read like the way real people would speak. The prose, while sometimes very clever, usually feels awkward and clunky; entire scenes feel very overwritten. There’s a lot of unnecessary detail that bogs down the reader and makes chapters drag out, and it’s difficult to tell what’s important. It’s a shame, too, because I can tell that this is supposed to be a fast-paced story, but all the fluff and editing errors distracted me as a reader and made this move way slower than intended. It honestly felt like this book was in need of another round of edits. 
There are moments that were legitimately hilarious, and there were some really interesting motifs or character moments that I was very intrigued by, but they were overshadowed by a series of shortcomings that made it difficult for me to be fully engaged with the story. Overall, I’d say that this was a book with great potential, but it ultimately fell very short in its execution. 
Eye of the Ouroboros by Megan Bontrager

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Disclaimer: thank you to NetGalley and Quill & Crow for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was enthralled with this book from start to finish. The premise is really intriguing to begin with, but the opening brings you right into the thick of things and doesn't stop moving until the story ends. The prose is so atmospheric and immersive, and the world is well-built. The pacing of the plot was very effective; Bontrager is excellent at weaving in little details and building the foundations of intrigue for the incredibly impactful reveals she sets up for later. It's part of what kept me so invested!
The characters are well-developed, for the most part; I do wish we could have known more about Delilah or Roman. Each of the individual relationships between Theo and the other characters is so nuanced and specific—particularly her relationships with Quinn and Flora—and it's part of what brings a lot of life to a story that deals with a lot of death. I will admit I found Theo to be a bit standoffish at first, and it took me a minute to warm up to her. That being said, once I did warn up to her I found Theo to be a wonderful narrator and protagonist; she's raw, she's earnest, she's determined, and she cares so deeply that it heightens the stakes of the entire rest of the story. 

Overall, this was a fantastically spooky and heart wrenching read that left me wanting more long after I had put it down. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
The Ritual by Adam L.G. Nevill

Go to review page

Did not finish book. Stopped at 12%.
I had really wanted to read this, especially since I had seen the movie a few years back and loved it. I will admit, maybe that did ruin my expectations for this book. That being said, this book just dragged. I found that everything moved far too slow for a book with this premise. It didn't crawl along with the creeping dread of being stalked, it just slogged along as I sat there waiting for something of real import to happen and kick things into high gear. It was becoming unbearable, which was why I stopped. I wish I could have gotten further, but at the point in the book at which I stopped, there wasn't enough incentive for me to keep going. 
Paradise Rot by Jenny Hval

Go to review page

dark mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book is… weird. Unbelievably weird. Love the strange relationship between Jo and Carral and the brewery, and all the visceral imagery of the rot and plants and piss (there’s a lot of piss?). But yeah. It’s weird. Can’t say I don’t love weird books though!
Never Have I Ever by Isabel Yap

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

4.25

This was very, very good!! The author really knows how to create distinct narrative voices, and her play with perspective is so much fun. She's particularly good at starting her stories in media res and effectively peppering exposition in as the story progresses, and she does so with finesse. I was particularly fond of Syringe; it was so poignant. I wish some of the stories had more payoff, like Milagroso - I was waiting for more to happen the entire time, and found the ending a little disappointing. Overall this was a wonderful anthology that showed of Isabel Yap’s prowess as an author and her effectiveness as a storyteller.
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead

Go to review page

dark 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? Yes

2.0

I was not a fan of this book.
The plot isn't half bad, and the pacing is actually pretty good; it really starts to move, and once it starts it doesn't stop. That's about all I can say for it, though.
None of the characters are likable. At all. It's more than being "morally grey;" these characters are all so fundamentally unlikable that it makes it genuinely difficult to root for any of them or get invested in their lives. The dialogue is stilted and unnatural at points, and the narration is far too padded for a first-person narrator; she feels less like a character and more like a mouthpiece for the author at times. Establishing the occasional switch from first- to third-person narration over twenty chapters in was also a jarring change. Many of the twists felt unearned or unpredictable, like there wasn't enough (or any) preamble or foreshadowing for us to reasonably figure out how or why we got there. The final chapter also really undercut the main character's entire narrative arc and it robbed her of what little impactful growth she could have had. 
I wouldn't recommend this one. It's a quick read, but it's not terribly well done, and I really only finished it out of spite. 
I was also not thrilled by the author's seemingly unconscious homophobia and internalized misogyny. It's all fine and good to critique the 00s brand of misogyny and homophobia, but to then fall into standard biphobic stereotypes (cheating bisexual) and rampant unironic "I'm not like other girls" characterization makes any real critiques ring hollow.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White

Go to review page

challenging dark tense 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

5.0

The queer body horror book of my dreams!! Wonderfully written with a thoughtfully developed world and one of the best protagonists I’ve encountered in a long time. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
Man Made Monsters by Andrea L. Rogers

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

A fantastic anthology. All the stories are well-crafted and well-conceptualized, and the idea of following one family across generations is brilliant. I only wish that some of the stories had a better payoff. Some were astounding, but others just left me wanting more!! Overall, entirely worth the read. I can’t wait to see what comes next from the author. 
Cazadora by Romina Garber

Go to review page

adventurous dark 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? Yes

4.5

Lobizona by Romina Garber

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.75