Reviews

Ashthorne by April Yates

formidableiguana's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

raincorbyn's review against another edition

4.0

The decay of empire bubbling up from septic war wounds. The rot of aristocracy eating and fucking itself to incestuous death. Steamy sapphic love and lust crossing class and taboo.
This and more in April Yates’ Ashthorne, which I read instead of sleeping last night! Worth it!

If I have a grumble, it’s a backhanded one: I wish it had been longer and given more space to the atmosphere and gruesome characters in the manor. The novella pace made it a bit breathless and frantic where a splash more dread, description, and claustrophobia might have been even better. Still, great stuff and I look forward to more from Yates!

poisoned_icecream's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Body horror, Gore, and Misogyny

atintera's review

4.0

This book!! And from a small press no less!! April Yates grabbed me from the first page. The story develops in a surprising way - full of mystery, intrigue, and (light) horror (with a very sweet sapphic love story throughout). I’m going to keep track of this author and read whatever she comes out with next.

graceburke's review against another edition

4.0

How fun! I love a book I can get lost in. A period piece, sapphic, horror, and a one-sitting read. What more could you want. Yates takes you into the walls of a haunted house to witness one girls familial exploration and another girls true queer awakening. I'm so happy this was a LDB book club pick! It pushed me out of my book comfort zone and I loved it all the same.

alexluceli's review against another edition

i don't like historical fiction 99.5% of the time so i feel like i can't rate this, but i appreciated what yates was trying to do here and if you're into queer historical fiction, maybe it's for you! anyway, any published sapphic horromance is a win in my book.

judeinthestars's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

3.5

This isn’t my usual kind of story so keep that in mind when reading this review. It’s horror (I finally added a Horror category, by the way), which I kinda missed from the blurb and while that would probably have kept me away, it’s what I ended up enjoying the most. I never really connected to the characters and felt the romance was rushed – the first “I love you” arrived when I was still under the impression that the relationship was mostly lust-driven – but the atmosphere and the growing creepiness are sensational.

Ashthorne is a novella, therefore a rather quick read, and there would have been potential for a longer novel, but the novella format works really well for the rising tension and resolution. 3.5⭐️

I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.

Read all my reviews on my blog (and please buy from the affiliation links!): Jude in the Stars

rydwyn's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

2.25

motaki's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

Beautiful debut novella. 
The story captures you immediately, the creepy atmosphere and the lovely and brave heroines wish you could spend more time investigating Ashthorne Manor. 
If you are a fan of gothic horror novels, with an amazing sapphic love story to boot, don't miss it. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Homophobia, and Injury/Injury detail

lene_kretzsch's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.0

A generous 2 stars. 

I did so want to like this sapphic Gothic horror novel set shortly after WWI but the amateurish execution let me down at every turn. Flat characters, jerky, uneven pacing (slow beginning and a ludicrously breakneck finish), and the author's seeming inability to know when to flesh out a scene and when to cut it short, all led to a most unsatisfying tale. A shame because there are the bones of a very good horror novel here and given more time, more stringent editing, and perhaps a few more critical eyes on the book, this could have been excellent. Yates has an interesting voice and some great ideas so I'll look out for more work by her but, sadly, this was a disappointment.