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anarmandameg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Drug abuse, Suicide, Violence, Abandonment, Car accident, Colonisation, Death, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Medical content, and Mental illness
teddie_valetine98's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Grief, Mental illness, Child death, Animal death, Gore, Murder, Addiction, Blood, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Death of parent
virgilsinferno's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicide, Grief, Child death, Violence, and Animal death
Moderate: Cannibalism and Fatphobia
kamreadsandrecs's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
My main gripe with this story is the pacing. I thought it was was strange: the constant shifts in POV between the two narrators, which also came along with a switch in time period, did not work wonders for the buildup. Things would get REALLY interesting in one storyline, only for the narrative to haul me back into the other storyline, losing the momentum of the plot I’d originally been engaged with. I personally think that if Louie’s story had been told in one straight block of narrative, instead of being interspersed with Noemi’s throughout the book (maybe Noemi’s story could have been the bookends to Louie’s narrative?), the story would have been more propulsive, but that’s just me.
Despite that gripe though, this was still a fantastic read, especially once things REALLY get going in the novel’s latter third. The author’s use of indigenous folklore and traditions as frames for very modern concerns (specifically: the high rates of suicide and alcoholism among Native Americans) was quite well done, highlighting how the history of colonialism, imperialism, racism, and poverty all come together to form the nightmarish background noise that persists in the lives and psyches of many Native Americans today. The author shows how, for many Native Americans, even if one manages to “make it” and leave to live a “better” life, one’s past always finds a way to come back. Either one finds a healthy way of dealing with it by seeking some kind of help, or one is consumed by it, and dragged down by the dark undertow. And even if one CAN get help (and it must be noted that many, MANY Native Americans aren’t always able to get that), the past will always haunt one, no matter what.
Overall, this was a pretty good horror novel, blending elements of Native American folklore with the real-world horrors of suicide and alcoholism that plague Native Americans up to the present day. However, the way in which the story is told means that the novel tends to break up the overall plot’s forward momentum, which is a pity in my opinion because I think the story would have been spookier and even more tense had the plot been arranged just slightly differently.
Graphic: Suicide, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Child death, Animal death, Alcohol, and Murder
lettuce_read's review against another edition
Graphic: Alcoholism, Fatphobia, Child death, Ableism, and Animal death
Moderate: Suicide, Death of parent, and Suicide attempt
jennamalena's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Animal death, Alcoholism, Addiction, Suicide, and Child death
shay43geek's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Body horror, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Child death, Death, Alcoholism, and Blood
Moderate: Suicide, Gore, Grief, and Self harm
Minor: Death of parent
bookshelf_al's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Alcoholism, and Child death
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Suicide
chessakat's review
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Death, Car accident, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, and Suicide