Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

Star Eater by Kerstin Hall

7 reviews

macmannwood's review

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5.0

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auroragraph's review

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adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

3.75

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anxiousnachos's review

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.25

It has been MONTHS since I last had a book I enjoyed so much it made me stay up late, needing to read on. This is such a dark horror fantasy: every single detail you find out about this world just makes it more and more fucked up and I loved it. And whilst we’re on it, I thought the worldbuilding was excellent. I loved the slow build of detail and information about the world, like slowly creating a more and more fucked up impression of the world as the plot got more and more intense. 

Star Eater is a pacy, gruesome and gory horror fantasy about a murder mystery with cannibalistic government nuns and cats the size of horses and sexually transmitted zombieism. There are definitely problems! The ending is very rushed, the epilogue comes out of nowhere and it could of have had an extra 20-30 pages to end the book properly. And as other reviewers have pointed out, it’s weird how there’s no mention of trans/nonbinary people in such a queer-norm world? 

But the vibes were so perfect for me and I can’t remember the last time I flew through a book like I did this. 

Content warnings: Graphic blood and gore, graphic cannibalism, rape, forced impregnation, hallucinations, eating disorder, violence, murder, attempted murder, abortion, child death, child abuse, death 
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uncommonloon's review

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4.25

good plotting/pacing, good worldbuilding, good characterization, interesting themes (the failings of hereditary power in a homonormative, matriarchal society; hints of anti-imperialism). complaints: lack of gender exploration beyond the binary (a necessity in this day and age imo for books that focus on gender like this), colorblind/non race conscious worldbuilding (not "wrong," just tedious that colorblindness was not explored/justified in the way homo/binormativity was), + prose was fairly dry and functional, with occasional flourishes that the author seemed to add more out of obligation than for a desire for beautiful prose. either commit to a spare style or don't, lol. overall though I enjoyed this + thought it had interesting things to say. hmmmm 4.25/5? need to think on it
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twoclaws's review

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adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

5.0

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softieghost's review against another edition

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

3.5

Star Eater was quite enjoyable. The world is something new (not your typical vaguely historical fantasy) and the magical concepts were engaging. I was continually surprised by the author's creativity in world building. 

On the downside, the book was a bit dense and there is a huge cast of characters. Now, the author helpfully gives you a list on the first page of everyone you need to know, but it still felt a bit jumbled. 

There were times a character would say "X person fights for OUR side" and I 1) couldn't remember who that person was and 2) couldn't remember what "that side" wanted. 

Main character seems a bit lost even up to the end as well. I never got the sense that she truly knew what she was fighting for. 
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bentgaidin's review

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

 'Star Eater' is a story that pleasantly surprised me. I picked it up without knowing really anything about it beyond that it was about women who get magic by eating their mothers; I might have guessed that it would be about family trauma, but I was also amused to discover how much office politics was involved too. A lot of the story revolved around intra-group feuds among the magic wielders who control the city; despite the bloody, revolting source of their power, it's all very civilized - which is to say, full of subtle slights and fake smiles and social pressure to conform 'for your own good.' There's also a metaphorical layer about generational trauma; mothers who fear their lives being consumed by their daughters, who will be raised to fear their daughters in turn; men turned into hungry monsters, exiled but inescapable; and the constant fear of not being able to give enough to be worthy, of being bleed dry by other people's demands. The story is a little wobbly at the end, but I'd still recommend this to fans of dark fantasy (by which I mean, watch out for blood, bodily trauma, abuse and rape) - it's a really compelling and original fantasy and it's worth taking a look at. 
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