Reviews tagging 'Car accident'

Ghost Wood Song by Erica Waters

10 reviews

henrygravesprince's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

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

4.25

Two things before I get into my thoughts on the book itself. Firstly, I do want to say that I feel like this book was kind of shallow in its portrayal of Orlando, a Cuban boy who is supposed to be the protagonist’s best friend (but barely gets any screentime), and it comes across as tokenizing or box-checking instead of an actual effort to represent Cuban people well or accurately. The white lady narrating the audiobook putting on the particular accent she did for Orlando’s dialogue only made it seem worse, I’m afraid. Second thing: I understand why people call this Appalachian—it deals a lot with Appalachian folk songs, doesn’t frequently mention location, and lots of people see Appalachia and the rural south as synonymous—but it’s worth noting that this takes place in Florida, so while this is a rural American south story, to call it an Appalachian book isn’t entirely accurate. Also, worth noting: the audiobook narrator says Appalachia wrong.

Now, those things aside, I found this book to be an interesting examination of addiction and cycles of trauma through a Southern folk magicky sort of lense. I also found the usage of some Southern Gothic elements in a YA sort of reskin really interesting; the book does not “feel” Southern Gothic, and I wouldn’t really class it as that genre, but it does a good job of incorporating elements such as the representation of society through individuals through the setting and complex Southern family dynamics, unearthing family secrets and trauma to put them to rest once and for all. I’m curious to see where the author’s style developed from this debut and if it continues in that trajectory or not.

Also, spoilers ahead, but for anyone interested in reading this but the love triangle resolution is important to the decision, the protagonist, Shady (who is bisexual), does end up with

the boy and the sapphic love interest ends up with a different girl (their sexualities are not specified but at least one of them is implied to be a lesbian)

.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Murder, Death of parent, Child death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Car accident

Minor: Homophobia and Sexual harassment

Noose imagery; Bugs, particularly wasps; Head injury; Agoraphobia

megelizabeth's review

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

This didn't end up being quite what I was expecting, but it was surprising in the best way. It's overwhelmingly a story about grief, family, trauma, and sacrifice, with elements of mystery and magic, and it really captivated me. It's beautifully-written with a wonderfully strong atmosphere, and I adored the sibling and family relationships. I liked the romance too, and I appreciated the backstory around the protagonist's previous 'almost' relationship and the depth that this adds to the developing romantic plot. I also really loved the threat that music weaves throughout the story and the way it ultimately reflects the redemption occurring. There's a lot going on in this book, but it doesn't feel like too much (although it's definitely heavy just because of the subject matter, so do be warned), and I'm really glad that I read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Child death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Blood and Homophobia

lqvekanej's review

dark mysterious medium-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Car accident, Violence, Physical abuse, and Child abuse

achay91's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Alcoholism, and Death of parent

Moderate: Car accident

Minor: Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Blood

chris_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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

Characters confronting trauma through magical means is my favorite genre. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Abandonment, and Car accident

Moderate: Gun violence, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Murder

Minor: Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Drug use

debussy's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Drug use, and Grief

Moderate: Death of parent, Car accident, Child abuse, and Child death

Minor: Rape

starlesscircus's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Death of parent

Moderate: Child death and Child abuse

Minor: Car accident and Alcoholism

birdieblue's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

it took a while for this book to get going— like, a while— but once it got going i didn’t want to put it down. i wanted to know what happened.

it’s not a book i would pick up a second time, i don’t feel the need to re-read it, but i don’t regret having read it once. it was a good ghost story, it certainly kept you wondering.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Car accident, and Murder

Minor: Child death, Death of parent, Confinement, Police brutality, and Violence

andatherrin's review

adventurous challenging medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Car accident, and Death of parent

Moderate: Gun violence and Blood

onemamareads's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Read my full review here: https://onemamassummer.weebly.com/book-reviews/ghost-wood-song

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Child death, Child abuse, and Car accident