Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Bloom

Impeccable novella that is quite literally a cottage core lesbian horror. There is an unmistakable tension throughout the entire book, masked by gorgeous writing. It perfectly captures obsessive love, how easy it is to wave away red flags (but girl there were some red flags) and the romantisation of cottagecore/how real life rural living is a bit different. Also a master class in how to gorgeously describe things without purple prose. I wasn't a huge fan of the ending, but it fitted the story.

Wheelhouses: obsessive lesbian love, beautiful descriptions of food/gardens, "something is messed up here and the main character can't see it.", horny lesbians.

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hexedmaiden's review

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dark tense fast-paced

5.0

Okay so this might just be my favorite book of the year.
If you are a Hannibal (TV) fan and Hannigram shipper you're gonna love this book about as much as I do. Seeing as the author is also a fan I feel a kinship.
I kinda knew what was going to happen pretty early on but I was here for the journey of how we were going to get there and god this was so fun. I hope Dawson has some horror in her backlist or more coming in the future cause I definitely want to read more by her

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halierivers's review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

If I had to summarize this books it would be this: makes you crave artisan cupcakes and wonder who is the bigger red flag here??

Short read. Lots of fun. I suspected the twist about halfway but still enjoyed reading through it. I want more sapphic horror in my life. Perfect for a rainy night or Halloween time.

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nicekweenreads's review

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I loved this book so much. It really transported you into a beautiful, emotionally mature, cottage core romance all while sprinkling in something more sinister. My only complaint it that it took so long to get to the creepy stuff. Still, I found myself unable to put the book down and throughly enjoyed the entire experience. I would highly recommend!

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ghost_cat99's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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theatrealpaca's review

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challenging dark 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? Yes

5.0

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queerfucker's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

He's missing both legs at the thigh. The stumps are wrapped in snowy white gauze.
He's got duct tape over his mouth and is wearing an adult diaper, and Ro can smell the stale urine from across the room.
An IV runs into his arm, which is held down by multiple straps at shoulder, elbow, and wrist. He looks unwell, his eyes sunken and his skin pale. Seeing her, he thrashes and makes whimpering noises.

Omygod??? OMYGOD???? One of the few criticisms I have of this book is it has an issue of telling, not showing. My other is the fact that while I understand a sapphic woman coming into her own and breaking down her binary ideas would have gender on her mind, it felt very “women do this and men do this” and like every little thing connected back to gender which was off-putting as someone outside that binary. but the calling out of how differently we view the same behaviors in men and women was cool and i find is rarely explored.

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mfrisk's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book was stunning and everything you could want from queer horror.

You’re taken from romance, over the top sweetness, and saccharine words (many of which I had to look up) to sheer dread and fear. I so look forward to reading more from this author and seeing how they peel back the layers in another story.

This book to me
had parallels to Misery, Midsommar, Hannibal and was an excellent addition to the cottagegore genre. For those who’ve read This is where we talk things out this is also a great queer horror read-alike which touches on similar themes. Also a good reminder to have people in your life who’d sound the alarm if you uproot your life. Ro you grew on me throughout this story and I’m rooting for you.

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