Reviews

Star Eater by Kerstin Hall

barnesm31's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

• 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? No

4.0

It is a wonderful and surprising read, I am grateful to have found it. Please note the star referred to in the title does not relate to astronomical bodies like the sun. Once I got over that disappointment I discovered as Emma Johnson-Rivard describes it "A story of monsters, ritual, and the weight of obligation in the face of love, Star Eater begins with a deceptively conventional opening before shifting into something stranger and much more interesting". The publisher calls it "A phantasmagorical indictment of hereditary power" what they missed out on describing is it involves cannibal nuns and STI-created zombies.  

Emma Johnson-Rivard goes on to say "The characters have enough breathing room to develop, the world of Aytrium reveals itself in intriguing ways through both the mundane and the utterly strange, and it avoids falling into the more common pitfalls of modern horror fiction. The story feels lived in without needlessly info-dumping" and that's what I found so engaging, a mystery slowly revealed by the story avoiding what M. John Harrison rudely dismissed as the “clomping foot of nerdism". 

Christian Ladd's is spot on with "Elfreda’s visions are inspired sparks of horror, dark poetry that blurs the line between the fast-paced narrative and Elfreda’s emotional core. They’re also a great element of disorientation, which Hall boldly embraces as another complicating layer of her story. Most authors would hesitate to introduce a new world, new magic system, and also narrator instability, but Hall pulls off the balancing act magnificently".

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism

Moderate: Cannibalism

elizab_pageturner's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

vengefuldime's review against another edition

2.0

I really like the worldbuilding and premise, I just lost interest about 2/3 of the way through. Ritualistic cannibalism, bisexualism, female-centered magic, monsters, power and politics... it should have been difficult to be uninteresting, but past a certain point it felt more like a generic YA book to me. I wish maybe I could have seen different perspectives, not because I didn't like seeing the MC's perspective, but because I didn't really get a feel for other perspectives. I was told about how certain people wanted the Sisters gone and their past actions, but probably about halfway, the politics part faded somewhat and there was more action. Again, I think it could have a lot of promise, but it just isn't what I am interested in.

x_naerwen_x's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

brenna_law's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense 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

3.25

blueliketheclues's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense 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? It's complicated

2.75

hannahhbic's review against another edition

1.0

CW rape/noncon

DNF. What worries me about this book is that it's about cannibal nuns and the author still thought, "you know what this fantasy dystopian needs? More rape." Nobody needs that, actually, and I personally think it's irresponsible and potentially dangerous to include. The more I think about this book, the less I like it. Yikes all around.

Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

mais_'s review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-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

5.0

nimbostratuss's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• 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

4.75

A lot of magic books seem to get tangled up in super complex world building and i like that this book didn't really do that. There were some things I did not know until it was relevant but that did not ruin the experience for me. I also liked the character development into who and who could not be trusted. There were just a few odd parts in the beginning that made me not rate it a whole 5 stars.

phantasmwitch's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.0