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mand_al_orian's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Violence, Car accident, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Child death, Murder, Self harm, Alcohol, Death, Emotional abuse, and Vomit
Minor: War and Terminal illness
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Car accident, Grief, and Gun violence
Moderate: Child death, Self harm, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Sexual content, War, Cancer, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Vomit, Infidelity, and Dementia
sarrie's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
2.5?
I'm not sure exactly what the... point? On this one was. I saw some themes on home, parenthood, sacrifice, etc. Yet it all seemed to lack something for me.
The plot itself seemed pretty predictable, and for the book was just weirdly crammed. I feel like perhaps we needed more space to explore what the author was doing and seeing, more tension needed created for it to really pack an umph.
Additionally I really just did not like that romance? I know she was on the island for 7 years and the person in question 'hated her' the 'whole time'. Did he fall in love with her at first sight? Which coincidently would have been on his wife and child's funeral?! There just wasn't any development there. Maybe I missed it but what seemed to be described was - She arrived, newly married and he hated her. In fact he got into a fight with her new husband/his old best friend (which seems to be implied to have something to do with her?), then proceeded to 'hate' her but in truth pine over here since. Keep in mind she showed up like days after his family died in a fire.
It was just kind of ick and felt very awkward. I had other icky feelings on how parenthood, death of a parent, children at risk felt clumsily handled but I think this just wasn't for me.
I'm not sure exactly what the... point? On this one was. I saw some themes on home, parenthood, sacrifice, etc. Yet it all seemed to lack something for me.
The plot itself seemed pretty predictable, and for the book was just weirdly crammed. I feel like perhaps we needed more space to explore what the author was doing and seeing, more tension needed created for it to really pack an umph.
Additionally I really just did not like that romance?
It was just kind of ick and felt very awkward. I had other icky feelings on how parenthood, death of a parent, children at risk felt clumsily handled but I think this just wasn't for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Child death and Death of parent
rusereviews's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Lute by Jennifer Marie Thorne is a slow burn folk horror novel. I listened to the audiobook, which clocks in at nine and a half hours and is narrated by Victoria Blunt. We follow our main characters with a first-person point-of-view.
Every seven summers--on The Day--seven people die on the idyllic British island of Lute. Every seven summers, the island takes its tithe. The Treadway family helps to protect the island. Nina became Lady Treadway after marrying Lord Treadway, but she was originally born in America. She thinks The Day is just superstitious nonsense. But then it begins, and nobody who ever goes through it is ever the same.
This is the first horror novel I've read that I can describe as gentle horror, or slow-burn horror, or even minimalist horror. But I really dug the vibe and I'd love to read more books like this.
The narrator does a great job here. Her voice suited the character of Nina perfectly. I find it interesting that Blunt is a British actor using an American accent here, but in the book Nina describes herself as taking on some of the local lilt to her speech after living nearly seven years on the island, so that tracks for me.
I really enjoyed watching Nina grow as a character throughout this book. I also really liked the direction Lord Arthur Treadway takes in here as well. The community as a whole was lovely and I enjoyed getting to know everyone.
While this book is mostly character-driven, I listened to this book in large chunks because I really wanted to know what was going to happen next! The reader knows how many people are still to die so they go into each new scene with an "ok who's next?"
I could take or leave the inclusion of this all being set in the near future during WWIII where America is on the opposite side of the war from the United Kingdom. It didn't have much to do with the story itself and in my opinion was unnecessary.
I liked the epilogue, though I've seen that some other reviewers think it's more of a cop-out.
If you liked stories like The Lottery by Shirley Jackson or the Final Destination movies, you might like this book! This is a great spooky vibes kind of book for Spooky Season.
Tropes: oblivious American, fish out of water, small town, ancient traditions, local superstitions
CW: attempted self-harm, firearms, death, murder, grief, parent death (mentioned), emotional abuse, child death
The publisher provided a audio ARC of this book for me to review. All opinions contained herein are my own.
Every seven summers--on The Day--seven people die on the idyllic British island of Lute. Every seven summers, the island takes its tithe. The Treadway family helps to protect the island. Nina became Lady Treadway after marrying Lord Treadway, but she was originally born in America. She thinks The Day is just superstitious nonsense. But then it begins, and nobody who ever goes through it is ever the same.
This is the first horror novel I've read that I can describe as gentle horror, or slow-burn horror, or even minimalist horror. But I really dug the vibe and I'd love to read more books like this.
The narrator does a great job here. Her voice suited the character of Nina perfectly. I find it interesting that Blunt is a British actor using an American accent here, but in the book Nina describes herself as taking on some of the local lilt to her speech after living nearly seven years on the island, so that tracks for me.
I really enjoyed watching Nina grow as a character throughout this book. I also really liked the direction Lord Arthur Treadway takes in here as well. The community as a whole was lovely and I enjoyed getting to know everyone.
While this book is mostly character-driven, I listened to this book in large chunks because I really wanted to know what was going to happen next! The reader knows how many people are still to die so they go into each new scene with an "ok who's next?"
I could take or leave the inclusion of this all being set in the near future during WWIII where America is on the opposite side of the war from the United Kingdom. It didn't have much to do with the story itself and in my opinion was unnecessary.
I liked the epilogue, though I've seen that some other reviewers think it's more of a cop-out.
If you liked stories like The Lottery by Shirley Jackson or the Final Destination movies, you might like this book! This is a great spooky vibes kind of book for Spooky Season.
Tropes: oblivious American, fish out of water, small town, ancient traditions, local superstitions
CW: attempted self-harm, firearms, death, murder, grief, parent death (mentioned), emotional abuse, child death
The publisher provided a audio ARC of this book for me to review. All opinions contained herein are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Murder, Self harm, Gun violence, and Grief
Minor: Child death and Death of parent
grimdark_dad's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Cancer, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Grief, Violence, War, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
enchantressreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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? Yes
5.0
Lute is a perfect read for spooky season. Although it takes place during the summer, the vibe of the story is mysterious, dark, and scary. I’m a huge fan of folk horror, and Lute does not disappoint.
Nina Treadway moved to the Isle of Lute seven years ago, and is soon going to experience her first “Day” on the island. The Day of the Tithe requires a sacrifice of seven souls in order to keep Lute happy, healthy, with good weather and good luck. With a war going on, it is imperative that they keep Lute and its residents safe.
There are many different parts of this story that I love and they combine to create a great folk horror. It’s a small town, where everyone knows each other. There’s somewhat of a cult, since there’s ancient pagan gods involved. There’s family secrets, because Hugh Treadway is exceptionally secretive about his past. There’s a strong female main character. Nina is a wonderful lead character, and she really grew into her role by the end of the book.
The story is told in time increments until the end of The Day. I think this really gave it another push towards being scary. It adds a layer of anxiety that really wasn’t there before. I always love a good countdown in a story. Add this to the generally creepy vibe of the book, and you have a perfect folk horror story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for this advanced review copy. All opinions are my own. Lute releases on October 4th.
CW for death, fire, blood, infidelity, child death, suicide attempt, war, vomit, self-harm, emotional abuse, death of a parent, and animal death
Nina Treadway moved to the Isle of Lute seven years ago, and is soon going to experience her first “Day” on the island. The Day of the Tithe requires a sacrifice of seven souls in order to keep Lute happy, healthy, with good weather and good luck. With a war going on, it is imperative that they keep Lute and its residents safe.
There are many different parts of this story that I love and they combine to create a great folk horror. It’s a small town, where everyone knows each other. There’s somewhat of a cult, since there’s ancient pagan gods involved. There’s family secrets, because Hugh Treadway is exceptionally secretive about his past. There’s a strong female main character. Nina is a wonderful lead character, and she really grew into her role by the end of the book.
The story is told in time increments until the end of The Day. I think this really gave it another push towards being scary. It adds a layer of anxiety that really wasn’t there before. I always love a good countdown in a story. Add this to the generally creepy vibe of the book, and you have a perfect folk horror story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for this advanced review copy. All opinions are my own. Lute releases on October 4th.
CW for death, fire, blood, infidelity, child death, suicide attempt, war, vomit, self-harm, emotional abuse, death of a parent, and animal death
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: War, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Child death, Self harm, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Death of parent and Animal death
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