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aparker89's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Stalking, Body horror, Child death, Racism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Grief, Blood, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Torture, Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Gore, and Car accident
rubys100's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I found the 1908 parts much more enjoyable then present day.
Some of the characters decisions didn’t match who they were in my opinion.
Graphic: Child death, Body horror, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Death, Violence, Animal death, and Murder
Moderate: Miscarriage and Forced institutionalization
kkalicky94's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Miscarriage, Chronic illness, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Grief, Suicide, Car accident, and Violence
sarahholliday's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
I absolutely adored this reading experience. The Winter People is a beautiful, perfect balance of suspense and horror, exploring grief and oppression and the consequences of holding on too tight to the things we love.
If you're looking for a lightly suspenseful "what's going on here" kind of story...this is not that. This is full-on creepy and terrifying. At its heart, though, is this question of what unnatural evil can arise when we try too hard to subvert death and the grieving process.
Graphic: Grief, Death, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Body horror, Child death, and Confinement
Moderate: Animal death
michaelat21's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Grief, Death, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Child death
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, and Confinement
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Suicide, Violence, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, and Mental illness
jjjreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Ableism, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Gun violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Grief, Gore, Racism, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Misogyny, Confinement, Stalking, Violence, Car accident, Classism, Dementia, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Moderate: Alcoholism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Medical content, and Religious bigotry
waytoomanybooks's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Blood, Death of parent, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Car accident, Animal death, and Cancer
thet0meraider's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
I'm way more into fast-paced books and thus it took a while for me to get used to this novel's moderate narrative rhythm. Once I did, though, the story caught up, giving way to a thrilling sequence of events that made me devour chapter after chapter.
Was I content with the ending? Not really.
Will I remember this book by the end of the year? I'm honestly curious to find out.
Overall, then, I am subtracting a quarter of a point because of the slowness of the first few chapters, and a point because I'm not big into open endings.
The plot itself was good, the sort of scavenger hunt the author contrived really got me hooked. Some parts were eery enough (much to my enjoyment!) and I've truly appreciated the book-in-book trope - one of my all-time favourites.
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Body horror
katsbooks's review against another edition
- 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
“Madness is always a wonderful excuse, don’t you think? For doing terrible things to other people.”
“How can you dream if you don’t have a soul?”
This was a fun, spooky read. I've had this book on my shelf for literal years but definitely never realized it was a horror. I'm so glad I finally read it, though. I would not call myself a horror reader and this feels like a solid book for those just kind of getting into the horror genre. It was creepy and suspenseful without being overly gross or too "out there." I liked the multiple perspectives. It was easy to tell the difference between each POV and I was equally interested in all of the different characters we were following. I enjoyed the creepy feeling that the book gave me. I read a big chunk of this novel late in the evening and freaked myself out when I had to turn out the lights for bed time. I always find that to be a good sign in terms of general atmosphere.
I'll try to not be too spoilery with the things I didn't like it but please read ahead with your own risk, especially if you're thinking of reading this book in the near future. My major gripe was that the only BIPOC character ended up being essentially a villain. She was very much the mystical Indian that only serves to further the character development of a white character. My other major question had to do with the teenaged character and how she came to live with her adoptive parents. The whole situation seemed like a major plot hole and didn't make sense to me. Personally, if I had been her aunt in the situation, I would not have let her adoptive parents take her given the traumatic events that led to her adoption.
Overall, this was a solid mystery horror. It was fun and gave me creepy vibes.
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Mental illness, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Car accident, Death of parent, Death, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
soygirlsupreme's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Gore, Child death, and Murder
Moderate: Body horror, Forced institutionalization, and Grief
Minor: Miscarriage and Suicide