Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

93 reviews

spinebreakr's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I was enthralled with this right up until

elk head woman transformed into a human.

which unfortunately is pretty early on in the book. 
The writing was tense and emotional. You could really feel the weight of generational trauma resting on the shoulders of the main characters. The way it informs all their actions is raw and drawn from a very real place. The character work is super well done. But ultimately, the monster in the story is not nearly so scary as what the men do to the ones they love. 

Once we started getting chapters from the perspective of the monster, I had such a hard time being scared of her. I came to this book expecting horror and I just wasn't gripped at any point. The gore was pretty visceral at times. Very graphic, and overdone in some spots. For example

Scalping Shaney with a motorcycle??

Yeah it was horrific, but also so wildly over the top, it immediately pulled me out of the story. 

Overall, I feel like it started off strong but lost direction a little as it went. 
I still recommend. But only If when you read this book you treat it like a Halloween-esque slasher film. Do that and you'll have a great time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Hate crime, Gore, Death of parent, Death, Violence, Body horror, Animal death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, and Blood

Moderate: Alcoholism, Colonisation, Grief, Hate crime, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

jadeyfish's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I really liked the pacing of this book. I haven’t read much horror, but this book definitely had me scared and on edge for the majority. The only thing I had trouble with was keeping track of where we are in the timeline of events. There are a few times where the past is being recalled while there is a present conversation and it was had to distinguish and I got a bit confused. Overall, a really unique book and definitely worth the read! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Death, and Gore

Moderate: Grief and Injury/Injury detail

twobooksonenerd's review

dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Had a hard time letting Peta go. I believe she was the elk. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Mental illness, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Abortion, Death, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, and Grief

tylerbbeal's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Gore, Blood, Animal death, and Death

smolhandsdan's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Animal death, Gaslighting, Animal cruelty, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent

Minor: Miscarriage and Racism

thereadingmarshmallow's review

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. The story is riveting. It is so beautifully crafted in its gory glory. The journey it took me on will live on in my mind forever. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Murder, Miscarriage, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Stalking, Violence, Gore, and Pregnancy

montybonty's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Murder, Blood, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Alcohol, Animal death, Body horror, and Death of parent

Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Vomit, Racial slurs, Misogyny, Pregnancy, and Racism

Minor: Genocide, Kidnapping, Car accident, and Addiction

ouroborian's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Police brutality, Abandonment, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Animal death, Hate crime, Car accident, Colonisation, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Vomit, Cursing, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Alcohol, Bullying, and Infertility

emmalaya's review

dark mysterious tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Body horror, Animal death, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol and Gore

doormatt's review

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Starts off slow but absolutely worth the read
The most tense game of basketball ball to ever exist

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Violence, Alcoholism, Animal death, Stalking, Suicide, Miscarriage, Alcohol, Racial slurs, Gun violence, Grief, Death of parent, Car accident, and Blood