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alex2691's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Body horror, and Child abuse
gen_wolfhailstorm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
The Details:
Narrated by Andi Arndt
Unabridged
This reminded me of Anna Dressed in Blood.
There's were scenes that generally terrified me, and it amplified from listening this at home, on my own, in the dark. I loved that.
I liked that the main perspective was from Okiku, the ghost, as she observed life around her. It particularly interesting when some touched with the sight interacted with her in some way.
I was fascinated by Okiku's habit of counting. I think this is usually used in myths and legends to distract some of the paranormal beings, but here it felt self soothing and we found out the reasoning for it later, which added to a compelling back story.
The dolls were really creepy!
I definitely zoned out during some scenes, but generally this was hooking and intriguing.
I immediately went and listened to the companion novel.
Narrated by Andi Arndt
Unabridged
This reminded me of Anna Dressed in Blood.
There's were scenes that generally terrified me, and it amplified from listening this at home, on my own, in the dark. I loved that.
I liked that the main perspective was from Okiku, the ghost, as she observed life around her. It particularly interesting when some touched with the sight interacted with her in some way.
I was fascinated by Okiku's habit of counting. I think this is usually used in myths and legends to distract some of the paranormal beings, but here it felt self soothing and we found out the reasoning for it later, which added to a compelling back story.
The dolls were really creepy!
I definitely zoned out during some scenes, but generally this was hooking and intriguing.
I immediately went and listened to the companion novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Medical content, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Body horror, Blood, Death, Murder, Torture, Confinement, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Gore, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Pedophilia, and Physical abuse
talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Murder, Body horror, Death, Blood, Kidnapping, and Violence
Moderate: Medical content, Misogyny, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Torture, Sexism, Child death, Grief, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Animal death, Vomit, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual assault, Rape, Ableism, Bullying, and Homophobia
vidalovesspice's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Dementia, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Violence, Death of parent, Child death, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Kidnapping, and Mental illness
Moderate: Bullying and Torture
Minor: Animal death and Animal cruelty
roksyreads's review
dark
mysterious
sad
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? It's complicated
4.5
Dark, tense, and a little bit mysterious; this is a great ghost story inspired by Japanese legend that is satisfyingly creepy but also oddly sweet. It was a comfortable read, easy to finish in a couple of sessions, but balanced nicely by a steady pace. It won't be for everyone, but I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Body horror, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Rape, Child abuse, and Pedophilia
kristiranee's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
I really enjoyed this story!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Child abuse, and Child death
Minor: Pedophilia
Nothing explicit, but there are mentions of how many people/children have been murdered by the guys and brief mentions of how one guy likes younger kids that could be triggering to some readers.lodestar45's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Violence, Rape, and Mental illness
Minor: Pedophilia and Child abuse
jayisreading's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.25
Every once in a while, I’m in the mood to read some kind of horror. I picked this book at random, not knowing much beyond a general summary. I should preface that I’m not easily scared, so, for those who get antsy with the horror genre, take what I say with a grain of salt. I honestly didn’t find this book scary at all. I can tell Chupeco was leaning more towards a haunting atmosphere than anything, but there are also a few gory moments that may make some queasy.
I thought the main point-of-view from a spirit named Okiku really interesting. She had a distinct voice that gave the story a strong direction for the most part, especially highlighting themes of healing as well as revenge. However, I think the development of the characters in this book suffered a little in favor of atmosphere, which, unfortunately, didn’t do much for me.
I think this is one of those hit-or-miss books. Chupeco is a great writer, though, so I don’t think you’ll be too disappointed with this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Child death, Murder, and Body horror
Moderate: Torture, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Pedophilia and Rape
peppers_books's review against another edition
5.0
i have the hardcover and read it over a year ago but i loved it so when i saw the new cover i knew i wanted a copy. i finally got around to rereading it and it was even better than i remembered. i feel like this story has a little bit of everything. it's creepy at times and there's some really cool scenes that get a little gory. i could picture some of them as if i was watching a horror movie and it made the experience so fun. aside from the horror aspect, there's some tenderness and redemption and healing and family and of course revenge. it's definitely a book that i'll be reading again
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Sexual violence, Murder, Child death, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Gore, and Death
Minor: Bullying and Pedophilia
ggcd1981's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Girl from the Well foi uma ótima leitura de entretenimento, porém com pontos negativos. Nessa obra seguimos em maior parte os personagens principais: Okiku, a mulher de branco, também chamada a garota do poço, ela é quem narra a história; Tarquin Halloway, um adolescente com estranhas tatuagens feitas por sua própria mãe, sendo seu corpo a “prisão” de um espirito maligno ele é a principal vítima dos acontecimentos do livro (para mim vítimas do gênero masculino são sempre um plus para uma história devido a absurda abundância de narrativas com vítimas femininas); Calliope Starr, ou Callie, prima de Tarquin que assume a missão de salvá-lo do ser maligno que está preso dentro dele; e A mulher de preto que é o ser que tenta subjugar Tarquin, quebrar os selos postos pela mãe do rapaz (as tatuagens) e se libertar do garoto. Outros personagens são a mãe institucionalizada de Tarquin, Yoko, e o pai do rapaz Doug, há também um grupo de sacerdotisas Shinto japonesas do qual Yoko fazia parte que se dispõem a exorcizar Tarquin, não me recordo o nome de cada uma delas. Os personagens Okiku e Tarquin foram particularmente interessantes. Okiku é moralmente cinza, sua vontade de proteger Tarquin não anula sua vontade de matar assassinos de crianças e mulheres, o que tem feito a 300 anos. Tarquin teve que lidar com uma mãe que aprisionou uma entidade em seu corpo e posteriormente tentou mata-lo para evitar que a mesma escapasse. Minha crítica aqui é que o livro mostra muito pouco da perspectiva de Tarquin. Não realmente temos a oportunidade de ver como ele lida com tudo isso internamente, o que foi uma oportunidade perdida para desenvolver mais o personagem. Okiku e ele formaram um relacionamento intrigante, uma amizade não usual. Já Callie não gostei muito pois é uma personagem Mary Sue que fez muitas decisões estupidas apenas porque era conveniente para o enredo. O tempo gasto na perspectiva de Callie teria sido melhor aproveitado na perspectiva de Tarquin. Sobre a atmosfera do livro eu tenho apenas elogios. O lado místico do Japão sempre foi fascinante para mim e a autora conseguiu capturar essa atmosfera nas descrições dos vales, templos e rituais em Aomori, onde parte importante da narrativa se passa. Mesmo na primeira metade do livro quando os personagens ainda estavam nos EUA Rin Chupeco estabeleceu um clima sinistro para sua história. A escrita da autora brilhou na construção da atmosfera, mas em outros aspectos a escrita foi apenas direta e funcional. O enredo foi bastante interessante apesar de ter alguns furos. A sequência em que Callie resolve seguir pessoalmente o sequestrador de Tarquin foi repleta de decisões estupidas da personagem, feitas obviamente porque a autora queria estabelecer momentos de tensão. Apesar desses furos a história foi intrigante. A lenda da garota do poço inspirou entre outras coisas o filme The Ring, um dos meus filmes preferidos. Ver como Chupeco utilizou a mesma lenda foi interessante e cheio de suspense. Também fiquei curiosa para ler sobre o conflito entre Okiku e a mulher de preto, isso manteve meu interesse até o final. A lógica interna do livro sofreu um pouco, como mencionado, especificamente a personagem Callie tomou decisões que não faziam sentido e isso me tirou um pouco da história. No entanto, a narrativa fez sentido o suficiente para ser intrigante. The Girl from the Well foi um livro que apesar dos defeitos me manteve entretida e vou continuar com o segundo livro, The Suffering. O final é um pouco doce-amargo após Okiku sacrificar sua chance de descanso na pós vida para ficar e salvar a vida de Tarquin, que precisava de energia espiritual para repor a que perdeu quando a mulher de preto se foi. Porém o fato de que eles passaram a dividir o mesmo corpo me deixa bastante interessada no próximo volume. No geral dou 4.5 estrelas principalmente pelas vibes de terror japonês.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Death, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Violence, and Confinement
Moderate: Child death, Suicide attempt, and Stalking