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heather_harrison'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? It's complicated
3.5
I loved the gothic vibe, cursed school, sapphic rep and creepy wasps. But my god this could have been shorter.
I found that while I enjoyed the two story lines, the 1900s was definitely stronger than the present day Hollywood. The ending looked like it was all going to interconnect, but it just fizzled out and was so disappointing.
+ 0.5 because the trifle scene made my physically cringe and internally scream.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Murder, Homophobia, Misogyny, and Suicide
Minor: Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, and Stalking
keirahelena_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Lesbophobia, Homophobia, and Suicide
fin_pilot's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Vomit, Gore, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual assault, Lesbophobia, and Homophobia
imrereads's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Keep in mind that this is horror! You may want to check the content warnings.
Graphic: Body horror and Death
Moderate: Sexual assault, Homophobia, Biphobia, Suicide, and Drug use
Minor: Forced institutionalization and Fatphobia
flamesocks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Cursing, Homophobia, Car accident, Drug use, Gaslighting, Lesbophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Pregnancy, Grief, Toxic relationship, Biphobia, and Mental illness
thekatreturns's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Body horror, Death, Suicide, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, Cursing, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual content, Misogyny, Outing, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Violence, Racism, Biphobia, Car accident, Pregnancy, Murder, Addiction, and Alcoholism
Insects, specifically yellowjackets, feature heavily in this book. They are included in nearly all of the horror elements. For me, graphic=extremely unavoidable, long, plot crucial elements. moderate= plot or thematically relevant, but don’t stand out as particularly graphic. Minor=not described in detail.owenwilsonbaby's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
I loved this! The last 600 page novel I read was Dune and in some ways that felt like such a slog in comparison to this. I occasionally had issues - pauses that lasted too long, issues with the pacing - especially when the beginning and middle felt like they were building to something that wasn't quite carried to fruition by the culmination of Alex and Libby's plot and the modern Hollywood plot. The tone at the start was also interesting to adjust to, with a very camp Gothic element - often an interesting shift when the narrator themselves is a bit of an all-knowing, anonymous character (and frequently reminds the reader of this).
That said, all of these are minor quibbles in an otherwise fun and absorbing take on queer horror. Danforth has a brilliant grasp on when to employ terror and when to employ horror. The novel has lots of potential themes but ultimately seems to be about the dangers of spectacle, not unlike my other horror favourite of this year, Jordan Peele's Nope. I also loved Harper, Audrey and Merritt's characters, who are all complex and three-dimensional. Merritt was especially interesting and accurate as a survivor of bereavement by suicide, and someone who came to writing and success young and is now floundering in her 20s.
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Mental illness, Grief, Animal death, Homophobia, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Moderate: Suicide, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Fatphobia
matcha_cat's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Infidelity, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Body shaming
ksgoetz's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Pregnancy, Grief, Lesbophobia, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Blood, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Vomit, Death, Misogyny, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Suicide attempt
kharlan3's review against another edition
Graphic: Death of parent, Bullying, Gaslighting, and Gore
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
Yellow jackets feature heavily in the horror