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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
eve_reads'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
3.25
⁕ Danforth's ability to flesh out characters is strong, but comes at the cost of a painfully slow narrative. Even though I appreciated the depth of the contemporary characters (Meritt, Audrey, and Harper), it took FOREVER for them to be united and on the set of Brookhants. Once there, only a minimal amount time was spent in the spooky gothic setting that I picked the book up for in the first place.
⁕ I was disappointed with the weak connection between the contemporary storyline and the historic one. There was so much potential for a paranormal overlap (or, at the least, a metaphorical one), but after hundreds of pages of build-up, both storylines diverged and went their separate ways? It was infuriating!
⁕ This book did have its moments. The unreliable, self-aware narrator gives major Lemony-Snicket-tells-ghost-story-vibes, and when the action did move forward I was gripped by it. I just wish these features of the book had been more consistent.
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Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Grief, Lesbophobia, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Death, and Sexual assault
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 horroreleanora's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Body horror, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Pregnancy, Mental illness, Gaslighting, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Alcohol, Car accident, Dementia, Sexual assault, Abortion, Homophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, and Sexual content
callikat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
First of all, it is LONG. I almost DNFed it 150 pages in, because nothing had happened yet. And for so much character exposition, the characters themselves didn't feel very authentic. We got glimpses of their insecurities, feelings, and secrets but it never went past the surface. I think that's why the climax at the end didn't work for me -- you expect to get emotional over all of the betrayal, but then no one has any reaction and everything just ends.
I also didn't really like the switch from different time periods. One part of the book takes place in modern day, as they film a movie about these two girls who died under mysterious circumstances, Clara and Flo. The other part of the book takes place in 1902 - the time period the girls actually died. However, while we learn about the two actresses (and the writer) in modern day, we never really learn about Clara and Flo, because the 1902 scenes are not about them -- they're about the headmistress and her partner. And to be honest it's hard to get interested in their story when the girls in modern day only talk about Clara and Flo. I wish the 1902 scenes had been about Clara and Flo, and then we could learn more about the girls in modern day/how they connect to the original heroines.
It was still a good book, I really did like the plot. I guess I just wish there had been a clearer point to it all, I wish we had gotten to know the characters better, and I wish we could have seen more of the movie being filmed!
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, and Child death
Minor: Homophobia, Infidelity, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, and Mental illness
jacemchale's review
- 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
5.0
Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Sexual content, and Drug use
Minor: Cursing, Dementia, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Alcoholism, Vomit, Forced institutionalization, Sexual violence, Car accident, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, and Murder
maryellen's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
Moderate: Lesbophobia and Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual content
lolajh'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
5.0
In the past timeline, a boarding school is deemed cursed after two young girls (they were lesbians too) went into the woods and were mauled to death by yellowjackets and seemingly spreading a curse of insanity and hallucinations that are driving people mad. Every single character’s backstory is explored, which I love, and the imagery in the horror scenes are so visual (I love that).
Then in the future, or present, timeline, three sapphic actors, one lesbian, one bisexual, and one not labelled that I think is quite lesbian-coded. These girls are all starring in a film about the history of the same boarding school and playing the lesbians at the beginning who died first from it as well as a depiction of their romance. Whilst these actors are working through the movie the curse set on the surreal events recorded to happen at the boarding school begin happening to them, so the mystery of the curse is found out by the reader and them at the same time as they discover it for themselves.
Graphic: Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Child death, Death, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
sunbeam_reader's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
2.25
• Dislikes: The basic plot is interesting I just didn't find that it was executed very well. The jumping timelines was a bit confusing and frustrating since I enjoyed one over the other. I also really got annoyed by the footnotes—a lot of them felt out of place and unnecessary and it was just a bit messy. The characters in the modern timeline were not my cup of tea especially Merritt and Heather, I had a hard time connecting and rooting for them. Even though the book was alright in the first acts the last act fell apart completely for both timelines and I ended up leaving the book disappointed.
•REP: All the lead characters were sapphic! However, all, except one, were white. No one was trans or disabled. And there was a bit of bi-phobia directed at Audrey from one of the other characters which I felt was unnecessary. I will also add that it felt as if one of the characters, Merritt, was autistic/neurodivergent coded, however I am a neurotypical person so I cannot really say if that is the case. I would encourage readers or potential readers to seek out reviews of this book by neurodivergent people.
• Final Thoughts: I enjoyed a lot of aspects but for the most part I was unsatisfied with the ending and had a hard time connecting with the main characters. This was actually one of my most anticipated books to read this year and I was expecting it to be a 10/10 so I think that expectation is what made me feel so disappointed in the end.
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Cursing, and Death
Moderate: Bullying and Sexual content
Minor: Biphobia and Toxic friendship