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ngreader's review against another edition
3.0
A book read to be coded for a project I'm working on; I love the exploration into generational trauma of Mexican women, specifically into traumatic sexual abuse and assault. It's something I've had conversations with my mom about and I thought this book was an interesting experiment on Gothic writing and the theme. I'm not a huge fan of the haunting trope that this book utilizes which is why it's a 3 and not a 4 star, but that's just personal taste. It is heavy, but it is also good and would be one I'd encourage readers to engage in a dialogue with.
Spoiler
contains dating, premarital pregnancy w/ one of the side characters, death of a child, murder of a parent and family members, kissing, sexual assault, rape, ghostsmbartman21's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
3.5
beefore's review against another edition
4.0
IDK i have no strong feeligns towards it i think it was a good book and thats that idk what else to say ummmmmmmm yea so solid 4 stars i think if u want a solid book to read i think its a pretty solid book itgot a bit uncomfortable at some points in regards to like sa and stuff so like i wouldnt recommend it if ur not coolsies w that otherwise i think its pretty solid
missprint_'s review against another edition
3.0
Everyone in this book is exhausting. Everything about this is upsetting.
In general with this book, I'm having a hard time buying into any of the interpersonal dynamics here. Daniel isn’t a compelling love interest and I think he’s intentionally messy because unpacking trauma is messy. But also I don’t like that Grace is still with him at the end of the book after he breached her trust. It’s not a good look. Mercy is completely impenetrable as a character. Like entirely opaque. Her motivations remain a mystery. Not sure how I feel about a toddler dying as a plot device even though the author sort of explains where she’s coming from with that in the author’s note. The gothic elements are okay but also weird with how they relate to Grace losing a week of time.
It’s strange to me how we go from the father refusing to acknowledge his possibly moving to a different room is an option and forcing Grace out of her room to him talking about therapy and trauma. Like that seems very out of character.
The imagery is beautifully vivid and it’s very feminist but the characters are wooden and I didn’t like anything here. I might try whatever Guadalupe McCall does next but thematically this was just hard.
In general with this book, I'm having a hard time buying into any of the interpersonal dynamics here. Daniel isn’t a compelling love interest and I think he’s intentionally messy because unpacking trauma is messy. But also I don’t like that Grace is still with him at the end of the book after he breached her trust. It’s not a good look. Mercy is completely impenetrable as a character. Like entirely opaque. Her motivations remain a mystery. Not sure how I feel about a toddler dying as a plot device even though the author sort of explains where she’s coming from with that in the author’s note. The gothic elements are okay but also weird with how they relate to Grace losing a week of time.
It’s strange to me how we go from the father refusing to acknowledge his possibly moving to a different room is an option and forcing Grace out of her room to him talking about therapy and trauma. Like that seems very out of character.
The imagery is beautifully vivid and it’s very feminist but the characters are wooden and I didn’t like anything here. I might try whatever Guadalupe McCall does next but thematically this was just hard.
bookishobserver's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
2.0
This book was a mess, I'm sorry. It started out shocking but strong and on paper has everything I like: a main character who sees dead people, has visions, and is trying to solve the mystery of her murdered mother.
What really threw me is a spoiler (so this review is marked as such) because it’s part of the plot (CW for rape): Grace disappears for a week and thinks she’s living with a long-lost grandmother and cousin. She is pursued endlessly by Manuel and is eventually attacked and raped. And then we find out the grandmother and cousin are dead, the house doesn’t exist, and she was raped by the young version of the now-older man who raped and killed her mother. She had to live through her mother’s rape to find the still-living guy. I don’t even know what to think about this.
The ending was rushed, the emotions expressed by Mercy in particular started to feel tedious. At a certain point in the book, there’s a lot more SA than I wanted to read. But by then, I wanted to know what was going on with a particular ghost. I am just so confused by this book. CW also for the death of a small child. I wish I’d known that going in. It’s a thread throughout the whole book.
What really threw me is a spoiler (so this review is marked as such) because it’s part of the plot (CW for rape): Grace disappears for a week and thinks she’s living with a long-lost grandmother and cousin. She is pursued endlessly by Manuel and is eventually attacked and raped. And then we find out the grandmother and cousin are dead, the house doesn’t exist, and she was raped by the young version of the now-older man who raped and killed her mother. She had to live through her mother’s rape to find the still-living guy. I don’t even know what to think about this.
The ending was rushed, the emotions expressed by Mercy in particular started to feel tedious. At a certain point in the book, there’s a lot more SA than I wanted to read. But by then, I wanted to know what was going on with a particular ghost. I am just so confused by this book. CW also for the death of a small child. I wish I’d known that going in. It’s a thread throughout the whole book.
electraheart's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
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