A review by kirstendo
Death in the Mouth: Original Horror by People of Color by Cassie Hart, Sloane Leong

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

5.0

 I absolutely loved this book. People who know me IRL are probably tired of my wax poetics about how horror and science fiction is only good when it uses the genre conventions to say something about the nature of humanity. Reading "genre fiction" by authors who have a point of view and life experience that informs their writing beyond just trying to scare the reader adds layers and depth to the narrative, and there's plenty of that here.

ALSO - the body horror! My absolute favourite horror sub-genre had me absolutely spoiled here. This is not to be missed if you, like me, often find yourself wishing for more intensity and quality in contemporary body horror representations.

As a small addendum, I would recommend reading this on an e-reader or a tablet with a larger-than-phone sized screen so you can really appreciate the illustrations.