Reviews

Holy cow I fell deeply in love with this horrifying story. Deeply recommend reading the triggers before grabbing this book. I loved all the characters and the setting is so unique and cool! 10/10 perfect for Halloween!

chantheman's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

brennieree33's review against another edition

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1.0

I read this book because I was promised it was creepy and would keep me on the edge of your seat. It was not. It was gross and awful. Emma, our main character, is an awful person and has no good qualities. There is absolutely nothing likable about her, even towards the end, when she is supposed to have changed from her experiences. This book is dark just to be dark. This was such a chore to get through and I hated the entire experience.

261 pages
TW: gore, gun violence, vomit, poisoning, cancer, incest, urine, descriptions of cutting/stabbing, corpses/desecration of corpses, mentions of cannibalism, suicidal ideation/planning, animal death, mentions of child abuse, descriptions of surgery, drug use, grooming (there's a teacher-student relationship), blood, fire, hysterectomy, trying to induce miscarriage
Rep: trans, gay

Spoiler

- "No doubt. Most 18 year old girls are hot. They can't help it." That's fucking disgusting. No wonder Lowell literally tries to kidnap Emma to be his kid's new mom.
-Earl is a really creepy kid in the beginning and it's all literally for nothing other than to try to have a creepy atmosphere and to be a red herring. It's so stupid.
- "Every time I meet a new person, I try to decide how long they'll live if I pick them apart. ... It's fun to figure out which parts to take off first. ... A leg. An arm. With some people, I make sure to take their head off right away so they won't scream. I'd take your head off last. ... You'd have something to say when it came to the very end." Both a super creepy thing and a way to make Emma seem different from other girls
- "Dad wanted me to be happy, bold, and brave. It didn't matter how I got there." That's really sad.
- I hate that Emma calls her "baby" Pea baby. Like, I just don't like it.
- who the hell describes something as "sweet and fecal"
- "I'm in a fairy tale: The Big-Breasted, Blood-Encrusted Princess." Okay, that made me laugh. But the amount of times Emma's boobs are mentioned I'm amazed this wasn't written by a man.
- WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU LOOK AT A CHILD'S GENITALS???? ESPECIALLY WHILE THEY SLEEP???? However, it does make me happy that Emma accepts Earl and just lets him be himself.
- "My boobs weigh more than you" is actually pretty funny
- It is SO GROSS how Emma accuses Coach Matt of molesting her. Yes, he was in a "relationship" with a student and that is r*pe, but the fact that she says it was her to make it have more impact (in a heteronormative society) is disgusting. So. Gross.
- "Please, I have gay friends. You are not gay." EMMA I HATE YOU.
- What the hell was this book's stance on the supernatural. There was like a thing of evil once George died and the whole thing about the crows and I just don't get it.
- WHY DOES SHE WONDER WHAT THE DEAD MAN'S BLOOD TASTES LIKE????
- Emma, don't go outside in your underwear in a PUBLIC PLACE
- The fact that she just leaves Earl in the hospital makes me so mad. She literally says that she will go with him. And then she just leaves him.

Quotes:

Spoiler

- "Ghosts are like that too. Like scars. They travel with you."
- "Madness in its simplest form is narcissism - a self stared at so long and so hard that any potential beauty in it becomes horrifying."
- "My father taught me that no one is evil by accident. You have to invite it in."

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