dornmoore's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Body horror
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Violence
radreads_'s review against another edition
3.0
I’d say that in reality my rating is a 3.5/5. I think it was a great plot with great characters but the storytelling was not my favorite. I read this after reading “My Heart is a Chainsaw” and this one just wasn’t as engaging.
ecn's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I went into this knowing it’s not my preferred genre so I’m not surprised to say I found it to be ~just okay~. The tone was different than I’m used to SGJ using so I found that refreshing and enjoyed the past to present storytelling. Overall it was fine. Just not for me
nerodyne's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It's hard to put into words how I feel about Mongrels. It definitely provided a take on werewolves that I haven't really ever seen before, and I think that had I read this book as a kid it would have changed something in me. The moving all the time, living paycheck to paycheck, living in shitty run down trailers and feeling like family is all you got, while worrying you aren't really the same as your family. It's definitely something I experienced in my youth, short of actually being a werewolf myself. When it comes to execution though, I struggled to fully connect with the writing style and while I usually love perspective changes and non linear stories, the ones in this felt a bit clunky and took some time to get used to. Not to mention, the story honestly got pretty nasty at times. It never felt unnecessarily obscene, it was clearly a matter of putting an animalistic lens on people, but I can't deny there were a few times I had to put down the book for a few minutes, . All in all, I'd probably recommend the book so long as you're someone who already likes supernatural horror to begin with.
Spoiler
especially regarding the time that Libby fucked a dog and that family of werewolves broke into a Jewish cemetery to eat a recently deceased woman
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Animal death, Body horror, and Violence
Moderate: Excrement, Alcohol, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Vomit
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, and Physical abuse
nicoledagogo's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
jhyunk's review against another edition
dark
funny
sad
medium-paced
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
geve_'s review against another edition
2.0
No singular plot, but the road worn story of a family suffering from immense loss and struggling to get by, always scraping together just enough to survive and keep moving. Oh and also, they're werewolves.
Loved the concept, didn't love the writing. I'm a sucker for a road story, and that was my favorite part of this one. The folklore was fun at times, and barely forgivably sexist and weird at other times. Almost put it down when But I held out and it grew on me a bit.
The story is really a series of vignettes, some more interesting than others. I didn't mind this format, though it was hard to follow at times. Each chapter was punctuated by a mini chapter that was written from a different angle, and which used the kid as the main character, but as a different iteration of himself, always calling him by a specific non-pronoun noun. Once I got used to it, it was fine, but it was clunky reading. Could have been more cohesive.
The kid struggles to be like his family, when he isn't. It's interesting to think about him as an outsider who is outside even his own circle. They talk about the things he can't understand or experience, and he wants to be on the inside, when being on the inside is only allowed through birth, no amount of effort or wanting can change it.
Wasn't crazy about the ending, bit abrupt and not as satisfying as I wanted it to be.
Overall, it was okay.
Loved the concept, didn't love the writing. I'm a sucker for a road story, and that was my favorite part of this one. The folklore was fun at times, and barely forgivably sexist and weird at other times. Almost put it down when
Spoiler
it becomes apparent, at least within these characters, that the male werewolf is all about wildness and rage and freedom, and when the female werewolf finally shifts, she fucks a dog. Didn't love it.The story is really a series of vignettes, some more interesting than others. I didn't mind this format, though it was hard to follow at times. Each chapter was punctuated by a mini chapter that was written from a different angle, and which used the kid as the main character, but as a different iteration of himself, always calling him by a specific non-pronoun noun. Once I got used to it, it was fine, but it was clunky reading. Could have been more cohesive.
The kid struggles to be like his family, when he isn't. It's interesting to think about him as an outsider who is outside even his own circle. They talk about the things he can't understand or experience, and he wants to be on the inside, when being on the inside is only allowed through birth, no amount of effort or wanting can change it.
Wasn't crazy about the ending, bit abrupt and not as satisfying as I wanted it to be.
Overall, it was okay.
swamppig's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
pbanditp's review against another edition
4.0
Stephen Graham Jones creatively writes from unique perspectives. Here we have a boy growing up in a werewolf family wondering if and when he will transform as his aunt and uncle do. This comes across almost like a “how to” guide for being a werewolf. Fun, humorous and violent, what else could you want?
senorrandom's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0