lifelongday's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
sheena_sherburn's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“What was that old line about how children are innocent, so they demand justice, while adults would rather pray for mercy?” - this quote really sums up this book. I absolutely loved it. Queer gothic books are few and far between, but this is a great example of how it should be done.
scrow1022's review
4.0
Ooo, liked this. Very atmospheric, haunting, compelling. And ends so ambiguously...
ljvalentine's review against another edition
5.0
What a book!
I’m sat here with my mouth ajar at that ending, which I did not see coming at all.
Aside from the gorgeously written horror and sensuality, this book has heart. I felt myself drawn to Eugene in a way that a lot of authors fail to do with their protagonists.
I wish I could find the words to better describe how much I enjoyed this book!
I’m sat here with my mouth ajar at that ending, which I did not see coming at all.
Aside from the gorgeously written horror and sensuality, this book has heart. I felt myself drawn to Eugene in a way that a lot of authors fail to do with their protagonists.
I wish I could find the words to better describe how much I enjoyed this book!
theon3leftbehind's review
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
stellajo's review against another edition
5.0
Atmospheric horror mashup! This quick read is sort of a combo of Southern Gothic/'it came from the swamp' and Bonnie and Clyde with a fairy demon, outsider angst, and spicy sex thrown in for good measure. Lovely prose and atmosphere, but don't be expecting a happy ending.
feelsnotbrains's review against another edition
5.0
This was honestly going to be four stars until I got to the denouement and things really picked the fuck up in terms to closure, justice, and really just what the heck is happening with the town.
I won’t spoil but this novel is a verdantly-written fable that could’ve been penned a decade ago, so clean and classic is the prose. The queer storytelling is a delicious paprika on top of a haunting tale that reminds me of Christopher Rice’s work. I’m fast falling in love with Powell’s work.
I won’t spoil but this novel is a verdantly-written fable that could’ve been penned a decade ago, so clean and classic is the prose. The queer storytelling is a delicious paprika on top of a haunting tale that reminds me of Christopher Rice’s work. I’m fast falling in love with Powell’s work.
kbaileybooks's review against another edition
5.0
"Johnny Walker stood in the middle of the street like the heat didn't bother him and bullets couldn't touch him. Like there wasn't a cop dying at his feet."
Bank robbers, ghosts, & gators. It's the deep south in the 1930's, and the preternatural things that move through the swamp after dark are almost as scary as the people in the church.
This was jaw-dropping, nightmarish, totally transportive. I'm not going to say a ton about it because it's definitely the kind of book that you should go into knowing as little as possible - but the fact that it has under 800 reviews is a CRIME. I'm going to be yelling about this one from the rooftops for the foreseeable future. This is the epitome of queer horror: it's surreal and atmospheric, relying on its deliciously sinister setting and unreliable narrator to build unease rather than defaulting to cheap scares. In the beginning I was wishing for chapter headers that would clarify whether we were in the past or the present, as I sometimes felt mixed up, but I quickly realized that was the point: Arden Powell makes the passage of time soupy and nebulous, stretching and jumping then doubling back, disorienting the reader along with the main character. The story feels more and more dreamlike as it progresses.
Cleverly constructed and gorgeously executed, I feel somehow fundamentally not the same person I was when I started this. Sprinting to pick up the Faerie Hounds of York. (Also, oh my god, this author has RANGE. The last book I picked up by them was a charming and whimsical little romantasy of manners.)
"They say the devil comes dressed as everything you've ever dreamed of. I never really imagined what that meant until I met you."
Bank robbers, ghosts, & gators. It's the deep south in the 1930's, and the preternatural things that move through the swamp after dark are almost as scary as the people in the church.
This was jaw-dropping, nightmarish, totally transportive. I'm not going to say a ton about it because it's definitely the kind of book that you should go into knowing as little as possible - but the fact that it has under 800 reviews is a CRIME. I'm going to be yelling about this one from the rooftops for the foreseeable future. This is the epitome of queer horror: it's surreal and atmospheric, relying on its deliciously sinister setting and unreliable narrator to build unease rather than defaulting to cheap scares. In the beginning I was wishing for chapter headers that would clarify whether we were in the past or the present, as I sometimes felt mixed up, but I quickly realized that was the point: Arden Powell makes the passage of time soupy and nebulous, stretching and jumping then doubling back, disorienting the reader along with the main character. The story feels more and more dreamlike as it progresses.
Cleverly constructed and gorgeously executed, I feel somehow fundamentally not the same person I was when I started this. Sprinting to pick up the Faerie Hounds of York. (Also, oh my god, this author has RANGE. The last book I picked up by them was a charming and whimsical little romantasy of manners.)
"They say the devil comes dressed as everything you've ever dreamed of. I never really imagined what that meant until I met you."
hugo19999's review against another edition
4.0
Horror booktober buddy read with Iman.
It was a story about guilt more than horror itself, that suffocating feeling of guilt that crept under your consciousness and slowly suffocating you.
It brought the theme of trauma, denial and justice but there is nothing you can do by the end of it because it was all done and you just need to accept it.
That climax was so dramatic
And it was all necessary.
It was a story about guilt more than horror itself, that suffocating feeling of guilt that crept under your consciousness and slowly suffocating you.
It brought the theme of trauma, denial and justice but there is nothing you can do by the end of it because it was all done and you just need to accept it.
That climax was so dramatic
And it was all necessary.
daniielaph's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
I really enjoyed it! Super creepy and definitely weird! I loved the takeaway I got of the story (whether intended or not by the author, I do not know).