Reviews with content warning for Self harm - Bunny

Hahaha what the fuck did I just read

At times I loved this, at times I hated this, and mostly I just didn't want to pick it back up to keep reading. But it was weirdly compelling (emphasis on the weird), and the end really made it for me.

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wordsofclover's review against another edition

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dark funny tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.0

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xiumillion's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

3/5 stars, aka 6/10 stars (i prefer /10 ratings)

I really thought I was going to love this book. I love weird stories and I had seen its praise all over booktube and booktok. Unfortunately, it just didn't do it for me. I tend to have an easier time picking out specific complaints I have when reading, rather than figuring out what I enjoyed, so I'll start with complaints. The plot holes were a big issue for me, especially with the whole magical mechanics.

Spoiler

- How did Samantha create a swan into a person? Especially without meaning to? It seems like the creation of men aka hybrids out of bunnies is supposed to be some shocking ability, yet someone such as Samantha did it unintentionally long before she joined the Bunnies. Can everyone do it?? Are there just millions of hybrids in this world?
- Why did Samantha go to the smut salon? Half of Samantha's personality revolved around hating the Bunnies, even unintentionally motivating her to create Ava and later Max(?) just to enact revenge against them or something. Sooo why did she go? It just did not make Samantha's character believable for me. Also, why did the Bunnies even invite her into their cult?
That plot point brings me to probably my biggest gripe: why is there so much woman hating?
Why does Samantha hate the Bunnies so much that it fuels most of the major plot points? Does she hate them because they're close and annoyingly affectionate and whatnot? Because resentment or jealousy makes sense, but it just did not seem that simple for Samantha. It also rubbed me the wrong way that once Samantha joined the Bunnies, that we caught a glimpse of the fact that the Bunnies actually hate each other or something of the like. Complimenting each other and meaning the opposite. Just kinda gross.
Finally, I was not a fan of how someone a man/hybrid (who had only known the Bunnies for a short period of time?) was enough to tear their bonds apart and make them basically break down and even harm themselves. And why is Samantha's satisfying ending having the Bunnies beaten/injured by the stag? Like Samantha's extreme and unbased hate really led to this? Idk.

As for what I did enjoy, I found the overall concept very interesting and I just love weird girl books. The writing was also great, and it felt easy to get inside Samantha's head and how she was experiencing things. But overall, this one just missed for me. Honestly I think I would've been able to look past most of the woman-hating and man-focused ending if the overall "magic" concept and character motivations made more sense to me.

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