Reviews

Winterset Hollow by Jonathan Edward Durham

devilstatedan's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Fairytale turns folk horror in this book that also serves as a love letter to book nerds (like me!) whose live were inexorably altered by relationships with certain books at certain stages of life.
There's a whole heap of genre tropes in here from the fantasy world but they are very well managed and not entirely predictable... some of these themes are expertly manipulated into plot twists while others serve to bolster the depth of the story.
Most striking about this one is the writing. It's rare to find an author with such a way with descriptive language while also enriching motion with dialogue - both internal and external.
The characters are rich and intriguing - apart from the "chosen one" who's a bit of a drag at times - and the blurring of what is good/evil, nature/nurture is beautifully navigated. 
The plot gets rather predictable towards the end but overall this is a wild ride brimming with interesting motivations, not quite the masterpiece I wanted it to be but I had a really nice time with it! :-)

amandadinga's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Just a wonderful read.  

thejudgmentallibrarian's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

steph_p's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

5.0

randomreader41's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

cherylsarnoski's review against another edition

dark emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

It’s got good bones I just think it needed a couple more drafts.

voxlunae's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Man, I really wanted to like this book. The premise is so interesting. There was a tonal dissonance to it, though. The prose in the first act is overwritten and flowery, which clashes with the weak and sophomoric dialogue, and clashes even more with the

Spoiler

slasher-ific blood bath of the next two acts.

It could have been a fun, bloody nightmare or a thoughtful reflection on colonialism, hunting, isolation, and power, but it fails at being both--either--of those things. There were things I liked. The hounds were a really disturbing and effective idea, for example. The concept is still really strong. It just failed in its execution, in my opinion. 

allissa125's review against another edition

4.0

Slow start for me… Aside from starting this on a holiday weekend, I had a little trouble getting into the story. Once I did though, I couldn’t put it down. Sinister little hints peaked though comments and the looks shared between characters. The history behind the story is well beyond what I imagined.

mamabeardteacher's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

seeandieread's review against another edition

5.0

Winterset Hollow, Jonathan Durham's debut novel, is a phenomenal blend of childhood fantasy and the darkest depths of adult consequences. Beautifully written, with poetic prose (peppered with actual lyrical poetry), this is a must read for fans of dark fiction who grew up on likes of The Wind in the Willows and Frog and Toad. It is a rare gift to be so excited to read a story and down right giddy at each new revelation, I cannot recommend this for genre fans enough.

Spoiler-free synopsis: Three friends, two of whom are lifelong fans of the Winterset Hollow novel, visit the long-deceased author's sprawling estate.