asiamd's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I went into this book genuinely not know if I was going to enjoy or not because it’s not something that I would usually read but I’m happy that I moved out my comfort zone for this. The book is like a fever dream that deals with how religion and the supernatural can change people when it’s all they have to believe in, especially when living in an extremely unforgiving world. The changing povs in the book were actually really smooth and it was one of the best things about it. I’ve also been really lucky in reading books that I’ve felt the characters personalities and backstories were so well-done and well thought out and this book didn’t disappoint with that. For example, everything we learn about the world they live in and the people they’ve become is fed to us that is in pace with the story and I really enjoyed it! While saying all that it is kind of a heavy read due to the SA, violence, and cruelty that’s depicted but PLEASE give this book a chance I promise you’ll enjoy it!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal death, Grief, Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Suicide, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gun violence, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Violence
morethanmylupus's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I don't even know how to review this book. It was so weird. I appreciated the women taking back power and there's some definite commentary on how society can devolve. Beyond that, I think if you can handle a horror-esque, dystopian novel then you just need to read this one to understand. Overall, this one was just too weird for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, and Murder
erinmjustice's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Animal death, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Ableism, and Child death
Minor: Pedophilia
originalemilee's review
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
For a long time I have been craving a book that feels like The Last of Us… and I finally got it.
I could hardly put this book down. The opening scene is intense and drops us right into the strange, scary world. For the first 30 pages or so, I was a little bit frustrated because I didn’t know much about the world. We know they’re wandering the desert in what seems like the post apocalypse and that we are a couple decades into (what seems like) a zombie virus. Magdala and Xavier encounter a not-so-human person who has “become the desert” and has melons growing off them. About to die of thirst, Xavier says Magdala can eat a melon but that it is like cannibalism. I wanted to know what that thing was, how it got that way, and what was the deal with the melons- and even by the end of the book we still don’t get a clear explanation. But I realized my frustration may have sparked because I’ve read so much fantasy and sci-fi lately that info dumps everything you need to know within the first 3 chapters. In Desert Creatures, we get to wander about and discover the world on our own. It feels like a real journey.
Overall, the plot is very good. Elam’s section is a little slow and sometimes redundant, but it quickly picks up again. Every character we meet has a purpose and unique arc, and I was especially impressed by how much Magdala grows. By the end of her first act, I really thought she would have ended up in someone’s clutches and have a tragic story because she was so completely dependent on her father, but that was not the case at all. I would have loved to know what happened to her between losing her father and meeting Elam. For a book that is only 350 pages, we get a broad, dramatic story with lots of characters.
The one thing that did frustrate me was that I had trouble imagining exactly what the desert creatures were. People and animals get sick, and so they somehow absorb into each other, and melons grow off them? They don’t seem super aggressive or fast. How do people get like that? We know that lots of people are desert sick- Magdala was very sick but she never “turned.” The people did not seem very concerned with this creatures or whatever the virus is that made them become like that. And the cactus-sitters, I couldn’t get an image. I pictured people walking around with a cactus literally stuck to them… but I don’t think that’s right.
A note about disability in this book: the main character has a physical disability she would like to be healed of, which is her driving motivation. But I am happy that we do not get the “disabled character is magically fixed” trope.
Thank you Erewhon Books and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I could hardly put this book down. The opening scene is intense and drops us right into the strange, scary world. For the first 30 pages or so, I was a little bit frustrated because I didn’t know much about the world. We know they’re wandering the desert in what seems like the post apocalypse and that we are a couple decades into (what seems like) a zombie virus. Magdala and Xavier encounter a not-so-human person who has “become the desert” and has melons growing off them. About to die of thirst, Xavier says Magdala can eat a melon but that it is like cannibalism. I wanted to know what that thing was, how it got that way, and what was the deal with the melons- and even by the end of the book we still don’t get a clear explanation. But I realized my frustration may have sparked because I’ve read so much fantasy and sci-fi lately that info dumps everything you need to know within the first 3 chapters. In Desert Creatures, we get to wander about and discover the world on our own. It feels like a real journey.
Overall, the plot is very good. Elam’s section is a little slow and sometimes redundant, but it quickly picks up again. Every character we meet has a purpose and unique arc, and I was especially impressed by how much Magdala grows. By the end of her first act, I really thought she would have ended up in someone’s clutches and have a tragic story because she was so completely dependent on her father, but that was not the case at all. I would have loved to know what happened to her between losing her father and meeting Elam. For a book that is only 350 pages, we get a broad, dramatic story with lots of characters.
The one thing that did frustrate me was that I had trouble imagining exactly what the desert creatures were. People and animals get sick, and so they somehow absorb into each other, and melons grow off them? They don’t seem super aggressive or fast. How do people get like that? We know that lots of people are desert sick- Magdala was very sick but she never “turned.” The people did not seem very concerned with this creatures or whatever the virus is that made them become like that. And the cactus-sitters, I couldn’t get an image. I pictured people walking around with a cactus literally stuck to them… but I don’t think that’s right.
A note about disability in this book: the main character has a physical disability she would like to be healed of, which is her driving motivation. But I am happy that we do not get the “disabled character is magically fixed” trope.
Thank you Erewhon Books and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Violence, Gore, Sexual assault, Murder, and Trafficking
Minor: Abandonment
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