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terriblelynne's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Cannibalism
bowlingforboots's review against another edition
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism
Minor: Abandonment
esskaysquared's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This book was on my to read list for a long time, and it took me ages to find a copy of it. Of course that meant that I had really built up my expectations for the book.
I enjoyed the premise of the book: a woman gets a weekend pass from rehab to go to her sister's wedding, only to find out that her sister has married into a family of cannibals. Unfortunately, I wasn't as big a fan of the book as I thought I would be. I didn't like the main character, and I didn't like the twist at the end. If I hadn't read the last three pages, I would have liked the book more.
My biggest problem with the book was really that there were some grammar problems and typos in the book. This is a book by a first-time novelist and from a small, independent publisher, so I gave a higher star rating than I would have if it was published by a major publisher. I think the writing is good, but needed a better editor.
I liked the premise, and it was very gory. I guess that can go either way, but if you're looking for books with cannibalism I would think you like gore. While it took me a minute to finish the book, it really is a quick read. It was also much lighter in tone than many other books about cannibalism.
I enjoyed the premise of the book: a woman gets a weekend pass from rehab to go to her sister's wedding, only to find out that her sister has married into a family of cannibals. Unfortunately, I wasn't as big a fan of the book as I thought I would be. I didn't like the main character, and I didn't like the twist at the end. If I hadn't read the last three pages, I would have liked the book more.
My biggest problem with the book was really that there were some grammar problems and typos in the book. This is a book by a first-time novelist and from a small, independent publisher, so I gave a higher star rating than I would have if it was published by a major publisher. I think the writing is good, but needed a better editor.
I liked the premise, and it was very gory. I guess that can go either way, but if you're looking for books with cannibalism I would think you like gore. While it took me a minute to finish the book, it really is a quick read. It was also much lighter in tone than many other books about cannibalism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
lupexrosa's review against another edition
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? Yes
3.0
What the fuck ???
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Cannibalism, and Death of parent
ickijones's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Vomit
jrharris's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Cannibalism
howlinglibraries's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Reception has been recommended to me countless times and I'd built an immense amount of hype for this story in my own mind, so I'm happy to say that I finally read it — and I can see why so many people have raved about it! I love stories about terrible rich people doing terrible-rich-people things (one of my all-time favorite horror films is Ready or Not, which this reminded me of once or twice), and though I don't read it as often as I'd like to, I thoroughly enjoy a good splatterpunk story.
I would say the splatterpunk element is where Kenzie Jennings absolutely shines in this story, because the gore and violence are on point. It takes a while to reach the moment where the violence kicks in, but once it starts, it doesn't let up until the climax of the story, and there were descriptions in this novella that had me positively cringing because they sounded so painful. I loved that aspect of Reception — I only wish it had come sooner.
Unfortunately, despite this novella only being a little over 200 pages long (or 8 hours for the audiobook I listened to), it dragged a bit for me in the first half. It takes exactly 50% of the story for shit to hit the fan, and while the first half does a good job of setting the scene and introducing the characters, that isn't necessarily what I went into Reception expecting. Realistically, that's possibly less Kenzie Jennings' fault and more my own for mismanaged expectations. Aside from that, I didn't love the ending, but I saw with a quick glance at friends' reviews that I seem to definitely be the odd duck out in this feeling, so take my opinion with a grain of salt!
Minor issues aside, this story was a fun time and I'm so glad I read it. The audiobook was solidly produced and I liked the narrator, so if you're an audiobook reader as well, I definitely recommend it! Whatever format you prefer, Reception is a disgusting, sometimes hilarious story featuring lots of gore, a lovable and comedic bickering set of sisters, and some really fucked up dinner plans, and I happily recommend it to my fellow horror lovers.
Thank you so much to Fireside Horror for providing me with this audio copy in exchange for an honest review!
I would say the splatterpunk element is where Kenzie Jennings absolutely shines in this story, because the gore and violence are on point. It takes a while to reach the moment where the violence kicks in, but once it starts, it doesn't let up until the climax of the story, and there were descriptions in this novella that had me positively cringing because they sounded so painful. I loved that aspect of Reception — I only wish it had come sooner.
Unfortunately, despite this novella only being a little over 200 pages long (or 8 hours for the audiobook I listened to), it dragged a bit for me in the first half. It takes exactly 50% of the story for shit to hit the fan, and while the first half does a good job of setting the scene and introducing the characters, that isn't necessarily what I went into Reception expecting. Realistically, that's possibly less Kenzie Jennings' fault and more my own for mismanaged expectations. Aside from that, I didn't love the ending, but I saw with a quick glance at friends' reviews that I seem to definitely be the odd duck out in this feeling, so take my opinion with a grain of salt!
Minor issues aside, this story was a fun time and I'm so glad I read it. The audiobook was solidly produced and I liked the narrator, so if you're an audiobook reader as well, I definitely recommend it! Whatever format you prefer, Reception is a disgusting, sometimes hilarious story featuring lots of gore, a lovable and comedic bickering set of sisters, and some really fucked up dinner plans, and I happily recommend it to my fellow horror lovers.
Thank you so much to Fireside Horror for providing me with this audio copy in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Gore, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Drug use, and Misogyny
Minor: Child death and Fatphobia