batcaves's review
- 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
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, War, Blood, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Alcohol, Gun violence, Infidelity, and Murder
meg_leigh's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Gun violence
Moderate: Child death and Child abuse
bookcaptivated's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Car accident, Grief, and Gun violence
Moderate: Child death, Self harm, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Sexual content, War, Cancer, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Vomit, Infidelity, and Dementia
archaicrobin's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Nina married a lord on this island in the UK where 7 people die every year as a sacrifice to the island itself. Why? Don’t know. How? We also don’t know. The island chooses at random apparently or you can pick your own adventure so to speak and volunteer but only if the island approves. Even the premise is confusing and doesn’t really seem to know the rules. Also this is set in some weird future where there’s a war going on. What does this add to the story? Absolutely nothing!! The war is also never explained, nothing is explained except the tithe itself, and even that is done in a weird flashback sequence that’s poorly written.
Also, this was marketed as an adult debut but the writing, the characters, the plot, the themes, the execution, all of it screamed amateur YA novel. I honestly think the only reason this isn’t listed YA, is because there are two sex scenes in the book, both of which are random and not good.
I did not enjoy this book at all, nothing was done well and I had to force myself to finish it. I wouldn’t really recommend this to anyone because I don’t think there’s much to get out of it on any sense.
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief
bluwuberry's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death of parent, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, and War
Minor: Alcohol, Vomit, and Infidelity
chiaraogan's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, and Blood
leighsnerdlife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Grief, Murder, Blood, Body horror, and Death
bookishbutch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: War, Murder, Cursing, Blood, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Gore
Moderate: Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, War, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Self harm and Suicide
grimdark_dad's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Cancer, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Grief, Violence, War, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
enchantressreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Nina Treadway moved to the Isle of Lute seven years ago, and is soon going to experience her first “Day” on the island. The Day of the Tithe requires a sacrifice of seven souls in order to keep Lute happy, healthy, with good weather and good luck. With a war going on, it is imperative that they keep Lute and its residents safe.
There are many different parts of this story that I love and they combine to create a great folk horror. It’s a small town, where everyone knows each other. There’s somewhat of a cult, since there’s ancient pagan gods involved. There’s family secrets, because Hugh Treadway is exceptionally secretive about his past. There’s a strong female main character. Nina is a wonderful lead character, and she really grew into her role by the end of the book.
The story is told in time increments until the end of The Day. I think this really gave it another push towards being scary. It adds a layer of anxiety that really wasn’t there before. I always love a good countdown in a story. Add this to the generally creepy vibe of the book, and you have a perfect folk horror story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for this advanced review copy. All opinions are my own. Lute releases on October 4th.
CW for death, fire, blood, infidelity, child death, suicide attempt, war, vomit, self-harm, emotional abuse, death of a parent, and animal death
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: War, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Child death, Self harm, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Death of parent and Animal death