Reviews with content warning for Cursing - Leech

Reviews tagging 'Cursing'

sky_maris's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Pros:
Beautifully written - the prose feels ripped from a Gothic novel but maintains its own modern twist. The narrative style shifts throughout, but in a wonderfully subtle way that you don't really notice until you're In It (TM). I was expecting a good old body horror romp when I started, but this is much more existential than that and I adored it. Leech is a perfect example of how horror can be used to explore difficult concepts and make a point without losing the fundamental elements of the genre. I was creeped out the whole time while simultaneously pondering my own existence.

Cons:
The pacing is a tad slow, though never slow enough to become boring. The narrative style, particularly at the beginning, can be a tad hard to follow, but the author did an excellent job of orienting the reader.

Content Warnings

dani_wasia's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

bazer63's review

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

The book started off very strong but towards the end because confusing and hard to keep track of, though that maybe have been intentional.

I found the lead way more compelling when they still under the control of a parasite than when they were themselves again. And their relationship with Emile to be kindof boring.

The worldbuilding was compelling, I like the slight amorality, or orange and blue morality of the parasite especially.

Content Warnings

bea_reads_books's review

Go to review page

5.0

Content Warnings

fionamclary's review

Go to review page

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

This book has one of the most fascinating concepts I've ever encountered. I spent the first chapter so confused about what was going on, and then the next chapter cleared it all up and I was floored, and so excited to see how the premise would develop. It did not disappoint. Leech is a clever, fierce, and disturbing exploration of the ways in which people have their bodily autonomy taken from them and they ways in which they take it back. It also raises the question of to what degree our bodies are truly our own.

I often struggle with stand-alone SFF because I find that there is not enough room for the requisite world-building, but Hiron Ennes populated this book with numerous small lines that fit seamlessly into the narrative and yet did wonders to flesh out the world.

I did find that the pacing changed rather suddenly about 2/3 of the way through, from a contemplative dread punctuated by brief bursts of action, to suddenly everything kicking off, with revelations and major plot developments happening left and right. This sharp change is my only real quibble with the book.

Bonus: This book has a nonspeaking major character who is never portrayed as needing to be "fixed." There's also just casually a trans old man side character.

Content Warnings

danimacuk's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

gilroi's review

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I feel strange for not having more to say about this book, other than it's genuinely some of the best speculative fiction / fantasy / scifi / horror (pick one) I've read in years. It's a smooth, sleek little novel that knows exactly what it's doing and does it. While it's not perfect, I can't think of any flaw great enough to bring up in this review.

I think what I appreciate most about this novel is how much it trusts its readers, how confident it is with what it's trying to do. The twists aren't mindfucks, all reveals are telegraphed well in advance. Every change seems earned, all the dread is meaningful, and in the last sliver of the novel it goes from genre to literary, elegantly straddling both qualifiers to say something interesting, detailed, new, and worthwhile about identity, colonialism, gender, and medicine.

I cannot recommend it enough if you like a story bright with darkness, full of intention, inventive prose, lush worldbuilding, and smart narration.

Content Warnings