pam_'s review
adventurous
dark
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
3.0
Was all the fat-shaming necessary?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Gore, and Murder
Minor: Body shaming, Death, Sexual harassment, Blood, Eating disorder, Bullying, Cannibalism, Misogyny, Murder, Gore, Sexual assault, and Violence
dottiewankenobi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
3.25
Not sure I'll read again but at the very least I don't think I wasted my time, it was very thought provoking.
Compliments first: the art is amazing, gorgeous, gripping, etc. The girls were so pretty, the fashion was great, and even the gore was interesting to see (even if made my stomach turn a little bit)! For the writing,
I feel pretty conflicted about this story in general, though. I know it was intentional that Becca was super bitter throughout most of it, but it put me off a bit right from the start. Her scenes with her mom annoyed me (to be fair, her mom wasn't always being great, but like god Becca is such a teenager, putting meaning behind her mom's words that I don't really think her mom meant). Generally, almost everyone in this story was an asshole -- and while that's not unrealistic & is the point of the story, that makes it harder for me to decide how I feel about everything.
Meanwhile on the topic of consequences, Amanda, the only one who was willing to speak up for what was right, ended the story alone. Marley and Becca got to shed the guilt of being murderers, of going along with killing (or almost killing) innocent people, the weight of being werewolves (which Marley at least didn't seem to really feel most of the time). The scene where Becca cried about feeling guilty was so good -- but having had it and knowing the end, it makes me wonder if she's still remorseful. And she doesn't have to be, it would be in character for these girls to not feel sorry anymore once the consequences aren't really something they need to worry about, but it does make me like her less.
Ultimately I'm not entirely sure what I was meant to take from this story, what the author was trying to tell me. I'd be really curious to hear what she thinks of their morality, not just at the end but through the whole arc.
Compliments first: the art is amazing, gorgeous, gripping, etc. The girls were so pretty, the fashion was great, and even the gore was interesting to see (even if made my stomach turn a little bit)! For the writing,
Spoiler
the part I enjoyed the most was 100% Amanda--the hints of her not following along with Arianna's rules from the very beginning, the fact that she brought up Allyson way before she went to her, the way she was able to naturally kind of manipulate the other girls into going to the college party, it was all great. Loved her.I feel pretty conflicted about this story in general, though. I know it was intentional that Becca was super bitter throughout most of it, but it put me off a bit right from the start. Her scenes with her mom annoyed me (to be fair, her mom wasn't always being great, but like god Becca is such a teenager, putting meaning behind her mom's words that I don't really think her mom meant). Generally, almost everyone in this story was an asshole -- and while that's not unrealistic & is the point of the story, that makes it harder for me to decide how I feel about everything.
Spoiler
While I think what happened to Arianna was deserved to an extent, a question this story doesn't really address is "who deserves the death penalty?" Thatcher was a creep but I don't think he deserved to die the way he did. Arianna was a murderer but her ending was brutal and so slow and agonizing. All of those boys who died (except for the one who was basically assaulted before his death) were annoying little shits, but did they deserve to die?Meanwhile on the topic of consequences, Amanda, the only one who was willing to speak up for what was right, ended the story alone. Marley and Becca got to shed the guilt of being murderers, of going along with killing (or almost killing) innocent people, the weight of being werewolves (which Marley at least didn't seem to really feel most of the time). The scene where Becca cried about feeling guilty was so good -- but having had it and knowing the end, it makes me wonder if she's still remorseful. And she doesn't have to be, it would be in character for these girls to not feel sorry anymore once the consequences aren't really something they need to worry about, but it does make me like her less.
Ultimately I'm not entirely sure what I was meant to take from this story, what the author was trying to tell me. I'd be really curious to hear what she thinks of their morality, not just at the end but through the whole arc.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Sexual assault, Blood, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Infidelity and Lesbophobia
allebasi80's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
art was gorgeous and expressive, so full points for that. story-wise, starts with strong premise but plot is odd and message is unclear. goes for a feminist vibe but clearly devolves into hypocrisy. moments of body-shaming and racism are startlingly frequent and almost entirely unquestioned. the story was interesting but the ending seemed sudden and drastic without much reasoning or satisfaction. the mc was somewhat relatable, but most of the characters were just nasty for no reason.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Racism, and Homophobia
marie_j's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Gore, Injury/injury detail, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Alcohol and Sexual harassment
Minor: Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Racism, Sexual content, and Eating disorder
rtaire's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Murder, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexual harassment, and Sexual assault
Minor: Lesbophobia, Eating disorder, Racism, and Sexism
onemamareads's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence
librarianlirael's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Gore
Minor: Sexual assault
melliedm's review
dark
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
4.0
A fun, fast take on coming out, identity and belonging, but like: with werewolves. I generally enjoyed Squad, though found the pace a little strange in some places, and there were times where panels and speech bubbles were difficult to parse the proper order of.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Gore, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, and Eating disorder
Minor: Homophobia
madmadmaddymad's review
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
NICE.
It’s a little bit Heathers, and highly satisfying. Becca moves to a new town and joins a pack of werewolves comprised of the school’s mean, popular clique. Once a month; they attend glamorous parties and devour any guy who can’t take “no” for an answer.
It’s a dark and playful feminist fantasy. Oh; and it has a really satisfying sapphic romance subplot. I love this one. 5 stars - will read again!
It’s a little bit Heathers, and highly satisfying. Becca moves to a new town and joins a pack of werewolves comprised of the school’s mean, popular clique. Once a month; they attend glamorous parties and devour any guy who can’t take “no” for an answer.
It’s a dark and playful feminist fantasy. Oh; and it has a really satisfying sapphic romance subplot. I love this one. 5 stars - will read again!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Murder, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Fatphobia, Body shaming, and Eating disorder
Minor: Bullying, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
rachelfayreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Blood, Grief, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment