librarylove4eva's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
5.0
A perfect debut. I have read a few Tanarive Due titles, but never anything this far back in her catalog. It was a wonderful horror story; part supernatural ghost tale, part social horror. Definitely made me ugly-cry at the ending. Nothing felt left on the table.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, and Child death
savvylit's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.0
The Between is a time-bending paranormal mystery that fits squarely in the category of "fever dream." Alongside Hilton, Due has her readers questioning what is real and what is a dream. Or are our dreams really just portals into alternate timelines? The eventual suggestion that you could be stalked by a murderer via your dreams is truly chilling. Additionally, the way that Due fuses Hilton and his wife's trauma-informed anxieties about racially motivated hatred with the paranormal terrors makes this already nerve-wracking book even more so.
As a whole, I really enjoyed descending into sleepless mania with Hilton as he attempted to solve the mystery of his unusual life. My only qualm with The Between was that I wanted to know more about Hilton's grandmother and how she discovered her dream abilities.
As a whole, I really enjoyed descending into sleepless mania with Hilton as he attempted to solve the mystery of his unusual life. My only qualm with The Between was that I wanted to know more about Hilton's grandmother and how she discovered her dream abilities.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Hate crime, Car accident, Gun violence, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Infidelity and Toxic relationship
haileyrt's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
slow-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
4.5
My first Tananarive Due book and most certainly will not be my last. Due's writing style and storytelling ability are incredible. Although the beginning is a bit slow, the story building and getting to understand Hilton's conflict is very important to the story, so keeping reading! Once you reach the first threat Dede receives, it only gets more interesting and more challenging to read. After finishing the book and trying to understand what I read, I feel like the story was so good. Despite the many questions I'm left with, I am quite satisfied with the ending, and the epilogue definitely made me tear up a bit. I can't wait to read more of Due's novels!
Spoiler
I feel like Nana's two deaths was incredibly important to understand what Hilton was going through, although I'm still left with questions. What was "The between" and the "doors" you could go through? Were they different realities/dimensions? Was Raul right or was Andreas right? Did Hilton face the same fate as Marguerite?marsican's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.0
chachi_bby's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
emperorcupcake's review against another edition
This is like my 5th DNF this month but I'm not mad about it. Not every book is going to work for everyone, and learning to recognise that is an important skill for a reader.
I had previously DNFed The Good House by this author, as I found it too dense, wordy and long for my taste. I know a lot of people love that book (and this one), but that writing style is just not for me. I did read a short story by Tananarive Due that I enjoyed, so I'm going to check out her short story collections instead of her novels. The writing isn't bad; there's just too much of it. I got like 80 pages in and it was mostly a lot of details about this family and I'm like, am I reading a horror book or a family drama? And most of the horror-y bits were in dreams which is another trope I don't really like.
I'm sure there's some good stuff in this book, but if I'm 80 pages in and I don't feel drawn in, I'm not gonna keep slogging through. It makes me a little sad to DNF horror books by BIPOC authors since that's something I really want to support and see more of, but not every writing style is going to work for everyone. What's important is to at least make a good effort to read diversely. I'm looking forward to trying The Wishing Pool and seeing if I can enjoy more of her short stories (where, to be blunt, she has to get ON with it a bit 😅)
I had previously DNFed The Good House by this author, as I found it too dense, wordy and long for my taste. I know a lot of people love that book (and this one), but that writing style is just not for me. I did read a short story by Tananarive Due that I enjoyed, so I'm going to check out her short story collections instead of her novels. The writing isn't bad; there's just too much of it. I got like 80 pages in and it was mostly a lot of details about this family and I'm like, am I reading a horror book or a family drama? And most of the horror-y bits were in dreams which is another trope I don't really like.
I'm sure there's some good stuff in this book, but if I'm 80 pages in and I don't feel drawn in, I'm not gonna keep slogging through. It makes me a little sad to DNF horror books by BIPOC authors since that's something I really want to support and see more of, but not every writing style is going to work for everyone. What's important is to at least make a good effort to read diversely. I'm looking forward to trying The Wishing Pool and seeing if I can enjoy more of her short stories (where, to be blunt, she has to get ON with it a bit 😅)
slanderoid's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
yukigom's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
thequeerbibliophile's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book broke my heart. it had perfect suspense and otherworldly energy about it. I so badly want to know what happened at the end of the book that was not written. I was enthralled in the end. It dragged in the middle for me personally because I didn’t like the direction the main character went in but I thoroughly enjoyed the turmoil he faced. What an amazing book holy shit.