Reviews tagging 'Cannibalism'

House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson

58 reviews

lisacanteven's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

The first 150 pages of this book are so slow. I get the buildup. It made sense, but I felt like it could have been quicker. I still love Alexis' writing, so I enjoyed the gothic atmosphere even during the long build. One thing I will say is that Alexis knows how to write an exciting ending. All of her books have such exciting, thrilling, and lasting endings. Those last 50 pages or so were so fast and exciting. I wish more of the story could have had that excitement. However, Alexis is an amazing writer that I never have a bad time with her books. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Gore, Blood, Cannibalism, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Torture

kri13's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Although I enjoyed the pacing, mood and general take on vampirism , this book failed to meet expectations. 
Writing: at points there was an over use of certain adjectives, the writing for action scenes were also poorly written,  body language was poorly described
Plot: overuse of certain plot devices, poor organization of key scenes damaging impact of most important points in the story
Characters:  not fully developed, growth and movties unconvincing
Overall,  I liked it,  but wouldn't recommend to anyone else. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Murder

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Death, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, and Alcohol

cassysan's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes

5.0

Wow! Every bit of this book feels like a fever dream. The captivating prose, the dark, fungal setting, the gory violence….i loved it all! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

lila_laune's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction

kirbyworming's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, and Murder

e_riahh's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

sav_22's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

4.0

I think this was a fun read if you like darker gothic stories. There are many sapphic characters at the focal point which I enjoy seeing in a complex narrative involving almost-vampires. It has its flaws and definitely keeps you on your toes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Sexual content, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, and Classism

Minor: Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment

I think the worldbuilding started off strong but

I think it could have used a lot more context, especially with how drinking blood helps vs what happened with Cecilia and how she was drained of youth literally. I also think maybe this could thrive better as a series, as I feel like the end was exciting but ultimately widely open to interpretation on what is next. I think the characters all were promising and I enjoyed the horror aspect, but I would have liked to see a little more back and forth with Marion and the other characters like Mae or the sisters and esp Irene to drive home she’d be willing to give up her desire to belong and have authority. I think what was written was solid but personally I would have liked to see why they would take her word for it and see more conflict with Marion on her desires vs what’s the right decision for their safety. It also would have been interesting if there was maybe a romantic influence for Marion with Irene/another bloodmaid vs with Lisavet to have her struggle defining genuine love and lust. That can be done without another romance too, as I think that’s what her loyalty was meant to show at the end platonically, I just once again feel like more development there could have made the betrayal to Lisavet more fulfilling.

rock_gnome's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

written_in_mold's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

This is a vampire book the way Dracula and Camilla are vampire books. It takes its genre to the base elements, blood, manipulation, power dynamics, and so much more. It is amazing. Every character is complex and you can understand them even if you hate them. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Cursing, Incest, Infidelity, and Kidnapping

junejunejulyjuly's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism