Reviews tagging 'Classism'

Jackal by Erin E. Adams

42 reviews

odylics's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

If you have ever heard "if you see something in the woods, no you didn't" or "if something calls your name, ignore it" OR if you like spooky books, Appalachian myths, murder mysteries, and honest looks at race and class... This book is for you. I have never read a book quite like this or fell for a protagonist quite like Liz. 

Please be sure to check the TWs. This book was uncomfortable and sad and scary, but necessary for the horror/thriller space. It centers around Johnstown, PA and the long reach of the Johnstown Flood, which I had never heard of before despite it resulting in the deaths of 2,208 people, with much of the blame placed at the feet of Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, and and Andrew Mellon. The flood left physical lines of separation between classes and races in Johnstown, all connected by the woods and the disappearance of the many young Black girls at the heart of this story.

5/5 stars!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

switt713's review

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Blood

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Racism, and Classism

Minor: Drug use and Alcohol

ecn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

chantaal's review against another edition

3.5

Being a black girl is inhabiting a cruel riddle: Your beauty is denied but replicated. Your sexuality is controlled but desired. You take up too much space, but if you are too small, you are ripped apart. Despite the wash of it, that's one thing you can always count on whiteness to do: destroy a threat.

As commentary on the lives and bodies of black women and girls, this book strikes home with surgical precision. As a mystery thriller with some supernatural horror underpinnings, it didn't quite hit the mark.

I never quite found myself liking Liz as a character, and as she became more and more like thriller main characters I really dislike reading about (has deep trauma that she always runs from, often self-medicates with alcohol or drugs, investigates in a way that has people disbelieving them or thinking they did it because of how much of a mess they are at life and/or investigating) I found it harder to enjoy the mystery aspect of the story itself.

This book was strongest in the chapters that followed the missing and murdered girls. Adams was at her best when writing these vignettes, focusing on flashes of their lives as both young girls and young black girls. 

For a debut, this felt messy in places but also incredibly strong. I'll absolutely be keeping an eye out for what she has coming up next.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Gore, Racism, Violence, and Classism

coolfoolmoon's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective 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

5.0

JAN 2023 REVIEW:
This is the hardest review I've ever had to write.

This is the best book I've ever read.

This is the hardest review for me because I don't know what to say. I don't know how to say it all. It's too good. I can't talk about the amazing writing, the beautiful imagery, the twists the turns I fell for every time. It's so personal. It's everything I've ever been looking for. Not even a quarter of the way through I was recommending it to people. Please, please, do yourself a favor, please, read this masterpiece. Buy this masterpiece. Listen to the audio of this masterpiece! Thank me later. I love you.

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NOV 2024 REVIEW:

I first read this before starting my master's degree. Now I'm done. Crazy! I love this book so much. I feel like I should read it after every milestone. I'm gonna get a heart feather scales tattoo next!

I love this book so much it makes me mad. I wish I wrote it. I hope to write something half as good someday!

Also, this was written in the shadow of Trump's 2016 election and I reread it in the shadow of... oh god please don't make me say it... Even with both perspectives, the book just gets better and better. A fine fine wine.

Erin E. Adams you will ALWAYS be famous!!!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Trafficking, and Gaslighting

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Eating disorder, and Sexual assault

nicoleisalwaysreading's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-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

incredible!!!! defies genre boundaries and is provocative, creative, and brilliantly structured. i wanted to read it again already right after finishing

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Racism

ktdakotareads's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Racism, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Stalking, and Toxic friendship

randisworld's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Great debut!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Death, Racism, and Classism

Minor: Bullying and Murder

amandas_bookshelf's review

dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Domestic abuse, and Abandonment

hollyk's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-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

2.5

I feel incredibly torn on this book. I don't know what this book wanted to be, and I don't think it did either.
Jackal follows Liz Rocher, who is returning to her small hometown for her best friend's wedding. While there, her best friend's young daughter (who is mixed) goes missing. This sets Liz on a mission to find her best friend's daughter, but in the process Liz discovers a harrowing pattern--young Black girls going missing every summer for decades.
This book is beautifully written. Let me start with that. Jackal does not shy away from race, class, and gender, and I have many sections highlighted because of how beautiful and poignant they were. 
That being said, the overarching plot is relatively simple, but the supernatural twist didn't really add anything to the story, and rather took away from it. There were chapters about the girls who went missing from Jack's perspective, which was highly confusing (as it uses the same POV as Liz). 

This book addresses police indifference to POC missing persons cases, the small town covert racism (and overt as well) through the lens of Liz, who is a complicated person. She's hard to read for a good chunk of the book--and we're in her head, but as her story unfolds, her personality does as well.

I think this book set out to do too much--the combo of real-life horror and supernatural horror didn't blend well here as the rest of the book was more based in the real world.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me this e-arc in exchange for my honest review!:)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Hate crime, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Vomit