kooljinks's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
3.0
mssunnyskies's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-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
3.75
morebookcasesthanrooms's review
2.0
The concept of this book sounded unlike anything I’d ever read. And it was. But not in necessarily a good way.
A disease that wipes out cis men and leaves womxn to rule the earth? Alright I’m intrigued. Exploration of how something like would impact the trans community and stoke the rage of TERFs? Okay yes, I’m in.
Egregiously detailed depictions of violence against womxn both by other womxn and the men who are no longer recognizably human? No thank you. Continuous suffering seemingly just for the sake of shock factor? I’m out.
I’m not sure how a book that seems like it’s going to be about womxn triumphing over decades of misogyny and patriarchal archetypes during an apocalypse turned into one of the most anti-womxn pieces of media I’ve ever consumed.
Purchased for the cover, seriously let down by the content.
bravesirtoaster's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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
3.0
aimlesscolleen's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-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
akhcreates's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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
4.5
After a global pandemic turns those with high testosterone levels into feral creatures, everyone else is left to fend for themselves.Beth and Fran spend their days hunting the feral men in order to harvest the parts of their bodies rich in estrogen to avoid the same fate. Robbie attracts and shoots at hordes of feral men while avoiding prior events that left him alone. Indi uses her skills as a doctor to keep all kinds of women in estrogen, assisted by Beth and Fran. This skill gets them invited into a billionaire’s bunker, which seems like a safe escape from the TERFs who are hunting and killing trans women, but may not be all that they had hoped.
•
•
Whew. This novel is a lot to describe, not because it’s a difficult book to read but because it’s complex and layered. We get several different points of view throughout the book, including a woman rising in the ranks of the TERF army in addition to the main characters listed above. The world Felker-Martin has created is rich and detailed, and I was fascinated by the world building and engaged in the plot. Felker-Martin’s writing is quite visceral, which you’ve probably heard about if you’ve heard about this book - it’s definitely gory! However, if you, like me, are not typically interested in horror and scary books, I would say this is less horror than it is gory dystopia.
•
•
I appreciated that the characters in this book are incredibly messy. I frequently cringed at their decisions, and questioned why I was still rooting for one character in particular. Amongst the fantastical dystopian elements, most everyone we encounter in the book felt incredibly human, and those that were less fleshed out certainly fulfilled a specific purpose in the storytelling.
•
•
If blood and guts are really not your thing, you should probably steer clear. But if you can push past that, I think this is a fun, fantastic, wild ride of a book and would recommend picking it up.
tbutton's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
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? It's complicated
5.0
raforall's review
5.0
Star review in the January 2022 issue of Library Journal and on the blog here: https://raforall.blogspot.com/2022/01/what-im-reading-horror-column-in.html
Three Words That Describe This Book: band of survivors, thought provoking, action packed
From my draft review:
Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin
Beth and Fran are in the woods, on the run from monsters, both those created by a virus that turns any human with enough testosterone into a zombie-esque creature and an organized group of TERFS, led by a woman who could go toe-to-toe with Negan from The Walking Dead who rules with a violent brand of anti-trans, feminist hate. Beth and Fran are not helpless however, they are skilled hunters, seeking the valuable, estrogen rich testicles of the infected men, to bring back to their friend, Indi, a doctor who is distilling E for medicinal purposes. So begins this compelling, fast paced, and tense post-apocalyptic tale of a band of survivors, fighting off villains and struggling to find safety, featuring stellar world building and complex, fully developed characters. The original frame, a testosterone driven plague, opens the door for Felker-Martin to probe the popular zombie trope while simultaneously centering the experience of trans men and women. The result, a sensual, tender, honest, and inspirational story of imperfect but well meaning people banding together in an attempt to not only survive but thrive.
Verdict: Manhunt confidently plants a flag declaring its place as one of the great zombie, band of survivor tales, right beside 21st Century, thought provoking, and action packed classics such as The Rising by Keene, Zone One by Whitehead, and the Newsflesh series by Grant, period.*
Three Words That Describe This Book: band of survivors, thought provoking, action packed
From my draft review:
Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin
Beth and Fran are in the woods, on the run from monsters, both those created by a virus that turns any human with enough testosterone into a zombie-esque creature and an organized group of TERFS, led by a woman who could go toe-to-toe with Negan from The Walking Dead who rules with a violent brand of anti-trans, feminist hate. Beth and Fran are not helpless however, they are skilled hunters, seeking the valuable, estrogen rich testicles of the infected men, to bring back to their friend, Indi, a doctor who is distilling E for medicinal purposes. So begins this compelling, fast paced, and tense post-apocalyptic tale of a band of survivors, fighting off villains and struggling to find safety, featuring stellar world building and complex, fully developed characters. The original frame, a testosterone driven plague, opens the door for Felker-Martin to probe the popular zombie trope while simultaneously centering the experience of trans men and women. The result, a sensual, tender, honest, and inspirational story of imperfect but well meaning people banding together in an attempt to not only survive but thrive.
Verdict: Manhunt confidently plants a flag declaring its place as one of the great zombie, band of survivor tales, right beside 21st Century, thought provoking, and action packed classics such as The Rising by Keene, Zone One by Whitehead, and the Newsflesh series by Grant, period.*
cor_luz's review
challenging
dark
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Rape, Murder, Transphobia, and War
raincorbyn's review
5.0
I was doing dishes while listening to the audiobook when That Scene happened. I just stood there, like a war wife looking out the window, seeing the army hearse pull into the driveway, water running over.
This gory, venomous, gleeful, vulnerable book dared me to be a braver writer, narrator, and queer, and for that I will always love it.
This gory, venomous, gleeful, vulnerable book dared me to be a braver writer, narrator, and queer, and for that I will always love it.