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sorcha_bookish_quill's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Mental illness, and Animal death
Moderate: Stalking
wrensreadingroom's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Domestic abuse, Cursing, Medical content, Car accident, Body horror, Grief, Toxic relationship, Child death, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Alcohol, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Death, Gore, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Vomit
blackthornfaery's review
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Alcohol and Vomit
two instances of cruelty towards cats leading to cat deathpigeonbooknook's review against another edition
Graphic: Animal death and Animal cruelty
concon95's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Animal death, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Stalking
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
_teoeo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Massiv tw for animal death btw :')
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Death of parent
enchantressreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
All the Dead Lie Down is the gothic haunting story I didn’t know I was missing.
Marin Blythe has recently lost her mother, the only person she really had. After living a life of constantly moving, she has the chance to settle down at Lovelace House in coastal Maine, owned by Alice Lovelace, an acclaimed horror author. Alice is not some random woman, however; Marin’s mother Cordelia and Alice actually grew up together. Marin, anxious to a fault, tries to use this to keep a connection to her mother.
Alice’s two youngest girls, Wren and Thea, keep Marin on her toes with seemingly harmless pranks. Soon, the eldest daughter, Evie, comes home, and things move more into scary territory. Not only does the house seem haunted, but the very land itself. Marin sees some things she can’t explain, and doesn’t want to explain. As she grows closer to Evie, Marin has to face her fears in order to stay with this ethereal girl she’s grown fond of.
I originally requested this book because of the cover, but as soon as I read it was being marketed as similar to The Haunting of Bly Manor, I knew I would enjoy it. I didn’t realize it was YA at first, and while I have no issue with YA, I feel it could have gone a little further had it been adult. It still doesn’t shy from the horror, though. Be aware, this book contains a lot of animal death. If you’re squeamish, I would maybe sit this one out.
Thank you to NetGalley and Katherine Tegen Books for the chance to read this advanced review copy. I look forward to reading more Kyrie McCauley in the future.
CW for death, animal death, animal cruelty, death of parent, blood, gore, body horror, panic attacks, mental illness/anxiety, stalking, and emotional abuse
Graphic: Blood, Death, Grief, Animal death, and Gore
Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Animal cruelty, and Death of parent
Minor: Stalking and Emotional abuse
gorejoyous's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
The first half begins with creepy or unsettling occurances around the house but after we find out the cause in the second half—that's when the true horror begins (and where the story really hooked me). The relationship that blooms between Marin and Evie is touching and you really understand how deeply they care for each other. The writing is a little boring and clunky at times (not unexpected given that it's YA), but then you also get lines like:
"The way Marin's arms formed parenthesis around her. When Evier sighed against her neck, it was an apostrophe—in the possessive. And Marin knew all the words. She had been memorizing them for months."
Which is just *chef's kiss* the kind of romance perfect for the gothic horror genre. Aside from some pacing issues, I found the story compelling—it had me, in equal parts, on the edge of my seat and sighing forlornly, wishing that I too lived in a giant weird house full of dead things.
Thanks to HarperCollins Children's Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC!
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Animal death, Body horror, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Stalking, Vomit, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Kidnapping
Minor: Child death