raptorq's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Deadnaming, Violence, and Homophobia
Moderate: Transphobia, Sexual assault, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
caughtbetweenpages's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
4.5
The vibes of this book were simply to die for. Mars is a protagonist I can't help but love (not that I'd want to do anything else; she's fantastic). His grief over the loss of his sister and only ally in a household where perfection is the bare minimum standard and queerness does not meet the "perfect" bar would be enough to make anyone sympathize with Mars, but the fact that her death happened at his hands... in self defense because she was trying to kill Mars in the first place? Gut wrenching. And that's just the opening scene, folks!
La Sala took me on an absolute journey with this story, one of seeking community amongst those who rejected you, even as you resent them for their closemindedness and hatred, because part of you is inexplicably drawn by the idea of fitting in to a specific subset of this community. It was really important to me that Mars never questioned their own identity as a genderqueer person, that of all the mysteries they set out to solve about why their sister died, their own personhood was not one of the big twists of gotchas. His distrust of the Honeys at the start of the novel, at what they seem to represent (mean-girl attitudes, standoffishness and gatekeeping, a sinister collective at a remove from everyone else) shifts when they let themself find comfort in people who loved their sister too... but perhaps not in the way that Mars themself did. Or perhaps exactly in that way? Or perhaps in a different, but no less profound way, but one that Mars gains access to by seeking it out.
And then! The commentary on misogyny, classism, the exploitation and decay inherent to capitalism! The mindfuckery and self-gaslighting and other-people-gaslighting! The body horror! The messy relationships! The claiming of power! The BEES <3 !!!! I don't want to say any more, for fear of spoiling things. Was the pacing just right for all the story elements? Maybe not. Maybe the end felt a little too fast. But doesn't that just match how it feels to be a teenager and become disillusioned with literally everything? I posit it does!
Maybe the story isn't perfect. But damn, the vibes, the vibes, the vibes. Those are perfect, for me.
La Sala took me on an absolute journey with this story, one of seeking community amongst those who rejected you, even as you resent them for their closemindedness and hatred, because part of you is inexplicably drawn by the idea of fitting in to a specific subset of this community. It was really important to me that Mars never questioned their own identity as a genderqueer person, that of all the mysteries they set out to solve about why their sister died, their own personhood was not one of the big twists of gotchas. His distrust of the Honeys at the start of the novel, at what they seem to represent (mean-girl attitudes, standoffishness and gatekeeping, a sinister collective at a remove from everyone else) shifts
Spoiler
into an exhalation and celebration of the feminine, profound community and welcome, and so so so much power that was always Mars's by rightAnd then! The commentary on misogyny, classism, the exploitation and decay inherent to capitalism! The mindfuckery and self-gaslighting and other-people-gaslighting! The body horror! The messy relationships! The claiming of power! The BEES <3 !!!! I don't want to say any more, for fear of spoiling things. Was the pacing just right for all the story elements? Maybe not. Maybe the end felt a little too fast. But doesn't that just match how it feels to be a teenager and become disillusioned with literally everything? I posit it does!
Maybe the story isn't perfect. But damn, the vibes, the vibes, the vibes. Those are perfect, for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, and Transphobia
Moderate: Rape
somersaf's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Fantastic imagery and an interesting perspective on grief and the gender binary. Has similar vibes to A24's Midsommar.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Homophobia, and Violence
Moderate: Murder
itsapaxycab's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
4.75
Because of books like Hell Followed With Us, I have been really interested in trans horror/thriller books, and this absolutely hit the spot for me. This world was so intriguing, and the plot really had me guessing and grasping until the end! As I look back, I recognize so much of the foreshadowing, and I loved the characters and plot development.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Mental illness, Transphobia, Grief, Gore, and Homophobia
Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Bullying, and Sexual harassment
exlibrisabigaillee's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Murder, Grief, Blood, Bullying, and Transphobia
Moderate: Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Outing
Minor: Death of parent, Cancer, and Sexual assault
mollyolloxenfree25's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, and Transphobia
bookishmillennial's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews because I don’t like leaving them. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial
This was wild. Absolutely WILD. The last 20% is where all the meat of the story really is unpacked, but the first 80% had me guessing and wondering who to trust. This book felt like it could've existed in the world of Riverdale x Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, like a nefarious camp horror!! This elite summer camp setting in the Catskills Mountains was eerie and screamed "bad things will happen!" I loved the representation of Mars as genderfluid, but I was confused as to why no one else ever used pronouns besides he/him, when she made it clear that they use he/they/she? Maybe that was intentional to show that everyone around Mars was an "ally" but still fumbling and getting it wrong? They also constantly deadname him, which frustrated me. However, again, I'm guessing it was a deliberate choice to possibly evoke unease and tension from the readers? I'm totally projecting here lol!
Anyway, I appreciated the fact that I had no idea who to trust in this novel. Maybe that's obvious in a horror/thriller, that you shouldn't count anyone out. However, I could not for the life of me (!!!) tell if the Honeys were supposed to be the villains or in solidarity with Mars! It was exhausting to be me, and I think that just shows how talented Ryan La Sala is in their fleshing out of these characters, and how every single moment the Honeys shared with Mars left me guessing how I felt about the interaction. Was that meant to be helpful? Was that threatening? Do they know something? Are they just as scared? This was masterfully done!!!
I'm excited to read more from Ryan La Sala, and this was the perfect book for me to let go of summer (like truly, fuck summer after reading this book. I want no part of it hahaha), and to welcome autumn and Halloween season!
This was wild. Absolutely WILD. The last 20% is where all the meat of the story really is unpacked, but the first 80% had me guessing and wondering who to trust. This book felt like it could've existed in the world of Riverdale x Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, like a nefarious camp horror!! This elite summer camp setting in the Catskills Mountains was eerie and screamed "bad things will happen!" I loved the representation of Mars as genderfluid, but I was confused as to why no one else ever used pronouns besides he/him, when she made it clear that they use he/they/she? Maybe that was intentional to show that everyone around Mars was an "ally" but still fumbling and getting it wrong? They also constantly deadname him, which frustrated me. However, again, I'm guessing it was a deliberate choice to possibly evoke unease and tension from the readers? I'm totally projecting here lol!
Anyway, I appreciated the fact that I had no idea who to trust in this novel. Maybe that's obvious in a horror/thriller, that you shouldn't count anyone out. However, I could not for the life of me (!!!) tell if the Honeys were supposed to be the villains or in solidarity with Mars! It was exhausting to be me, and I think that just shows how talented Ryan La Sala is in their fleshing out of these characters, and how every single moment the Honeys shared with Mars left me guessing how I felt about the interaction. Was that meant to be helpful? Was that threatening? Do they know something? Are they just as scared? This was masterfully done!!!
I'm excited to read more from Ryan La Sala, and this was the perfect book for me to let go of summer (like truly, fuck summer after reading this book. I want no part of it hahaha), and to welcome autumn and Halloween season!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Deadnaming, Misogyny, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Death, Child death, Murder, Sexism, Transphobia, and Blood
Minor: Sexual content
itsapollo's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
3.0
I have a lot of mixed feeling about the ending of this book. Specifically from about chapter 24 to the end the book takes this turn that really doesn't line up with how the first 23 chapters seemed to be laying everything out. I also as a genderfluid person HAVE to point out my disappointment at NO ONE using any other pronouns but he/him for Mars. Not even the characters I felt were accepting them in. Even to the point where on page 301 a characters Mars has been around consistently for the whole summer asks her what pronouns they use..........It felt like a gut punch. I didn't think the SA was necessary for the plot at all.
Spoiler
And everything we were being set up for between Mars and Wyatt completely fell apart within a few pages which was getting and I felt could have been easily handled differently.Spoiler
I want to say that I truly love Mars and I love cabin H and the bond that was shown there. There were beautiful melodic and visually stunning passages in this book!! The final act just felt so rushed to me. I have more thoughts but I'll leave it at that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Bullying, Violence, Body horror, Murder, and Deadnaming
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence
The main character is genderfluid and states early on in the book that their pronouns are he/they/she but no one in the book ever uses any pronouns but he/him for the characterkst's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Body horror
Moderate: Transphobia
queerreaderchaos's review
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Murder, Misogyny, Bullying, Gaslighting, Sexism, and Grief
Moderate: Blood, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, and Death
Minor: Classism, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Cancer