Reviews tagging 'Body horror'

In the Ravenous Dark by A.M. Strickland

22 reviews

katerinovaaa's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

I am OBSESSED with Beyond the Black Door which is why I decided to read this one and I was NOT disappointed. Strickland's writing is simply magical and her books always make me gasp, laugh and cry out loud (which I usually don't do).
The plot was super fast and there was plot twist after plot twist and I couldn't catch a breath (in a good way). I found the main character Rovan annoying at times (and her drinking) but I understand that her decisions were important for the story. I love that it was poly and not a love triangle! Always down for a shadow daddy. 🥰

The betrayals hurt, and trust me, I cried, but thankfully, they didn't give me an anxiety attack, which I'm grateful for. The story was much more complex than Black Door.

Honestly, she had me at mysterious black magic and blood-sucking. 🥰 I just wish this was a series and not a standalone because I think it has a huge potential and I would love to see some parts longer and more detailed.
It also felt like the spicy scene was there just because the author felt obliged to put it there but wasn't comfortable with writing it but...it wasn't cringy? 

TW: I was worried about SA but it was unnecessary, nothing happened to MC. I skipped the parts where they mentioned the way women used to be/are "mistreated" by some characters and everything was fine.

Re-read:
Still 5 stars, this time I only cried once haha. The betrayal does not even seem like a betrayal and did not make me anxious at all this time. When she says "I'm on a warpath" you know it's about to go DOOOOWN.🩸 I'm obsessed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, and Alcohol

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Misogyny, Sexual violence, and War

stardust_heidi's review against another edition

adventurous 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

moonchild_cos's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Grief, and Alcohol

Minor: Cursing, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Vomit, Acephobia/Arophobia, and War

maggiegirouard's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, and Death of parent

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Grief, Cannibalism, Murder, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, and Classism

drupelets's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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

4.0

I enjoyed this read but honestly I would call this more of a NA book than YA book just given the demographic of the characters and also how graphic the scenes can get. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Grief, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War

Minor: Antisemitism

in chapter 31 a character says they "didn't know they were walking into a canal" (or something along those lines) & I think that Jewish readers may want a heads up because it was a pretty unexpected antisemitic phrasing?

onthesamepage's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

3.5

"I don't know what I want. I'm not sure I want to save this kingdom if you're not in it."

What I liked
* Really diverse cast of characters. We've got a pansexual character, a lesbian character, an asexual nonbinary character, BIPOC characters, and a polyamorous relationship.
* The writing is really good, and doesn't get bogged down in overly descriptive prose or too much exposition.
* The first half of the story is interesting, especially when I was still figuring out the rules of the magic and the world. I enjoyed both of those elements.

What didn't work for me
* The romance is very insta-love, and I wish there had been more time within the story so the characters could get to know each other better.
* The large part of the plot hinges on people not remembering, and I never fully bought into that.
* Because the main character is a blood mage, I got a pretty good idea of what that entailed, but death magic isn't explored nearly as well, which feels like a shame.
* The ending is too neat for my personal tastes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Death of parent

Moderate: Body horror

Minor: Rape

jjjreads's review

adventurous dark emotional funny sad tense medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Transphobia, Vomit, and Acephobia/Arophobia

Minor: Bullying, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition

4.0

Okay so I really liked this! I love Rovan's spirit and the family she found. <3

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, Sexual content, Torture, Transphobia, Grief, and Alcohol

Minor: Rape

wildbuiltrobot's review against another edition

dark emotional

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, and Alcohol

Moderate: Body horror, Sexual content, and Death of parent

Minor: Sexual violence and Suicide

abbyschalupa's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual content, and Alcohol

Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, and Religious bigotry