Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White

283 reviews

uraveragelizard's review against another edition

4.75

Loved this. Super atmospheric writing. Loved and fascinated by the setting. Obsessed with the body horror and gore-y, artful descriptions. The medical lens was awesome and delightfully gross. Pretty great prose and discussions.
Being in Silas' mind was so affirming and fascinating. First time reading a canonized autistic MC I think, and I was worried it would feel forced/too modernized, but I think it was so well done and interesting. There were a few moments that didn't flow easily, but I think it overall worked well. 
I think he did a good job of riding the line of being inspired by history, and commenting on it with a modern lens, without being too disingenuous or trivializing.

And I thought the romance was a little cringe/a little too convenient at first. But whatever, it's fantasy ya for a reason. Suspend your disbelief, and it was v cute and compelling. + the discussions of him finding Daphne and the groundskeeper and realizing the disparate parts of his identity were so interesting. 

also shame on me for underestimating the intensity of this because it's YA- damn. Def one of the darkest and most difficult-to-read-at-times novels I've read in a long time

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Abortion

Moderate: Ableism, Sexual assault, and Transphobia

graycegotlostinthelibrary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

aleareads's review against another edition

challenging 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical trauma, Abortion, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Pregnancy

fronk10's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

Another excellent book from White, exploring trans identities through horror both supernatural and human. Ghosts aren’t as much my thing as monsters so I preferred the first book, but that by no means this is a bad one. I loved the historical setting and the depth of Silas’s character. Please read content warnings before diving in, it is unapologetically graphic.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, and Murder

stormeno's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Transphobia, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

theo_moony's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

this book reached so deep into my heart i cannot describe it. it is haunting, very deeply sad, and terrifying. it feels claustrophobic. it is an amazing read but definitely keep in mind that it’s very dark. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Deadnaming, Gore, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Abortion, Pregnancy, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape

rradujko's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.25

This book was a hard read. Good, but hard. Compared to Hell Followed With Us, White's writing style has much improved, becoming definitively more streamlined and precise. The gruesome medical imagery, while at times gratuitous in Hell Followed With Us, in this novel were used as an effective tool for plot advancement, and Silas was a stunningly complex mc. All of which I was happy to see, as I had...complex...feelings about Hell Followed With Us.

White gives a much-needed trigger warning at the beginning of The Spirit Bares it's Teeth: if gore is not for you, if significant physical and emotional abuse and trauma is not for you, if grisly death is not for you, don't read this book. 

BUT, if you want a ruthlessly visceral portrait of what transness, mental health and illness, and gendered disenfranchisement looked like in the 1800s, this book definitively stood out. White's no-holds-barred approach is stark and unsparing, and reveals the depravity men would wreak on the marginalized in the name of scientific advancement. I found myself rooting for his cast of characters, even as every facet of society was pitted against them over and over again. Silas and his betrothed are a shining ray in the miasma of abuse that was Victorian sanatoriums. 

The one distinct critique that i had was that in the trigger warnings as well as in the jacket description I would have loved to see a slightly more accurate depiction of Silas' transness. Meaning that it should have been noted that the setting of the book intensely impacts his own ability to engage with his transness, which would make it unsuitable for some of my own trans friends. The betrayal of trust Silas experiences at the end, as well as the consistent misgendering and deadnaming should have been flagged. So I would say that this book may not be for trans readers who are still settling into their identity.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, and Rape

kryzysowa_narzeczona's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria

aidareads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

i cannot put into words how grateful i am that andrew exists, and writes, because god does he do that wonderfully. he is officially my comfort author now alongside a couple others like sanderson, because how couldn’t he? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Gore, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy

baileybeloved's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring 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

5.0

Sat down & read through it in a day. I cringed, I cried, I was sick to my stomach, I shivered, & my skin crawled. Absolutely recommend. Perfect ending. I will say that some of turns of this story are predictable - but knowing where it’s headed almost heightens the dread? Screaming DONT DONT NO NO NO (along with the rabbit) when you know what’s coming or what he will find (but then being shocked & appalled anyway) happened a few times for me, but did not detract from the story. 

Heed the tags, but know that the content is there for a reason. It’s not torture porn or AJWhite trying to hit checklist of horror tropes - it’s a story with real roots. 

One small detail that really struck me - from the very end was hearing about

how the freezing had happened in other places too, like in India & in American plantations

. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, and Sexual harassment

Frequent detailed descriptions of medical procedures the narrator wants to inflict upon himself to get rid of the parts that make him a target.