The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
that_bitch_logan's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Thank you so much for writing this Andrew, truly.
I adored this and I am so so grateful I was able to read it
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Ableism, Abortion, Classism, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Torture, Transphobia, Animal death, Colonisation, Death, Grief, Miscarriage, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Mental illness, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Violence, Gore, Hate crime, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
danaslitlist'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? No
4.75
Do you know how angry the dead can be?
They must have convinced themselves they would never rot in the same dirt as we do.
In my review of Hell Followed with Us, I said the words "bold and furious" to describe the book. I said the book is a story of rage consuming, of revolution and uprising, of setting ablaze the world and those who wished to use you for their gain.
While reading The Spirit Bares Its Teeth I was struck by how much of it is a mirror to White's debut. It's not a simple reflection of his previous work nor is it just a rehashing of the same themes. Instead it's a rendition, a shadow, a closer look at the source, at the core of, where so much rage begins.
Hell Followed with Us is about the beauty of decay and rot and the rebirth of one's self into their true monstrous form, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth is about the power of breaking the cage within yourself to free your righteous fury and ripping the Veil all together.
It is a story that picks at the scabs of old wounds that many of us have endured at hands of a world that wishes to "fix us" through any means as long as we assimilated. This is an acknowledgement of the horrors of those who came before us (of women, of people of color, of queer and trans people, of disabled and mentally ill individuals) suffered. It is an acknowledgment of the battles many marginalized people still endure for simply not fitting into the narrow minded boxes (Christian) society demands. And it does shy away from the dark and truly disgusting horrors of humanity's greed and man's desire for power over all.
While The Spirit Bares Its Teeth does indeed touch upon rage, upon anger and frustration; it is a story of pain inflicted by those in positions of power, of the suppression of self for survival, and overcoming of fear in order to not just live but to thrive.
And it does this wonderfully. This is a true gothic horror in every sense; from the setting and themes it utilizes, from the classic use of gaslighting and mystery against the characters to a pure feeling of isolation and desperation.
For fans of Crimson Peak and Devil's Backbone this is for you.
Graphic: Abortion, Sexual harassment, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Gore, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Sexism, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Blood, Body horror, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Misogyny, Ableism, Sexual violence, and Transphobia
Moderate: Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, and Vomit
tgaddie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Gore, Homophobia, Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Rape, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Abortion, Body horror, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Death, Dysphoria, Sexism, Suicide, Transphobia, Bullying, Child death, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
jasper_is_atypical's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Sexual violence, Medical content, Domestic abuse, Blood, Misogyny, Murder, Confinement, Bullying, Sexism, Ableism, Abandonment, Grief, Forced institutionalization, Animal cruelty, Sexual harassment, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, Deadnaming, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Death, Cursing, Chronic illness, Animal death, Violence, Self harm, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Transphobia, Torture, Child death, Body horror, Abortion, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Rape, Pregnancy, Vomit, Mental illness, Dysphoria, and Sexual assault
Minor: Classism, Colonisation, and Miscarriage
dags_delight's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, Abortion, Ableism, Body horror, Child death, Deadnaming, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Sexism, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Gore, Medical content, Murder, and Transphobia
Moderate: Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Torture, Animal death, Dysphoria, Sexual assault, Rape, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
starrysteph's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Gaslighting, Ableism, Religious bigotry, Death, Pregnancy, Body horror, Abortion, Transphobia, Child abuse, Rape, Vomit, Physical abuse, Self harm, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Torture, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Emotional abuse, and Panic attacks/disorders
possibilityleft's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Transphobia, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Hate crime, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Deadnaming, Gaslighting, Medical content, Blood, Mental illness, Vomit, Child death, Dysphoria, Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
rattletheshelves's review against another edition
- 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
Hell Followed With Us was one of my absolute faves of last year so I was overjoyed to get a chance to read the author's second book early on. And even though this time I knew what I was signing up for, woah, did it still hit HARD.
I'm pretty sure that Andrew Joseph White is on a mission to find all the settings that terrify me the most, squeeze all the awfulness out of them and fill them with gore and queer rage. I won't be surprised if his next books is set in 1950s US (*shudders*).
It's a book filled with gore and involuntary medical procedures and experimentation. It's about forced institutionalization, there's sexual assault, and did I mention gore and gory, bloody details? There's so much transphobia and ableism and misogyny.... and somehow, it all balances out. It doesn't feel like too much or maybe it's just that all these elements aren't there for the shock value. Andrew Joseph White fills these horrible things with queer rage and reclaims them. Even when the world and all the horrible people try to break his characters over and over, even when they're helpless, they keep on fighting. They keep on surviving. And isn't that what we, queer people do?
The characters, as in Hell Followed With Us, are amazing. I love that Silas gets to meet another autistic person and another trans person. I love that whatever he goes through, there are others with similar experiences. It's a reminder that in this horrible horrible world you're never truly alone.
Everyone in this book is seriously messed up, omg. All the characters are morally gray to say the least. But then, as the book itself says, would you judge an animal for doing everything it takes to survive? Why would you judge a person differently?
I need to reread Hell Followed With Us soon.
***Thank you NetGalley for the eARC***
Graphic: Medical trauma, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Murder, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Medical content, Gore, Ableism, Body horror, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, and Violence
Moderate: Rape
elazza3540's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Abortion, Body horror, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Deadnaming, Misogyny, Torture, Vomit, Medical content, Murder, Pedophilia, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Blood, Child abuse, Dysphoria, Violence, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
_teoeo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.75
Oh, I enjoyed that book so much! After I've read "Hell Followed With Us" and loved it, "The Spirit Bares Its Teeth" was one of my most anticipated books this year.
At first, I have to be honest, it was a bit difficult to find your way into the story, for it felt like you just jumped into that world without any explanation of it whatsoever. But the more I read, the more I understood it.
It is a deep dive into being trans and autistic, what it means to be a man or a woman and how society tries to make rules about that. It also is a good example of how language changes the way we precieve
Even though the plottwists are a little predictable, they aren't less shocking and especially the last 100 pages have the perfect arc of suspense!
Thank you NetGalley for providing an e-ARC of this book!
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Animal cruelty, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Ableism, Blood, Abortion, Deadnaming, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Pedophilia, Sexism, Transphobia, and Vomit
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Child abuse
Minor: Pregnancy, Death of parent, and Suicide attempt