Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White

115 reviews

lizardgod's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 I love women as men are expected to, but the way only one who has ever experienced womanhood can. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Outing, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

throwback682's review

dark sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

[For reference, I’m a white allistic queer cis woman with ADHD]

“I just finished reading a horrifying violent disgusting wonderful beautiful book,” I texted my friend immediately.

Horror/fantasy/historical fiction, set in Victorian England, with a protagonist we would call bi or pan, transgender, and autistic (and who is subjected to what we’d call ABA “therapy”). I love the protagonist so very much. 

This book is not for the faint of heart. The author gives a non exhaustive list of triggers in the introduction, and acknowledges that this book isn’t for everyone, reassuring would-be readers that it’s okay to walk away. 

For me personally, it was very  much worth it. I hesitate to say too much for fear of spoilers but I just loved this book so much. I guess some of my favorite things were 

That the protagonist

refuses to internalize oppressive messaging about autism

.

The

queer relationships

including one

T4T relationship

.

And [big spoilers] that the

bad guys AND their enablers/apologists get their just desserts

and

the protagonist and some other LGBTQ+ characters

get to have a happy ending

(although obviously trauma is a thing).

The depictions of

autistic

behaviors like

hand flapping. Even though therapists tried to train/torture it out of the protagonist, he speaks about it positively and does it when he can

. There’s also another

autistic

who is

nonverbal

. There’s also a scene where

the autistic protagonist asks another character to squeeze him as tightly as she can, and that his brother used to do this for him as well

.

Basically I feel like this book shows the almost unfathomable ugliness of  the world and the hatred and oppression of queer, trans, and neurodivergent people, but it also

depicts queer and trans love, autistic self love and self acceptance, solidarity, strength, etc. I found it very inspiring.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

“Letter from the Author One of the cruel injustices of the world is that survival hurts sometimes. Open-heart surgery, for example, looks a lot like murder. Amputation before the advent of proper anesthesia was just a bone saw and a rag to bite. On that note, I will make this clear: The Spirit Bares Its Teeth contains transphobia, ableism, graphic violence, sexual assault, discussions of forced pregnancy and miscarriage, mentions of suicidal ideation, and extensive medical gore. But I will also make it clear that this book is not a necessary procedure. You don’t have to endure it. You can get off the operating table and walk away at any time. I won’t blame you. For those still reading—do you have a rag to bite?—I want to make note of some context. Ghosts and mediums and alternate histories aside, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth was inspired by Victorian England’s sordid history of labeling certain people “ill” or “other” to justify cruelty against them. Threats of violence enforced strict social norms, often targeting women, queer and disabled people, and other marginalized folks. I have included another note about these realities at the end of the book, including some that this book does not cover. True history is often much more heartbreaking than any horror novel can depict. So, if nothing else, I hope this story means something to you. I hope the scalpel is kind to you. I hope your sutures heal clean. You deserve that much; we all do. Yours, Andrew” For me, it’s hard to say what’s harder to stomach - the blood and gore, or the attitudes towards queer and trans, neurodivergent, and other marginalized people.

tangleroot_eli's review against another edition

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? It's complicated

Bloody, brutal, and utterly compelling.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Gaslighting, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Ableism, Rape, Sexual assault, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Colonisation

Minor: Miscarriage and Self harm

Graphic:: Saneism, Misgendering, Toxic masculinity Moderate:: Slut shaming

aidenm's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The premise of this book seemed a bit similar to HFWU but different enough that I knew it would still feel surprising. I could still guess a lot of what was coming next, all side characters seemed very similar over the course of the book, but I really enjoyed reading it. Romance is not at the center of this book but it is very sweet and gives hope. T4T I love you so

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Domestic abuse, Gore, and Transphobia

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Violence, Blood, and Vomit

leaflit's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book was so gruesome but so good.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Grief, Pregnancy, and Classism

breadbummer's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• 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? Yes

4.75

It's been maybe five years since the last time I remember being so engrossed with a book! For once, I'm so glad I judged a book by its cover (it's a pretty neat cover), as The Spirit Bares Its Teeth has just about everything I could want from a story.

• Trans protagonist (written by a trans author) ✅
• Murder mystery ✅
• Set in the Victorian era ✅
• Upfront trigger warnings ✅
• VENGEANCE!!!! (no bs about forgiveness) ✅

I cannot recommend this novel enough!! As I said, though, please note the HEFTY list of content warnings before jumping in. White makes sure to cover the big hitters like anti-transness and ableism, but it should also be noted that

abortion

(among many other things) has its very graphic moment.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Miscarriage, Rape, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Lesbophobia, and Colonisation

Minor: Animal death, Genocide, Infertility, Sexual content, and Terminal illness

There was no specific option for animal dissections or something close enough to it listed here, so I thought I'd make note of it. Everything that is done to animals in this book is post-mortem, though it's still graphic.

cluelessavian's review against another edition

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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, and Outing

Minor: Miscarriage and Rape

athlen_47_'s review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Outing, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape

simplythegirl's review

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This is probably  the best book I read this year so far. The characters are loveable, the descriptions and storytelling are amazing, and the concept is interesting.  The gore descriptions are so vivid I love it. I'm  a huge fan of Andrew Joseph White do I knew going in I would love it but I was blown away. I couldn't put the book down. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Classism

givemeyourbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

T4T my love!!!!!

AJW does not miss

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Deadnaming, Death, Gore, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Abortion, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual violence, Torture, and Colonisation

Minor: Miscarriage and Vomit