karin_goodreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is one of my older 'to be read' list citizen and my god, why did I wait so long?
Initially I got the book, because of it's cover, it's pretty and I like crows and ravens and such, but now the story is what makes it so exciting! Would it be weird if I said that this horror book could be my new comfort book?
Like, come on, this was a 2-in-1 book, horror AND comedy baby! Most of the story is actually quite odd and fun I'd say. All the creepy and gorey details were also to my liking, but man, Arkle and his humor, mhmm, that got me hooked to the book. He caught me off guard every fucking time and I literally had stop and sit there amused. I really liked the others as well! And I feel so bad for Mario...
The plot was super riveting, the world building and storytelling kept me invested. Got to have some moments of realization that had me saying "OH" out loud.
And the ending?? I was constantly making notes and internally screaming. The actual main character Sep(tember) was phenomenal, how did he do it all? I have no idea. In reality, every one of these five took it like a champ. Basically a story about the power of friendship and love if we get cheesy :)
I don't actually have much to say, I'm scared to spoil too much or start rambling, so I'll keep it short. This was a memorable book and I'm so glad I got to experience it in a stormy weather, it added so much to the ambiance!
Initially I got the book, because of it's cover, it's pretty and I like crows and ravens and such, but now the story is what makes it so exciting! Would it be weird if I said that this horror book could be my new comfort book?
Like, come on, this was a 2-in-1 book, horror AND comedy baby! Most of the story is actually quite odd and fun I'd say. All the creepy and gorey details were also to my liking, but man, Arkle and his humor, mhmm, that got me hooked to the book. He caught me off guard every fucking time and I literally had stop and sit there amused. I really liked the others as well! And I feel so bad for Mario...
The plot was super riveting, the world building and storytelling kept me invested. Got to have some moments of realization that had me saying "OH" out loud.
And the ending?? I was constantly making notes and internally screaming. The actual main character Sep(tember) was phenomenal, how did he do it all? I have no idea. In reality, every one of these five took it like a champ. Basically a story about the power of friendship and love if we get cheesy :)
I don't actually have much to say, I'm scared to spoil too much or start rambling, so I'll keep it short. This was a memorable book and I'm so glad I got to experience it in a stormy weather, it added so much to the ambiance!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Animal death, and Gore
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Car accident, Medical content, and Vomit
Zombified animals (and people)?lonestarreader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Body horror, Cursing, Animal death, Gun violence, Death, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Alcohol, Murder, Vomit, Cancer, and Blood
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Vomit, Animal death, Death, Gore, Blood, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Car accident, and Stalking
Minor: Death of parent and Pregnancy
stateofiction's review against another edition
challenging
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Rating this book is definitely difficult. MAJOR trigger warning for significant animal cruelty/death written about very insensitively.
Plot wise, it was all over the place. It takes place over the course of like a day or two but there's so much happening and it's kind of hard to follow.
The characters were great in my opinion. They were archetypes for the typical 80s horror movie but I still found them quite enjoyable. They were a main push for continuing the story.
The writing was pretty bland and not great at all. It was part of why I couldn't figure out what was going on sometimes. The structure, on the other hand was stellar. It fit the indie-horror film genre perfectly.
The horror aspect: eh. I feel like it could have been very strong but disregarding the box as the mastermind, the two main killers were a porcelain doll (grow up) and a literal teddy bear (grow up!!). There was some body horror that was pretty decent but the majority of that aspect was animals. Did not appreciate it. One of the characters is a vet who "kills animals" regularly and refuses to have any sympathy or even use softer terms (putting animals down). It is so graphic and completely unnecessary.
Finally, the targeted age group for this book was very confusing. The main characters are teenagers and while there is older YA and younger YA, this seemed to switch between the two. The contents were very older YA due to the actions of the characters and the graphicness of the horror; however, the power of friendship was literally shoved down your throat. YA books have themes, obviously, but I truly despise any book that has such an aggressive theme that it occasionally pulls you out of the story.
Plot wise, it was all over the place. It takes place over the course of like a day or two but there's so much happening and it's kind of hard to follow.
The characters were great in my opinion. They were archetypes for the typical 80s horror movie but I still found them quite enjoyable. They were a main push for continuing the story.
The writing was pretty bland and not great at all. It was part of why I couldn't figure out what was going on sometimes. The structure, on the other hand was stellar. It fit the indie-horror film genre perfectly.
The horror aspect: eh. I feel like it could have been very strong but disregarding the box as the mastermind, the two main killers were a porcelain doll (grow up) and a literal teddy bear (grow up!!). There was some body horror that was pretty decent but the majority of that aspect was animals. Did not appreciate it. One of the characters is a vet who "kills animals" regularly and refuses to have any sympathy or even use softer terms (putting animals down). It is so graphic and completely unnecessary.
Finally, the targeted age group for this book was very confusing. The main characters are teenagers and while there is older YA and younger YA, this seemed to switch between the two. The contents were very older YA due to the actions of the characters and the graphicness of the horror; however, the power of friendship was literally shoved down your throat. YA books have themes, obviously, but I truly despise any book that has such an aggressive theme that it occasionally pulls you out of the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, and Cancer
the_books_music_life's review
1.0
I didn't like this book, I was confused through a lot of it. The characters are easily forgettable and that's probably why I had trouble remembering who was who and what was happening. I think this could have been a good scary Halloween read expect for some of the characters; I felt we didn't need so many characters, it was a lot to keep up with and I think the story would have been better without so many. I didn't particularly enjoy the gory animal death scenes and this book had a lot of them. A lot.
I just found myself not caring about the characters, their problems, or their lives.
I just found myself not caring about the characters, their problems, or their lives.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Terminal illness, and Cancer
Moderate: Animal death
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