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reaperreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Stalking, Abortion, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
theghostescaped's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Incest, Rape, and Violence
joonjxne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Incest, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, Abortion, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Child death, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, and Kidnapping
Minor: Child abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, and Terminal illness
fuathling's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
kalira's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
I've seen a number of people say they might have liked this book if they'd read it as a teenager, or similar; someone else commented that 30 is too old to start reading Poppy Brite. I'm in my 30s and I can fairly confidently say that I wouldn't have enjoyed this as a teenager either . . . and the heavy content might have been enough to screw with my head more than it did reading it now.
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Suicide, and Terminal illness
loz_ange's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.75
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death
mrouanet_'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
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Self harm, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Sexual content, and Cannibalism
sofipitch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
There are also a lot of things about this book that it's less upfront about that haven't aged well, for example this book has really racist undertones, between the way it described POC, historical events, and use of the n-word. Same goes for misogyny. There's also some eating disorders thinking in the way thin bodies, constantly described with bones showing, are overly romanticized, which is why I marked eating disorder under triggers, bc the language in this book might give an impressionable goth teen one. So anything that was a triggering undertone went into the minor trigger category
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug use, Gore, Incest, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Self harm, Car accident, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Misogyny, Racial slurs, and Racism
acoffeeshopwriter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Incest, Miscarriage, Vomit, Abortion, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcoholism, Self harm, and Blood
stormywolf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Read my full review at The Wolf's Den
Overall, this slice-of-life horror story followed some of the most unlikable characters and produced some of the most disturbing content I've ever had the misfortune of reading. I regret reading this book. In fact I think the consensus of the discussion was that most people shouldn't read it. I'd only really recommend it if: you are really into vampires, particularly of The Lost Boys variety; are really into vampires and want to research more into their historical progression as a genre; like mature horror and aren't triggered by any of the warnings I listed above; or have read it before and are wondering what it reads like 30 years later. It's not completely devoid of value, obviously, but there is a lot of context and problematic content that should be addressed before attempting a readthrough. Then again, I'm not very well versed in horror, let alone vampire horror (this literally being my 2nd foray ever), so take my squicky feelings as they are. Just don't say I didn't warn you.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug use, Gore, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Blood, Abortion, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Gun violence, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Cancer, and Infidelity