Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - Come Closer

Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Come Closer by Sara Gran

37 reviews

judassilver's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

clarke's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

This was good, and I really enjoyed the descent into madness/possession. The book on demon possession was interesting, if a little repetitive, but helped demonstrate the progression. I enjoyed hearing her thoughts, and the audiobook narrator did a good job at distinguishing between Amanda and Naamah. The religious backstory was a fun addition, and I was interested to read after finishing that this was not created just for the book. I still have questions, and the book was nowhere near 'terrifying' as it's heralded elsewhere, but I enjoyed the journey: the questioning of what's real, what happened, and what is going on with Amanda was done particularly well. I did find the book repetitive at times, and some sections were just silly (eg a instance of psychometry where Amanda sees two men fighting from behind, and as their backs looked similar, deduced they were brothers???), but overall I enjoyed it.

Content Warnings

aleareads's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

oh my goodness, this is one of the creepiest books I’ve read maybe ever!!

I picked it up because I was feeling in a slump and needed something to get myself in the fall mood, and it did just that. It’s a quick read perfect for fans of horror movies! The first person perspective was very well done! I do wish the ending was a little more fleshed out, but I understand how the slightly abrupt ending adds to the overall effect.

Read this if you enjoy:
🎥 horror movies
👹 possession stories
🙍‍♀️ first person POV

Content Warnings

itsjustgrumpy's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious sad fast-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

4.0

Dark, sick and heart breaking.

Content Warnings

hauntedantiqueshop's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I started reading this, paused for whatever reason, and accidentally forgot about it. Oops 😬

The choices… incomprehensible.

Amanda easily accepts that she’s being possessed and doesn’t really try to get rid of Naamah until it’s beyond too late. She didn’t think any of the warning signs (that she was VERY aware of) were weird and is just passively aware that her body is now being used for theft, adulterous sex, murder. Just shrugs that shit off. The scariest aspect of this is slowly losing yourself and all control of your life. Which is terrifying!!! But for a demonic possession story, you just expect more. That being said, her last thoughts before unknowingly killing Ed— so sad.

There really was no other way this little book could have ended though. But Amanda’s reason thrown in on the very last page felt so last minute, it didn’t match the entirety of the story for me.

Content Warnings

whereismyattentionspan's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

Content Warnings

sam_reads_1990's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

A really bleak take on possession, but an enjoyable read. I’m not usually a fan of books told from first person perspective but this was a nice read.

Unfortunately it gets marked down what felt like unnecessary homophobic language

Content Warnings

mcrespo's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

i thought this novella was a really fun, quick read. gran incorporated some of my favorite demon possession horror tropes in this novella, and in doing so, she also probes the topic of love and how far one woman can derail her life in the pursuit of a never-leaving love. i loved the way gran toyed with formatting in this novella, and i thought it was brilliant to have centered this story around an "are you possessed by a demon?" quiz. it was such a strong story with only very minor setbacks, which is that amanda, the main character, uses homophobic language, and has this very weird sexual tension with a german shepherd. the dog storyline in the novella was perhaps the hardest to follow and deduce any meaning from. i found it ill-fitting, underdeveloped, and overall just super weird. the most redeeming aspects of this novella, that make it still a high star book for me, are the poignant final sentences from amanda and the postscript note from the editors. confusing relationship with a dog aside, this book is fantastic for a rainy day where you want to spend 2-3 hours reading a bite sized, captivating horror story.

Content Warnings

takecoverbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Come Closer is a deeply unsettling book that not only convincingly captures the horror of demonic possession but also provides an alarming analysis of how quickly intimate relationships can fall apart as we become more alienated and more fragmented in our thought processes. Despite the potent metaphor at the core of the book, it’s also a damn good horror story that will leave you unsettled and more than a little unsure of your own sanity.

Content Warnings

tiaroseshang's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Content Warnings

More...