dadu's review
2.0
DNF @90%
When it's "the" end scene and you could care less about who will live and who will die, you know it's not a great read.
This book tried to do so much. The premise is great - an old family secret, some demons, and the eerie atmosphere of being on an isolated rock that is actually called Sawkill.
After the first 40 pages, things started speeding up without any explanation or reason. Books are discovered (and quickly translated from Latin), secret society pops up, men are evil, women are eaten to suppress their own hunger, asexuality makes an appearance, throw in a sex scene, and you have most of the book covered.
There isn't one central theme and it is infuriating. I could not connect with the characters except for Val, who's painted as a villain. She had the most dimensional progression in the entire book. Zoe needs a dose of... something, because that girl cannot decide what to complain about or who to bother next.
When it's "the" end scene and you could care less about who will live and who will die, you know it's not a great read.
This book tried to do so much. The premise is great - an old family secret, some demons, and the eerie atmosphere of being on an isolated rock that is actually called Sawkill.
After the first 40 pages, things started speeding up without any explanation or reason. Books are discovered (and quickly translated from Latin), secret society pops up, men are evil, women are eaten to suppress their own hunger, asexuality makes an appearance, throw in a sex scene, and you have most of the book covered.
There isn't one central theme and it is infuriating. I could not connect with the characters except for Val, who's painted as a villain. She had the most dimensional progression in the entire book. Zoe needs a dose of... something, because that girl cannot decide what to complain about or who to bother next.
kaylee2222's review
4.0
Fresh, Inventive, and Terrifying.
I loved this book and tore right through it. What makes this novel so compulsively readable is the three main characters, each girl unique, well-crafted, and fierce in their own way. At no point did I wish I was reading from the point of view of another. Their journeys are vastly different and yet incredibly appealing. Marion felt the most relatable, Val's story fascinated me most, and yet Zoey was my favorite. Their dynamic was captivating, and I loved the LGBTQA+ representation.
I also couldn't put this novel down because of the incredible pacing and chilling concept. The monster at the core was intensely creepy, and his merciless destruction tore through the sleepy town at breakneck speed. Anytime I thought there'd be a pause, it took a sharp escalation and there was no turning back.
I loved this book and tore right through it. What makes this novel so compulsively readable is the three main characters, each girl unique, well-crafted, and fierce in their own way. At no point did I wish I was reading from the point of view of another. Their journeys are vastly different and yet incredibly appealing. Marion felt the most relatable, Val's story fascinated me most, and yet Zoey was my favorite. Their dynamic was captivating, and I loved the LGBTQA+ representation.
I also couldn't put this novel down because of the incredible pacing and chilling concept. The monster at the core was intensely creepy, and his merciless destruction tore through the sleepy town at breakneck speed. Anytime I thought there'd be a pause, it took a sharp escalation and there was no turning back.
bookwyrm_kate's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 Stars, solid story but it could have been a bit more subtle near the end with the patriarchal representation. Great read for fall, definitely creepy, and it straddles a line between horror and fantasy that can be difficult to pull off. It’s a stand-alone, which I appreciate, and the romance element is *thumbs up*
haileyhardcover's review against another edition
3.0
I wavered between giving this two or three stars, for several reasons. Though the story was entertaining and I enjoyed the characters, there were so many things I would’ve changed, and so much of what was there felt haphazardly thrown together.
First, aspects of the lore didn’t feel fully fleshed out or really thought through. I would’ve liked the paranormal & magical elements to have made a little more sense - drawing connections between reality and the imaginary makes the story feel more real, more plausible, in my opinion. I would’ve loved to see more time dedicated to making some sense of the WHY behind what is happening to the characters. So much is brushed off as a connection to the land (“the Rock”), but WHY do they have that connection? WHY do only those three characters have that connection? WHY would the Rock connect in that way to Zoey and Marion who are not even FROM that land? WHY is the Rock able to grant random powers to three girls? WHY only three? WHY those specific powers? (Only one of the three really made clear sense.) WHY does the Rock care about fighting off the villain (“the Collector”) at all? So, so many more questions, and I don’t even think that the author herself could answer them if I asked directly, because none of it was thought out.
The sister (Charlotte) and the whole the starfish thing. Ugh. So much missed opportunity in this relationship. I understand that the author tried to use Charlotte’s death as a catalyst, but it just simply wasn’t necessary. If all three of the main characters (+ Charlotte) had been born on this island, they all could’ve had a connection to the land, the death of ANY other girl (Thora!) on the island could’ve been a catalyst for them to get involved, and the vaguely magical and definitely strong connection that the two sisters had could’ve been used as another anchor point for the magical element AND the ultimate defeat of the villain. Four girls could’ve received random Rock-given powers just as easily as three; OR Val could’ve gone without powers and still turned against the Collector in the end.
The misogynistic cult… uff. The little bit of lore that we do get comes from them, but really we just get more questions than explanations. Also, they’re gross, and didn’t need to be in the story at all. We could’ve gotten all the lore we needed from Thora, or memories of Thora, or journals she had left behind… That would’ve made more sense to the story.
I’m also just perplexed by the inclusion of the horses. All of that felt so random and forced. In the Acknowledgments, the author states that the idea for this book was “crystallized” for her when a friend said, “You should write something creepy involving horses.” Involved, they were… but for no apparent reason. This story could’ve been written almost exactly the same way without any single mention of a horse. Their largest involvement in the story, near the end of the book, was utterly bizarre and I can think of several other ways the author could have wrapped up that side-conflict without any horses, that would’ve made more sense to the story. I can’t imagine how the mention of creepy horses could’ve crystallized anything in this plot for the writer, but I think she would’ve been better off ignoring her friend, or writing a separate creepy horse story.
The ending, frankly, was lazy. I was hoping for an epic final battle scene or SOMETHING, but all we get are a few rambling paragraphs of vague, out-of-body kind of experience; no real substance, no real resolution. I don’t know if the writer couldn’t think of a way to describe the experience of one of the main characters and the villain or if she was just simply too lazy to write it, but that aspect of the climax felt necessary, and it just wasn’t there at all.
In the end, I think the story itself is really only worthy of two stars, but I awarded it a third to credit the really appealing cover art, the fact that it had very short chapters which made it easy to binge-read, and the positive representation of asexuality, which is too often misrepresented, in one of the main characters. Go in with lower expectations, and you will not be too disappointed.
First, aspects of the lore didn’t feel fully fleshed out or really thought through. I would’ve liked the paranormal & magical elements to have made a little more sense - drawing connections between reality and the imaginary makes the story feel more real, more plausible, in my opinion. I would’ve loved to see more time dedicated to making some sense of the WHY behind what is happening to the characters. So much is brushed off as a connection to the land (“the Rock”), but WHY do they have that connection? WHY do only those three characters have that connection? WHY would the Rock connect in that way to Zoey and Marion who are not even FROM that land? WHY is the Rock able to grant random powers to three girls? WHY only three? WHY those specific powers? (Only one of the three really made clear sense.) WHY does the Rock care about fighting off the villain (“the Collector”) at all? So, so many more questions, and I don’t even think that the author herself could answer them if I asked directly, because none of it was thought out.
The sister (Charlotte) and the whole the starfish thing. Ugh. So much missed opportunity in this relationship. I understand that the author tried to use Charlotte’s death as a catalyst, but it just simply wasn’t necessary. If all three of the main characters (+ Charlotte) had been born on this island, they all could’ve had a connection to the land, the death of ANY other girl (Thora!) on the island could’ve been a catalyst for them to get involved, and the vaguely magical and definitely strong connection that the two sisters had could’ve been used as another anchor point for the magical element AND the ultimate defeat of the villain. Four girls could’ve received random Rock-given powers just as easily as three; OR Val could’ve gone without powers and still turned against the Collector in the end.
The misogynistic cult… uff. The little bit of lore that we do get comes from them, but really we just get more questions than explanations. Also, they’re gross, and didn’t need to be in the story at all. We could’ve gotten all the lore we needed from Thora, or memories of Thora, or journals she had left behind… That would’ve made more sense to the story.
I’m also just perplexed by the inclusion of the horses. All of that felt so random and forced. In the Acknowledgments, the author states that the idea for this book was “crystallized” for her when a friend said, “You should write something creepy involving horses.” Involved, they were… but for no apparent reason. This story could’ve been written almost exactly the same way without any single mention of a horse. Their largest involvement in the story, near the end of the book, was utterly bizarre and I can think of several other ways the author could have wrapped up that side-conflict without any horses, that would’ve made more sense to the story. I can’t imagine how the mention of creepy horses could’ve crystallized anything in this plot for the writer, but I think she would’ve been better off ignoring her friend, or writing a separate creepy horse story.
The ending, frankly, was lazy. I was hoping for an epic final battle scene or SOMETHING, but all we get are a few rambling paragraphs of vague, out-of-body kind of experience; no real substance, no real resolution. I don’t know if the writer couldn’t think of a way to describe the experience of one of the main characters and the villain or if she was just simply too lazy to write it, but that aspect of the climax felt necessary, and it just wasn’t there at all.
In the end, I think the story itself is really only worthy of two stars, but I awarded it a third to credit the really appealing cover art, the fact that it had very short chapters which made it easy to binge-read, and the positive representation of asexuality, which is too often misrepresented, in one of the main characters. Go in with lower expectations, and you will not be too disappointed.
kevinweitzel44's review
3.0
Loved that it was so atmospheric and I find it difficult for books to actually scare me, but this one did! Also, I was super here for the little feminist lines.
My main issue was that the story got a little too wonky for and abstract for me. The writing was lovely, but I felt like setting was rendered kind of random and unimportant by the end.
All in all, a unique and gritty thriller with girl power and boogiemen.
My main issue was that the story got a little too wonky for and abstract for me. The writing was lovely, but I felt like setting was rendered kind of random and unimportant by the end.
All in all, a unique and gritty thriller with girl power and boogiemen.
leigh_reidelberger's review
3.0
Solid 3.5
I ended up liking this book quite a bit. The story is interesting, the characters worth following, and the climax sort of surprising. Probably more than sort of. I think Claire Legrand does a good job of weaving uncertainty through the story.
I loved Zoey the most.
Will reccomend.
I was really surprised at how beautiful Legrand's writing is. Not that I had any expectations going in, but I wasn't expecting what she delivered. Her ability to breath so much life into certain descriptions is what really lends the Gothic-horror feel to the story.
Someone asked me if this was a horror novel- a lot of reviews say it is, though I'm not sure I would classify as much. More like horror-ish, with a suspenseful, supernatural mystery feel. There are some creepy elements sure (spider tree, anyone?!)- but maybe not enough for me to call it horror?
I ended up liking this book quite a bit. The story is interesting, the characters worth following, and the climax sort of surprising. Probably more than sort of. I think Claire Legrand does a good job of weaving uncertainty through the story.
I loved Zoey the most.
Will reccomend.
I was really surprised at how beautiful Legrand's writing is. Not that I had any expectations going in, but I wasn't expecting what she delivered. Her ability to breath so much life into certain descriptions is what really lends the Gothic-horror feel to the story.
Someone asked me if this was a horror novel- a lot of reviews say it is, though I'm not sure I would classify as much. More like horror-ish, with a suspenseful, supernatural mystery feel. There are some creepy elements sure (spider tree, anyone?!)- but maybe not enough for me to call it horror?