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brightflowers's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
CW: for suicide, self harm, implied abuse.
Decent spooky story. Nothing ground breaking, but it's an easy read. Had some good folk horror elements.
Decent spooky story. Nothing ground breaking, but it's an easy read. Had some good folk horror elements.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
minimicropup's review against another edition
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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Sympathetic, nervous, endearing.
We almost don't get to meet our MC because they are slowly dying in the bath before they are saved by their friend. They soon find themselves desperate, penniless, and homeless in the middle of a mental health crisis.
We meet our other MC through past perspectives because they drowned (presumably on purpose). They are a parent and spouse living in an older house on a plot of land where their architect spouse is designing a new summer home for the family.
🇳🇴 Set mainly on an isolated plot of land near Ålesund, Norway from late summer to late autumn.
🐺🐕Growls, Howls, and Tail Wags:
👌 This felt like real story. Immersive, seamless, at no point did i feel the pacing too slow or fast or erratic. I was hooked right to the ending and other than my little percentage counter I had no idea we were nearing the ending.
😃 All the characters are morally grey and blind to their flaws and privilege. I felt for and kind of liked all the characters at some point, then started to question their motives and dislike them, then we learn more and I'd be back to feeling for them again. The narrative is third person omniscient-ish where we get glimpses into each of their minds, but things don’t always add up.
😍 I love a nanny trope. Taking care of children and keeping space for all their needs and unpredictability is instantly frightening to me! The isolation here is from not knowing the language, having to keep a secret about true identity, and bonding with the kids while fighting exhaustion and trying to protect them from the "off" vibes all around them. None of it was contrived or convenient so it felt all the more atmospheric and really sucked me in to their world. I've never been to Norway but I felt like I was there.
😃 All the characters are morally grey and blind to their flaws and privilege. I felt for and kind of liked all the characters at some point, then started to question their motives and dislike them, then we learn more and I'd be back to feeling for them again. The narrative is third person omniscient-ish where we get glimpses into each of their minds, but things don’t always add up.
😍 I love a nanny trope. Taking care of children and keeping space for all their needs and unpredictability is instantly frightening to me! The isolation here is from not knowing the language, having to keep a secret about true identity, and bonding with the kids while fighting exhaustion and trying to protect them from the "off" vibes all around them. None of it was contrived or convenient so it felt all the more atmospheric and really sucked me in to their world. I've never been to Norway but I felt like I was there.
Mood Reading Match Up:
- Nannying for mysterious, secretive family with likeable kids (saying creepy things!) and eerie diary entries
- Magical ecological/environmental realism with touches of nature's revenge
- Paranormal creepy apparitions and folklore in an isolated forest setting
- Themes and commentary on healing, environmental ethics, virtue signalling, and our relationship with nature
Content Heads-Up: Mental illness (PTSD, panic, suicide, depression, psychosis/hallucinations). Physical abuse (insinuated, described; relationship and domestic). Toxic, neglectful parenting. Suicide attempt. Suicide. Environmental damage and contamination.
Format: Kindle
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death
Animal death ismorag's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
An okay premise poorly executed. This book was fine to read for a while, but it completely falls apart in the final act. The author was trying to do too many things at once and failed at all of them.
For instance, there's this idea of nature protecting itself and punishing those that damage it. A nokken, a nymph of Norwegian folklore, haunts this architect who polluted a river during one of his builds. However, not only is this monster not scary, but it doesn't make sense. The architect is the one who polluted the river, so why does the nokken kill his wife? Why haunt his kids and then suddenly try and kill the nanny who did absolutely nothing wrong? It felt simultaneously over and under used. The author mentioned it constantly, but it never did anything. It just stood there...menacingly! Which was creepy the first time and boring the sixth.
The author also threw a bunch of red herrings into the story at the very last second. The story had been building up at a steady pace, and then, out of nowhere, there are suddenly four new potential motives being thrown at us. There was little to no build-up to any of them. It felt extremely confusing and took me right out of the story. What's the point in getting invested in the novel and trying to figure out the mystery if the author starts dumping new information on you in the final act? You'd be better off breezing through and waiting to see who was left standing after the dust settled.
And believe me, when I say last minute red herring, I mean last minute. In the last TWENTY PAGES of the novel, the nokken reveals a secret power, which is that it can make people act on their base impulses. It turns out the diary of the architect's dead wife, which the protagonist had been reading for a large chunk of the book, had actually been forged by another character, who's motive was only revealed the chapter before. It was an attempt at a twist, but it was completely unsatisfying. It felt like the author changed her mind about the killer at the last second, and instead of going back and editing the story, she just crowbarred in some last minute justification.
I also hated the ending. It was so sappy, unrealistic, and and free of consequence it felt like it belonged in a Lifetime movie, not a horror novel. The main character gets away with literal identity fraud and gets to live with the family she lied her way into. It's ridiculous.
The only good thing I can say about the book is that I liked the main character. I found her story tense and exciting. There were real stakes surrounding her lie (until the end, anyway, but I digress). Her character wasn't well fleshed-out, but neither was anything else.
Overall, an underdeveloped and deeply unscary novel that was in desperate need of two or three more extensive edits.
(Cross-posted on Goodreads)
For instance, there's this idea of nature protecting itself and punishing those that damage it. A nokken, a nymph of Norwegian folklore, haunts this architect who polluted a river during one of his builds. However, not only is this monster not scary, but it doesn't make sense. The architect is the one who polluted the river, so why does the nokken kill his wife? Why haunt his kids and then suddenly try and kill the nanny who did absolutely nothing wrong? It felt simultaneously over and under used. The author mentioned it constantly, but it never did anything. It just stood there...menacingly! Which was creepy the first time and boring the sixth.
The author also threw a bunch of red herrings into the story at the very last second. The story had been building up at a steady pace, and then, out of nowhere, there are suddenly four new potential motives being thrown at us. There was little to no build-up to any of them. It felt extremely confusing and took me right out of the story. What's the point in getting invested in the novel and trying to figure out the mystery if the author starts dumping new information on you in the final act? You'd be better off breezing through and waiting to see who was left standing after the dust settled.
And believe me, when I say last minute red herring, I mean last minute. In the last TWENTY PAGES of the novel, the nokken reveals a secret power, which is that it can make people act on their base impulses. It turns out the diary of the architect's dead wife, which the protagonist had been reading for a large chunk of the book, had actually been forged by another character, who's motive was only revealed the chapter before. It was an attempt at a twist, but it was completely unsatisfying. It felt like the author changed her mind about the killer at the last second, and instead of going back and editing the story, she just crowbarred in some last minute justification.
I also hated the ending. It was so sappy, unrealistic, and and free of consequence it felt like it belonged in a Lifetime movie, not a horror novel. The main character gets away with literal identity fraud and gets to live with the family she lied her way into. It's ridiculous.
The only good thing I can say about the book is that I liked the main character. I found her story tense and exciting. There were real stakes surrounding her lie (until the end, anyway, but I digress). Her character wasn't well fleshed-out, but neither was anything else.
Overall, an underdeveloped and deeply unscary novel that was in desperate need of two or three more extensive edits.
(Cross-posted on Goodreads)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
turn_the_paige's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
Minor: Domestic abuse
hopeadinfinitum's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Self harm, Suicide, and Suicide attempt