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A review by howlinglibraries
Reception by Kenzie Jennings
dark
tense
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Reception has been recommended to me countless times and I'd built an immense amount of hype for this story in my own mind, so I'm happy to say that I finally read it — and I can see why so many people have raved about it! I love stories about terrible rich people doing terrible-rich-people things (one of my all-time favorite horror films is Ready or Not, which this reminded me of once or twice), and though I don't read it as often as I'd like to, I thoroughly enjoy a good splatterpunk story.
I would say the splatterpunk element is where Kenzie Jennings absolutely shines in this story, because the gore and violence are on point. It takes a while to reach the moment where the violence kicks in, but once it starts, it doesn't let up until the climax of the story, and there were descriptions in this novella that had me positively cringing because they sounded so painful. I loved that aspect of Reception — I only wish it had come sooner.
Unfortunately, despite this novella only being a little over 200 pages long (or 8 hours for the audiobook I listened to), it dragged a bit for me in the first half. It takes exactly 50% of the story for shit to hit the fan, and while the first half does a good job of setting the scene and introducing the characters, that isn't necessarily what I went into Reception expecting. Realistically, that's possibly less Kenzie Jennings' fault and more my own for mismanaged expectations. Aside from that, I didn't love the ending, but I saw with a quick glance at friends' reviews that I seem to definitely be the odd duck out in this feeling, so take my opinion with a grain of salt!
Minor issues aside, this story was a fun time and I'm so glad I read it. The audiobook was solidly produced and I liked the narrator, so if you're an audiobook reader as well, I definitely recommend it! Whatever format you prefer, Reception is a disgusting, sometimes hilarious story featuring lots of gore, a lovable and comedic bickering set of sisters, and some really fucked up dinner plans, and I happily recommend it to my fellow horror lovers.
Thank you so much to Fireside Horror for providing me with this audio copy in exchange for an honest review!
I would say the splatterpunk element is where Kenzie Jennings absolutely shines in this story, because the gore and violence are on point. It takes a while to reach the moment where the violence kicks in, but once it starts, it doesn't let up until the climax of the story, and there were descriptions in this novella that had me positively cringing because they sounded so painful. I loved that aspect of Reception — I only wish it had come sooner.
Unfortunately, despite this novella only being a little over 200 pages long (or 8 hours for the audiobook I listened to), it dragged a bit for me in the first half. It takes exactly 50% of the story for shit to hit the fan, and while the first half does a good job of setting the scene and introducing the characters, that isn't necessarily what I went into Reception expecting. Realistically, that's possibly less Kenzie Jennings' fault and more my own for mismanaged expectations. Aside from that, I didn't love the ending, but I saw with a quick glance at friends' reviews that I seem to definitely be the odd duck out in this feeling, so take my opinion with a grain of salt!
Minor issues aside, this story was a fun time and I'm so glad I read it. The audiobook was solidly produced and I liked the narrator, so if you're an audiobook reader as well, I definitely recommend it! Whatever format you prefer, Reception is a disgusting, sometimes hilarious story featuring lots of gore, a lovable and comedic bickering set of sisters, and some really fucked up dinner plans, and I happily recommend it to my fellow horror lovers.
Thank you so much to Fireside Horror for providing me with this audio copy in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Gore, Violence, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Drug use, and Misogyny
Minor: Child death and Fatphobia