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A review by riverofhorton
Coraline by Neil Gaiman
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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
5.0
I want to start this review by saying that this book is firmly on my re-readable pile, and it may well be my new favourite modern horror book. Which I find amazing considering this is a children's book.
I found it to be just the right level of horror to be a casual read, which I find I'm most likely to return to in the future. A good portion of the horror content of the horror was of the slightly-to-the-left-of-normal kind, rather than being overt and graphic.
This book offers depth to the world and story, rather than a shower of blood and guts found in some other horror book I've read. Sometimes I think this kind of horror takes more work, and this is even more true when it's a children's book and the author (presumably) knows adults will also read it and so also need to be thrilled. To me, this shows the mastery of the art of writing that Neil Gaiman repeatedly demonstrates.
I found it to be just the right level of horror to be a casual read, which I find I'm most likely to return to in the future. A good portion of the horror content of the horror was of the slightly-to-the-left-of-normal kind, rather than being overt and graphic.
This book offers depth to the world and story, rather than a shower of blood and guts found in some other horror book I've read. Sometimes I think this kind of horror takes more work, and this is even more true when it's a children's book and the author (presumably) knows adults will also read it and so also need to be thrilled. To me, this shows the mastery of the art of writing that Neil Gaiman repeatedly demonstrates.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail