A review by marywahlmeierbracciano
Jawbone by Mónica Ojeda

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Jawbone is an outrageously innovative novel of literary horror which weaves together classic literature, pop culture, and creepypastas with a running stitch of hyphens and a sprinkle of Ferrante.  This is a book about fear and horror—this is a book about mothers and daughters.  We follow panic-ridden Clara, a young teacher obsessed with becoming her dead mother, as she encounters Annelise and Fernanda, the sapphic leaders of a pack of teen girls who take over an abandoned building to make a game of worshiping a horrifying White God of their own invention.  Mónica Ojeda traps readers between her teeth with never-before-dared depictions of ugliness and taboo, and Sarah Booker’s translator’s note is incredibly insightful—don’t skip it. 

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