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bellwetherbird's reviews
24 reviews
Animus by Antoine Revoy
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
2.5
I am certainly glad I read this in one sitting, I think the ending would have been incredibly disappointing if I had invested much time into it at all. I still found it wanting, but I can already tell I won't remember this book well enough to be bothered by it.
There are good concepts, the art is lovely, and I appreciate how the children are written. But overall, this felt like a first draft to me. Concepts and plotlines are dropped and added randomly. I just think this needed more time in the conceptual stage, expanding and removing from the story as needed.
The book is also a little noncomitted to how scary/upsetting it wants to be. Any sense of horrors and unease disappeared about halfway through the book, which was a shame. I wasn't expecting Junjo Ito levels of horror, but some sense of building/increasing tension would have been nice.
There are good concepts, the art is lovely, and I appreciate how the children are written. But overall, this felt like a first draft to me. Concepts and plotlines are dropped and added randomly. I just think this needed more time in the conceptual stage, expanding and removing from the story as needed.
The book is also a little noncomitted to how scary/upsetting it wants to be. Any sense of horrors and unease disappeared about halfway through the book, which was a shame. I wasn't expecting Junjo Ito levels of horror, but some sense of building/increasing tension would have been nice.
The Glassy, Burning Floor of Hell by Brian Evenson
mysterious
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
3.5
I chose this book at random, based off the title and the 'horror' sticker stuck on the side by my library. I knew nothing going in aside from the fact that it was a series of weird and possibly scary short stories.
I would best describe the stories as 'hit or miss'.
There are certainly a number of stories I enjoyed immensely. A fair few that were entirely ineffective for me, and some that I was very disappointed in. The best stories are spread equally throughout the book, so I never really hit a streak of bad stories. If I had, it's quite likely I would have stopped reading. That isn't to say the book isn't worth reading, as there are good stories in it that I would happily recommend to a friend. I might just be specific in which chapters I recommend.
I am walking away from this book feeling a tiny bit let down, since I found the title very compelling and I knew it was the last story in the book. I was hoping to end on a strong and intense note, or maybe a quieter one that threaded some of the themes together a bit tighter. The title seemed fully irrelevant and the story one of the weaker ones from the book.
I would best describe the stories as 'hit or miss'.
There are certainly a number of stories I enjoyed immensely. A fair few that were entirely ineffective for me, and some that I was very disappointed in. The best stories are spread equally throughout the book, so I never really hit a streak of bad stories. If I had, it's quite likely I would have stopped reading. That isn't to say the book isn't worth reading, as there are good stories in it that I would happily recommend to a friend. I might just be specific in which chapters I recommend.
I am walking away from this book feeling a tiny bit let down, since I found the title very compelling and I knew it was the last story in the book. I was hoping to end on a strong and intense note, or maybe a quieter one that threaded some of the themes together a bit tighter. The title seemed fully irrelevant and the story one of the weaker ones from the book.
Gyo by Junji Ito
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Gore, and Suicide
The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Pregnancy
Tomie by Junji Ito
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail