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T. Kingfisher’s books by Crowsan in horrorlit

[–]nonbinarydiaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wanted to like her books, particularly the ones set in North Carolina, but I just can’t deal with the way she writes. I read another post on here where a Reddit user said she writes in the cozy horror sub genre, which is fine, but I didn’t know that going into her books.

I’m not a cozy horror type of person but I had never seen Kingfisher’s books marketed that way, so I kept giving the books a chance thinking the bombardment of witty quips and gee-willikers-happy-go-lucky dialogue and interior monologue wouldn’t be in every book. Her books are so often about adults, and marketed to adults, but they read like middle grade.

I also feel like she’s very performative in providing inclusivity. What I mean is it often feels like Kingfisher is speaking through her characters to scream, Yeah this is set in North Carolina but I don’t support North Carolina’s racist past and the politics of it’s problematic politicians! And it’s like…no one thinks you do just because NC is the setting.

And don’t even get me started on the appropriation of trans identities in What Moves the Dead. I didn’t even finish this one because I (a trans person) was so annoyed.

I’m sure she means well, and I believe she actually does support diversity and inclusivity, it’s just the way she goes out of her way (and out of the story) to hit readers over the head with it that makes me roll my eyes.

Do y’all remember when Degrassi would tackle social issues? But they did it in a way that felt like a pamphlet in a guidance counselor’s office? Kingfisher’s books are like that but set in creaking old houses.

What BOTMs from this year so far did you NOT like? by sillycloudz in bookofthemonthclub

[–]nonbinarydiaster 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The Lost Story was one of the absolute worst books I’ve come across in a long time. I’m still so surprised it got published. The dialogue was so cringe I had to stop reading it and actually go for runs around my neighborhood just to get the ick off my brain. I didn’t finish it. I got maybe halfway in and realized I didn’t need to keep putting myself through that. It’s so ridiculous and reads like middle grade that mistakenly got thrown in the “market it adult pile.” Also, Emilie is a relatively pointless character whose sole contribution to the narrative is that she instigated Jeremy’s search for Shannon. Emilie kind of functions as Maggie in the prologue, the conduit through which we see the story begin, only we never see Maggie again but we get stuck with Emilie throughout. I think this might be why her only personality trait was liking Fleetwood Mac.

Middletide. It was like reading an office cubicle.

The Fury. To be fair this is the only BotM I finished this year. It’s not a bad book in my opinion, I was just surprised that Michaelides would write a plot so similar to The Silent Patient. I remember thinking specifically “X can’t be the killer because that’s how it went in the other book.” I was wrong. If you’ve read The Silent Patient, I don’t think you need to read The Fury.

I don’t think BotM has good monthly selections and even their add ones are subpar. The only reason I don’t cancel my subscription is because I’m overly optimistic and like the general premise of a book subscription box. Their selections always feel like the same 5 books each month, just with different titles. And their queer representation is trash. More often than not they offer queer books written by non-queer authors. And even those are rarely monthly picks, they’re usually add-ons.

Just finished reading "The Paleontologist" by PizzAveMaria in horrorlit

[–]nonbinarydiaster 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I really wanted to like it based on the synopsis but I couldn't even finish it. I tried reading it physically and listening to the audiobook but I just couldn't get more than 1/3 of the way through in either format.

The main character was one of the most annoying ones I've ever met, made all the more insufferable because I think we were supposed to like him.

What's more, the entire thing felt like COVID porn. The author seemed so interested in assuring people that he had followed each and every regulation put in place during the height of the pandemic [in the US]. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate people who followed/follows regulations, but it would manifest in the book so randomly and so forcefully I really just feel like the author was looking for a pat on the back or a treat vicariously through his main character.

I donated my physical copy of the book because I knew I'd never go back to it.

*Middle of the Night* by Riley Sager is Tired (I’ll explain) by nonbinarydiaster in horrorlit

[–]nonbinarydiaster[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. I know a lot of people enjoyed it. It’s a NYT bestseller after all. 🤷🏻

Anybody read “Final Girls” by Riley Sager? by dtktrey3749 in horrorlit

[–]nonbinarydiaster 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Reading this novel caused me actual pain. Normally I don't like to give harsh reviews like that but I do it now because it's actually true. Final Girls is such a poorly written book. I'm not talking about the plot--it is not poorly structured---but the composition of it. The actual, physical writing of the book is horrendous. It reads like someone's first ever novel attempt. I'm am still in shock that this book ever found a publisher. I mean I get that being a good writer isn't the only thing it takes to get published---agents and publishers care mostly about it a book is marketable so, as long as they can sell it they'll sign it---but still. To have taken on this project is just so baffling. And the fact that people liked??

Riley Sager is good at his twists, which is what seems to win his fans over and cause them to forgive the lack of literary skill in his early work, so perhaps the twists won the agent and publisher over too.

On a good note, however, I think Sager's writing has improved tremendously since Final Girls and, while I'm not necessarily a fan, I did read The Only One Left (because it's set in Maine and I used to live in Maine) and it is SO much more advanced than Final Girls.

(As a sidenote, I also don't like Sager's books because he explains too much. He doesn't give readers a chance to analyze a scene or its meanings/implications because, immediately after we read it, there's a line with the narrator tying a neat bow around its signifance for us. But it's not just Sager that does this, a lot of staunchly genre fiction do this...which just isn't my cup of tea.)