I don’t know if this book and I were ever going to get along. I’m a huge Jeff VanderMeer fan, but didn’t initially realize this was set in the Borne universe. Borne wasn’t bad, but I just didn’t end up loving it. From what I read, the connections seem pretty loose — same universe, different characters. There is just so MUCH going on here that at 27% in I had no idea what I was reading. The prose was gorgeous, but I struggled to follow the plot. This book is going to make you work, and I cautiously recommend it to those who are up for the challenge.
Rating: DNF
In the House in the Dark of the Woods
I honestly have no idea what this book was trying to accomplish. It starts off as a lighthearted fairytale of sorts and turns into…? It alternated between dry and confusing, sometimes both. There was one point where I thought I genuinely liked it and thought it had a great ending — until I realized I had only hit the 75% mark and had to muddle through to the true ending. This had the potential to say so much about abuse and trauma, which I thought was its purpose for a while, but it ended up being a bit of a meandering mess that I genuinely regret spending my time on.
Rating: ⭐⭐
I can definitely appreciate the points this book hit, but it just didn’t vibe with me very well! It’s a relatively quick read and I certainly recommend picking it up if you’re interested in it, though. As a YA book, it touches on a lot of important issues from abortion to drug addiction to teen pregnancy. One of my issues was that I felt like it was trying to touch on too many things and thus lacked a bit in focus. I’d also look up trigger warnings for this beforehand, as there are a lot of potentially upsetting topics at hand. My final criticism is that it read more like a MG book than a YA book as far as voice goes. I kept surprising myself when Gabi would say something about graduating from high school or applying to college because I honestly kept thinking she was 13.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Sarah Ames-Foley 
Such a shame about The House in the Dark of the Woods. That title and cover are 👌🏼
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I knooow! I felt so betrayed by them haha
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I’m so sad for Dead Astronauts! That name and cover look so amazing. But good to know what to expect from it.
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I was kind of thinking/hoping it was just a me thing, but some other reviewers seem to be struggling with similar aspects of it. I hope it ends up finding its readers!
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I hope so too!
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Great post, and an interesting assortment! I had In the House in the Dark of the Woods on my TBR, but it sounds like I’m safe to remove it without missing anything great. Bummer Dead Astronauts didn’t pan out for you, that cover is so fun!
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Yeah, I was hoping it was just a miss for me personally but the other reviewers seem to mostly agree. I was bummed about Dead Astronauts as well, but am hoping I can live vicariously through others loving it haha.
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