Sarah

I was frightened of everything in the past and whatever was going to happen next.

3.5 stars
This review can also be found on my blog.

This is a short novel that packs quite a punch. The first half feels slow, and a little strange at times, but everything is suddenly turned on its head in the second half. There is so much going on and yet it never seems like too much for the page count. A lot of the writing is very simplistic, which I think works. Had it been more complex, I think it would have been easy to get lost in. It's hard for me to say much about this without spoilers, but I do think this was quite a worthwhile read although I was left wanting. Not a new favorite, but I can see why this has been so highly lauded and perhaps worth an eventual reread to see if that ties things together a bit better.

content warnings: domestic abuse; nazi mentions; homophobia.

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I was just... entirely uninterested. I have difficulties with classics sometimes. Oh well.

Definitely not a new favorite, but there were some standouts in this collection. The Last Rung on the Ladder in particular had me tearing up at the end. I have to give King credit, because even the stories I didn't like were compelling enough for me to zip through them. Sometimes I can struggle with his writing, but it really worked for me here. I did find myself unsatisfied with some of the pieces and as always the fatphobia (etc.) is rough, but overall I did find it worth reading. My average rating for these stories came to 2.74 stars.

Jerusalem's Lot - 3.5 ⭐️
Graveyard Shift 4 ⭐️
Night Surf - 2 ⭐️
I Am The Doorway - 4 ⭐️
The Mangler - 4 ⭐️
The Boogeyman - 3 ⭐️
Gray Matter - 3 ⭐️
Battleground - 2 ⭐️
Trucks - 2 ⭐️
Sometimes They Come Back - 3 ⭐️
Strawberry Spring - 3 ⭐️
The Ledge - 2 ⭐️
The Lawnmower Man - 2 ⭐️
Quitters, Inc - 2 ⭐️
I Know What You Need - 2 ⭐️
Children of the Corn - 3 ⭐️
The Last Rung on the Ladder - 4 ⭐️
The Man Who Loved Flowers - 2 ⭐️
One For The Road - 2.5 ⭐️
The Woman in the Room - 2 ⭐️

I've dnfed this 3x over the last 10 years so maybe I just need to skim it lmao

I can't believe I forgot how wonderful this book is. Everything Steifvater does in it is incredible. The prose itself, the dialogue, the characters, the settings. It all just comes together to create this beautiful experience. I tore through the book in just a couple days and loved every second of it.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Stiefvater's writing is just gorgeous and even if the story isn't your thing, I think anyone can appreciate the talent she has. It's worth a shot, anyway. To be honest, though, I didn't love the ending. It was too abrupt and a little confusing to me–and I think I felt the same way the first time around. But I'll see how it ties in to the rest of the series before I make a full judgment.