Review #435
5/5 stars for this standalone monsterish book. Set in contemporary times with some stories thrown in from the past, Opal is transfixed with the Starling House. No one dares to enter through the gates but that doesn’t stop them from gossiping about the possibilities of what happens on the property. Once Opal starts revealing nightmarish truths, she will do anything to keep her little brother safe with a bright future, even if costs her everything else.
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Here’s some random babbling of my thoughts while I was reading:
After the first chapter I still don’t know the heroine’s name, but boy does she have voice VOICE VOICE and I’m all for it.
26 year old, Opal, is stuck in a run down country town who can’t afford to get her and her little brother out. Working at a minimum wage job and living in a motel room, she doesn’t have much going for her. But she’s still trying.
The narrator of the comments at the bottom of the page is confusing because it makes it seem like this is a nonfiction book with facts shown, but I’m unsure if the information is reliable or not.
Ugh. On page 13 it switches to the heir’s point of view without warning. I kind of hate head hopping mid-chapter.
After chapter 2 it sounds like the House needs some sort of sacrifice and the heir doesn’t want it to be Opal, or anyone for that matter. Why is she magnetized to it? Is the House drawing her in? Or is she just too curious?
I’m jealous of the writer’s prose again. I’ll never be able to come up with a line like this: “Starling House emerges from the dark like a vast animal from its den: a gabled spine, wings of pale stone, a tower with a single amber eye.”
After Chapter 3- why won’t her cut stop bleeding? Why is she dreaming of the house? If he doesn’t want her there why did he offer her a job?
It reminds me of “Bring Me Your Midnight” or “House of Hollow.”
How is her book, The Underland, related? Foreshadowing?
I love the random artwork throughout.
Before I started, I hadn’t expected Beauty and the Beast comparisons which is now a lovely surprise.
She seems more at ease around Arthur than she should be after hearing the rumors.
What do the symbols mean that are carved into the wood?
After chapter 9 the plot is taking an unexpected turn about slavery involvement with the house’s past.
So this Elizabeth character is definitely increasing the intrigue. She’s saying that this town of Eden has an atypically high “early” death rate, from a large range of causes- overdose to cancer to accidents to suicide.
What is the sword for? Is he the beast or is he protecting the house from a beast?
Does the mist only rise when a monster attacks?
Why do the beasts mostly go after Gravely blood?
Chapter 19 was a weird turning point but I got bored because there’s so much book left and now I’m unsure where it’s going.
Harrow does a really good job of showing a realistic sibling connection and convincing me how much she cares for Jasper.
Ugh I don’t think I could ever write such a good manipulation scene. These villains with mind games and power trips just make me want to tear something apart.
This book is a vocabulary lesson of scrabble words so I’m going to start keeping track of words I’ve never heard of:
Daguerreotype
Querulous
Comeuppance
Susurration
Conflagration
Ardent
Indelible
Balustrades
Inviolate
I was supposed to buddy read this with my sister but I went too fast. I give it a 5/5 stars for creativity, beautifully spine tingly writing, & overall vibes.