One of my favourites of S.E. Reid's! Is that allowed? I'm sure I'll have others as she publishes more, because I love pretty much everything she writes. This one, though, is the right kind of creepy with the right amount of tension. It reminded me of Goethe's Faust tragedy in the best way.

Birdie Chang runs off to Whidbey Island on her own to get off-grid. She's there to get away from the publicity of an old case — the one in which she was the child victim of a pedophile — resurfaced after another victim, Linzie King, released a memoir detailing her experiences. She's there to escape Calvin, her abuser, who has been sending threatening emails. She also wants to get away from her girlfriend's concern.

Shortly after Birdie arrives at Whidbey, news about Calvin's murder reaches Calvin's mother, Mary-Beth, who then tries to seek justice for a son the justice system has little concern for.

About halfway through the book, we're introduced to Linzie's perspective. Turns out it's not as straightforward as the story of a victim simply wanting to tell her side of the story, but rather, a sobering reveal of a victim being revictimised by those who would exploit her story for their own gains.

The lives of Birdie, Mary-Beth, and Linzie intertwine through their unwillingly shared experience of Calvin. They all have different perspectives and ways of coping with what happened. The far-reaching consequences of such a crime are poignantly presented, not only for the victims, but for the ones who love(d) them.

The mystery of who killed Calvin is on all three characters' minds, but ultimately isn't super important to what the book is trying to say.

Overall

It goes without saying that this is an incredibly dark book. There is no light in it, so don't expect that. It also doesn't feel right to say whether I liked or disliked it. I don't think it's the sort of book where I can really say that. I think it's an important book. I'm glad it's in the world. I also wouldn't want to read it again.

I've thought a lot about narrative, truth, and who gets to tell a story. In Whidbey, Linzie's memoir stirs controversy because she shares details about other victims, including Birdie, without permission. While she uses pseudonyms for them, Birdie still recognises herself, and that alone re-traumatises her. Simultaneously, a podcast host keeps contacting people related to the case(s), claiming to give them a voice and opportunity to share their sides of the story. The commercialisation of trauma is a huge theme in the book, especially as we learn what is actually going on behind Linzie's memoir.

Birdie chooses not to share her experience in any manner, electing to stay hidden and anonymous. Linzie chooses the opposite (or so it seems).

Mary-Beth was probably the most interesting character to me. She was infuriating in her single-minded defense of Calvin—a convicted pedophile. I can't say I sympathise with her, but I do understand. Criminal or not, Mary-Beth saw Calvin as her son; she knew him as her baby, as a whole person. I don't think she was in denial of his crimes. Rather, I think she advocated for his right to dignity.

I'm conflicted about Mary-Beth, just as I am about all the characters. None of them are likable, but they're understandable. That takes a lot of skill.

Even though I read this book in March (two months before writing this review), I haven't stopped thinking about it. Whidbey forces the reader to take a good look at the madness of consuming others' trauma in the form of true crime. This isn't a new topic, but by placing us in the heads of the victims, Madden puts a mirror before us and shines a glaring light at it.

Who would like this: fans of literary fiction that doubles as social commentary—specifically around trauma, true crime, and narrative ownership, moral ambiguity, unlikable but deeply human characters, Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Petra and her best friend, Jade, are orphaned cave divers who survive by guiding tourists into the Void: a giant underground chasm with six layers, each more dangerous than the one before. Thriller seekers and treasure hunters follow cave diving guides to take them safely (or, as safely as possible) through the Void.

While Petra and Jade have only been to the top two layers, a golden opportunity presents itself that they can't resist. It would give them the chance to escape their risky lives of cave diving and allow Petra to open up her dream clinic.

Of course, the high-risk job goes horribly wrong, and Jade gets trapped in the Void. Petra reaches out to a childhood friend, Flint, to help her rescue Jade. Flint has his own reasons for going into the Void, which Petra dismisses as superstitious nonsense.

What I liked

The world-building was excellent. I really enjoyed the monsters, the concept of the Void, and the premise of the book was so promising. The descriptions of the world were also well done. Schlote-Bonne has quite the imagination! I loved the sensory details and the utter grossness of the Void. The world itself was truly terrifying and disgusting.

Something I enjoyed a lot was the notes at the beginning of each chapter. They were usually interview notes or journal entries by Void survivors over the years, which gave the world a sense of depth and history.

I also liked the very end of the book. Very horror, but I loved it.

What I didn't like

Where I believe the story fell short is character development. None of the characters, even Petra, the main character and narrator, had depth to them. The dialogue was clunky and unbelievable. It was such that the final twist at the end didn't have the impact it should have.

On the note of characters, their actions were quite unbelievable. For how much Petra was described as one of the best and most careful cave divers, she made an awful lot of amateur mistakes throughout the book. It was quite irritating. Her turnaround at the end didn't make sense to me, especially after not seeing any progression in her development that would explain it.

The dialogue was clunky and cliché, and the author knew it. There were these out-of-place self-aware comments within the text that detracted from the reading experience.

Overall

The story had a lot of potential that ultimately fell short, in my opinion. It would have benefited from some more character development and line editing.

I commend Schlote-Bonne for her imaginative scope and the original world she created.

Who would like this: fans of botanical and body horror, C.G. Drews, claustrophobia, monsters

The Story

Jade has to live with her estranged father in Vietnam for five weeks in exchange for money for university. She doesn't want to burden or disappoint her mother, who has been working hard as a single parent, so Jade lied to her that she got a full scholarship. For her mother's sake, Jade agrees to her dad's terms and helps him restore a French colonial house into a B&B, along with her younger sister, Lily. She's not happy about it and has no desire to get back into her father's good graces after he abandoned their family, but Lily is eager to please.

While Lily and Ba don't believe anything is wrong with the house, Jade keeps experiencing strange phenomenon, including seeing ghostly women, insects that keep dying, hydrangeas that look like they're bleeding, and walls that don't shut up.

Meanwhile, the history of the house is revealed through the ghostly visitations some of what Ba tells her. Jade learns that her ancestors were servants to the white family that owned the home during the French occupation, which is partly why Ba is so set on owning and restoring the house.

To convince her dad that the house is, indeed, haunted, Jade recruits the help of his business partner's daughter, to stir up some "hauntings" of their own. There is some flirting involved via website coding.

But secrets have a knack for not staying secret forever, and Jade isn't the only one who has them, as she gradually learns more about the house, her family history, and her own father.

What I liked

There are themes of colonialism, reclaiming of homeland, trying to restore broken family relationships, and intergenerational family trauma, as well as the tension between immigrant parents and their first-generation Asian children. Nguyen does a fine job weaving these themes into the story.

I also enjoyed reading about Vietnam's history, which I don't know much about.

Always a sucker for complicated mother-daughter relationships, I appreciated reading about Jade's efforts to protect her mother. The part where her mom comes in at the end and embraces Jade for who she is was well done.

What I didn't like

Honestly, what I did like is also what I didn't like. While the themes written about are important, Nguyen is too on-the-nose with them. Every white person was blatantly racist and ignorant. Every problem Jade faced was related to race and the immigrant experience (or rather, the immigrant-parent-child experience). These tropes have snaked their way through so many books by authors from the Asian dysphoria that they're repetitive and tired.

The writing style didn't lend itself to a creepy atmosphere at all, which, in a horror book, is everything. I found myself bored and drudging through this, despite its brevity and simplicity. It should have been a quick binge-read, but I didn't feel any sense of urgency.

Overall

This book sounded promising, and it had a lot of potential. It's one I wish I'd liked more, but it ultimately fell short. The writing didn't work for me. Although I knew I was supposed to feel something during the emotional moments, I felt nothing. For a horror story, it wasn't scary at all. I hate to say it, but I was bored.

While this wasn't for me, it can be for the right reader. It was an intriguing premise that just wasn't executed quite as well as it could have been. I'd still be interested in trying another book by this author in the future.

Who would like this: fans of body horror, haunted houses, complicated parent-child or immigrant parent-child relationships; those who want to read about Vietnamese history