Sister, Maiden, Monster

Sister, Maiden, Monster by Lucy A. Snyder is one of those stories that continues to haunt me. It was so dark and insane that I frequently had to stop reading to process what I had just read. Yet, as uncomfortable as it made me at times, I liked this creepy story about a virus, a pandemic, and the fate of humankind.

Sister, Maiden, Monster is one grotesque story. Within the first chapter, upon Erin getting sick, Ms. Snyder does not let a scene pass without bringing forth some of the most gruesome body horrors I think I have ever read. Throughout the story, you experience cannibalism, blood lust, vicious killings for pleasure, growths that erupt, and the most eldritch of human evolution. Not for the squeamish or faint of heart, there show more should be all manner of trigger warnings on the cover of this book. However, since it firmly falls into the horror category, that is its warning.

To describe the plot of Sister, Maiden, Monster is almost an effort in futility. Not only would doing so spoil the suspense, but the story is also batshit crazy. I mean that most endearingly because I enjoyed the crazy. Crazy does make for a good story, albeit weird, but there is something fun in the weirdness.

As for the three main characters, they are easy to like. Ms. Snyder introduces us to each one in record time in a way that makes it easy to understand who they are and their motivations. As Erin is the first one we meet and watch her maneuver the beginnings of the pandemic through to the end, we know her the most. Even Savannah, with her lust for killing, has redeeming qualities. The three women’s fates are the story’s driving force, and they make quite an unusual trio.

Based on the synopsis, I thought I would be reading another horror story involving a pandemic. Sure, certain phrases made me understand that Sister, Maiden, Monster would not follow in the same vein as Stephen King’s version or Chuck Wayward’s. I don’t think I was prepared for just how different it was. This is one horror story that did horrify me. As a bonus, I will never look at people eating sushi in quite the same way again. Kudos to Ms. Snyder for creating a bizarre and gory story that terrified me, grossed me out, and kept me entertained. show less

This was an amazing read. It weaves current world events and issues seamlessly into a near future hellscape riddled with a polymorphic virus ready to take over the world. The three female MC's stories interconnected beautifully, while having vastly different experiences, exploring cosmic and body horror to its fullest, with a dash of seggsy times. I'm recommending this to so many of my friends that want to get into cosmic and body horror, because while disgusting and gory at times, the writing and experiences are breathtaking. I loved how the author addressed so many real world issues into this with such grace but with fire behind it. Amazing work!

Thoughts: This was an incredibly weird and demented collection of three interconnected novellas that I ended up really enjoying. Snyder always comes up with some crazy stuff and doesn't shy away from the gory details. I really enjoyed her Jessie Shimmer series and continue to enjoy her writing here as well.

The synopsis does a decent job describing the plot, so I won't reiterate it here. This is pretty much an apocalyptic set of stories where a strange virus starts to manifest in people in different ways.

This is viciously twisted and gory, and at times you will think, "Did I really just read that?" It is also incredibly creative and intriguing since Snyder delves into depths of depravity that most authors wouldn't be comfortable delving show more in to. I love it for its uniqueness and just how much fun it ends up being to read.

The characters here are easy to engage with and come across as intelligent and introspective in their own ways, even when they are vicious and amoral. There is plenty of action and suspense, as you sit back and wonder how everything will play out. The ending is open-ended but I thought it fit the story tone well. Most endings to an apocalyptic tale like this are a bit open-ended.

My Summary (5/5): Overall I loved this and was so happy to see Snyder back to writing full-length books (even if it is more of a novella series in one novel). The weirdness and creativity here is awesome, but stomach turning at times. This is not a book for the faint of heart, but if you are a fan of Snyder you already know that. She does not turn away from gore or uncomfortable strangeness. I loved this and am excited to see what she writes next! show less

a very captivating read involving multiple povs and a pandemic with a mysterious and devastating disease. lesbians and body horror. it was disgusting and amazing

Wow. This is a bloodcurdling good time. This story has three parts where we follow three different main characters. The first part is about Erin who caught the new pandemic virus. This virus is way worse than Covid. It turns Erin into a brain eating thing. Part two we follow a prostitute who catches the disease and learns through eating brains and then regurgitating them. She also “gets off” on her murders as she can no longer “get off” from her old profession profession. The third part is about the chosen woman. The woman who’s lived her entire life growing tumors and the part those tumors play in the apocalypse. All the stories come together for lackluster ending. I listen to this on audiobook and was thoroughly engrossed. I show more didn’t want to stop, even when I needed to take breaks because of disturbing mental. The last hour of this book was ugghh. Some of the action was predictable and at times it was felt like the author had run out of ideas and couldn’t come up with anything better. The book also ends at a weird point. You think there’s a problem with your audiobook and that you’re not at the end of the story but you are. So, except for the last hour, this was a good book. This book is a four-star read. The last hour of this audiobook was a two star read. Trigger warning for everything. If you are not in hard-core blood and guts with a little bit of erotica thrown in, do not pick up this book. If you like a good monster tale, that leaves your eyes wide then pick this up and hopefully you like the ending better than I did. show less

The PVG pandemic has left a trail of destruction in its wake. Those infected have to adapt to their new lives depending on which Type they are determined to be - asymptomatic Type Ones, or Types Two or Three whose bodies have been so destroyed by the disease they now require a gorier solution to manage their symptoms.

The story follows 3 women - Erin, Savannah and Mareva- whose lives become entwined with each others. Erin and Savannah are helping usher in this new world, while Mareva has been burdened with a very special task...

I don't want to give much more away here. I went in blind to this weird, wild ride and recommend you do too.
SMM is a cosmic, body horror and such a fun twist on the post-COVID pandemic stories. It was gross, show more sexy, gory, and creepy all at the same time! show less

Sister, Maiden, Monster was a decent book that follows three women as they navigate a new pandemic hitting the world, one that is extremely different from the previous one. Considering our current climate with regards to pandemic thinking, I think it is very difficult to write about, but I thought the author handled it quite well and I enjoyed that aspect of the book. Where I had difficulty was with the repetitive narrative and the lack of character development; all of the characters just started blending in together and I think to really pull this off, the women needed distinct voices and not just because one was into BDSM or the other one liked to eat brains.

While I did like each of the characters, I did feel like the author used show more what they were to make them seem distinct as opposed to who they were. This didn't allow for a lot of character development as there wasn't really much to define them with regards to their personalities to begin with. And if you are looking for queer lust and power in your novels, this one definitely has it in spades, unchecked and uncontrolled at times. Personally, I enjoyed Erin's story the best, but I wonder if it's because it was first and I had no idea what was happening when I started the book so it had a deeper impact on me for that reason. I think this is why the other two women really needed powerful voices to be heard as the story kind of went sideways for me when I started Savannah's POV.

The plot itself was definitely interesting for the first half of the book and I had a hard time putting it down. The other two women don't get as much attention as Erin and the stories aren't interconnected the way I thought they would be. I get what the author was doing, but execution-wise, I don't think it quite worked. I really wanted to enjoy the second half more than I did, which was a shame as that half had most of the horror elements in it, elements that I love. I also felt like some descriptions were thrown in for shock purposes rather than for story substance and I found it jarring, throwing me out of the narrative, which was sometimes difficult to stay focused on anyways due to the repetitiveness of it. I think I liked the idea of what was happening rather than on what was actually happening and I found myself drifting off at times, reflecting on the social impacts of what was occurring, another aspect I think the author could have developed a bit more.

Verdict
Sister, Maiden, Monster had a lot of potential, but ultimately it was a bit disappointing. There was a lot going on in this novel, and I think the author missed the mark by not focusing on character development as well as cultural impact and social commentary. The horror aspect of this novel was actually interesting, involving both cosmic and body horror, but the world is falling apart, so shouldn't there be more focus on existential crisis? Great ideas, but overall, missed the mark. show less