Your Shadow Half Remains

Riley lives in a house on a lake, remote from the rest of the world. She moved there after whatever it is that’s infecting the world through the eyes (make eye contact and you go murderously insane) claimed her mother’s life. And she’s lived utterly alone ever since, which has been a handful of years. And then Ellis moves in down the road and decides to visit, opening Riley’s world up to all sorts of dangers, which she moved away from civilization to avoid. Are Ellis’ intentions malicious? Or is Riley just paranoid? Imagining things? Or is she going crazy? Is she already infected and doesn’t even know it?

Hoo boy, this one’s a doozie. Short, but jam-packed with creepy goodness. It kept me guessing up to the end and beyond.

This is a book about paranoia in the wake of a deadly virus. When eye contact can turn you into a violent, homicidal maniac, survivors like Riley have isolated themselves from the world. But when Ellis moves into the area, Riley finds herself drawn to her despite her growing fear of the new world they're living in. However, is Ellis a safe person to be around? Can Riley trust that neither of them have been infected without realizing it?

This was a dark book that didn't hold back. Seeing the world through Riley's eyes, all puns intended, the reader could clearly understand the way isolation and fear changes a person. A quick but incredible read, I highly recommend this novel if you enjoy dark fiction.

I received a free copy of this book from Tor in exchange for my honest review.

Ehhhhhh, this one wasn't a winner for me. I thought I would be more creeped out. It does definitely have some very creepy and tense moments, but most of it made me feel a little fuzzy while reading. It does have a fever dream quality to it, which is a hard style of writing for me to get into. For that to work for me, I need just the write mix of clarity and 'wtf is going on.' This one just left me wondering 'wtf' too often to get a good grasp on any of the story. Sometimes when I'm too confused, it's just hard to be scared by the scary bits, you know? The ending was also way too open for me to feel any kind of satisfaction. Just not the right kind of horror show more novel for me, but YMMV! show less

It took me a long time to read this short book. I would start reading, get distracted by another book, and forget to come back for a while. I just didn't click with it. I kept coming back though, because I wanted to understand what was going on. I still don't completely understand, but the ending really was pretty good.
This book was provided to me at no charge by the publisher and NetGalley. My opinions are honestly and freely give.

I've started this at least 3 different times. I think I'm not feeling it. will try again soon

Die Grundidee klang unglaublich interessant. Ich war neugierig, wie sich die Geschichte entwickeln würde, denn die Vorstellung, in einer Welt zu leben, in der Menschen sich nicht ansehen dürfen, weil ein einziger Blick tödliche Folgen haben kann, bietet eigentlich jede Menge Potenzial.

Leider wurde dieses Potenzial meiner Meinung nach kaum genutzt. Im Grunde hätte diese Geschichte auch eine Kurzgeschichte sein können. Die Handlung fühlte sich über weite Strecken sehr langsam an und führte für mich kaum irgendwohin. Ich verlor immer wieder das Interesse, weil sich vieles im Kreis drehte. Besonders die ständigen Wiederholungen der Gedanken der Protagonistin waren irgendwann eher ermüdend als tiefgründig.

Auch die Welt selbst show more blieb mir zu oberflächlich. Das Virus, das alles ausgelöst hat, wird nie wirklich erklärt, und viele Aspekte der Geschichte bleiben vage. Dadurch fehlte mir der nötige Hintergrund, um richtig in diese Welt einzutauchen. Das Ende kam dann sehr plötzlich und ließ mich eher ratlos zurück als zufrieden.

Die Idee war stark, aber die Umsetzung konnte mich leider nicht überzeugen. Für mich fehlte es an Spannung, Entwicklung und mehr Tiefe.

Keine Empfehlung. show less