The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts by Kim Fu
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
2.5 stars. I’m rounding to 3 stars out of respect for Kim Fu and her prior short stories. The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts might have made a good short story or novella. But as a full fledged novel it was a bit frustrating. Not only is the ending not a real ending! But the entire book is like a bad fever dream that just never resolves or gives you the reveal moment.
It was obvious to me from the opening couple of chapters what some might consider the reveal in this book. So maybe that jaded the whole experience for me? I’m even afraid of water, oceans, flooding, etc and I will didn’t find this to be at all scary or concerned. So perhaps the largest fail of the novel is poor marketing as this is not horror. Having a ghost does not make your book horror!
Instead, this is a psychological thriller. A contemporary, non-gothic, boring thriller. The kind I would normally avoid. Nothing about The Vengeful Valley of Ghosts would put it in the horror section for me. Mere ghosts or apparitions is not inherently horrific to me. Far from the horror vibes or descriptions we get from Nick Cutter, Grady Hendrix, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, or Mira Grant. All of whom are sure to thrill you or cause you chills in some way. Not with body horror but just descriptions and overall creepiness. I got none of that here from Fu.
One of the weakest points for me is our leading lady is a very unlikeable character. I get it, she’s a coddled, Mama’s girl who had one (recent) rough go of things. Yet she has a masters degree in psychology!! Obtained before she ever had a truly horrific day in her own life?! I just struggled to imagine someone giving advice to others who has had everything done for them their whole life. She doesn’t even know how to use a washing machine and yet she is telling others how to manage their lives! That doesn’t work for me and continued to make me question her authenticity as a character.
I finished The Vengeful Valley of Ghosts in utter frustration, yet with relief. Glad it was over; yet annoyed I’d wasted my time. It’s just not a satisfying read. Neither the reveals, ending, or struggle of our leading lady are in any way the style of read that I tend to enjoy. I want to be scared, surprised, impressed, or motivated. I want to feel sympathy, hatred, or compassion for characters; not utter disgust at how pathetic I think they are.
Unfortunately this was not a win for me. I will still read Kim Fu as I know she has written some really good stories over the years. But I might wait on her novels in the future to see what other reviewers think. She’s certainly slid down the giant waterfall of my ‘must read’ list and landed in some flooding pools of waters where a book may or may not be recovered from.
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.
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My rating: 3 of 5 stars
2.5 stars. I’m rounding to 3 stars out of respect for Kim Fu and her prior short stories. The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts might have made a good short story or novella. But as a full fledged novel it was a bit frustrating. Not only is the ending not a real ending! But the entire book is like a bad fever dream that just never resolves or gives you the reveal moment.
It was obvious to me from the opening couple of chapters what some might consider the reveal in this book. So maybe that jaded the whole experience for me? I’m even afraid of water, oceans, flooding, etc and I will didn’t find this to be at all scary or concerned. So perhaps the largest fail of the novel is poor marketing as this is not horror. Having a ghost does not make your book horror!
Instead, this is a psychological thriller. A contemporary, non-gothic, boring thriller. The kind I would normally avoid. Nothing about The Vengeful Valley of Ghosts would put it in the horror section for me. Mere ghosts or apparitions is not inherently horrific to me. Far from the horror vibes or descriptions we get from Nick Cutter, Grady Hendrix, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, or Mira Grant. All of whom are sure to thrill you or cause you chills in some way. Not with body horror but just descriptions and overall creepiness. I got none of that here from Fu.
One of the weakest points for me is our leading lady is a very unlikeable character. I get it, she’s a coddled, Mama’s girl who had one (recent) rough go of things. Yet she has a masters degree in psychology!! Obtained before she ever had a truly horrific day in her own life?! I just struggled to imagine someone giving advice to others who has had everything done for them their whole life. She doesn’t even know how to use a washing machine and yet she is telling others how to manage their lives! That doesn’t work for me and continued to make me question her authenticity as a character.
I finished The Vengeful Valley of Ghosts in utter frustration, yet with relief. Glad it was over; yet annoyed I’d wasted my time. It’s just not a satisfying read. Neither the reveals, ending, or struggle of our leading lady are in any way the style of read that I tend to enjoy. I want to be scared, surprised, impressed, or motivated. I want to feel sympathy, hatred, or compassion for characters; not utter disgust at how pathetic I think they are.
Unfortunately this was not a win for me. I will still read Kim Fu as I know she has written some really good stories over the years. But I might wait on her novels in the future to see what other reviewers think. She’s certainly slid down the giant waterfall of my ‘must read’ list and landed in some flooding pools of waters where a book may or may not be recovered from.
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.
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