Reviews with content warning for Pregnancy - Nestlings

This was legitimately scary — I found myself wondering WTF am I reading and HOLY SHIT THATS HORRIFYING. It was a mystery, it was gory, it was gross, and I found myself thinking about it when I wasn’t reading it, especially as things started to get revealed as what was happening. I guessed some of it with the hints the author provided but I still kept getting shocked by what I was reading

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stephanieanneauthor's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I'm so happy I decided to listen to this audiobook so soon after finishing "Mary" as there are a number of parallels between the two stories. It also made me realize just how much I adore Cassidy's writing style. He's exceptionally skilled when it comes to writing characters I love to hate (and I thoroughly enjoyed how one character in particular got what was coming to them). I also love that his stories tend to focus on the marginalized and the outcast. This particular book has strong "Rosemary's Baby" vibes in addition to taking a completely unique approach to vampire fiction. There are so many elements at play that at times I worried that they'd all crash into one another in some sort of tangled mess, or something would be forgotten and unresolved. But Cassidy is a master at weaving those many, many threads together to form a satisfying conclusion.

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sarahchampion's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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dcnireads's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

in conclusion, men are weak unreliable trash and FUCK them kids. (just kidding. but also not really.)

in all seriousness, this book was unnervingly gross and terrifying with a freaky as shit (but unique) depiction of a mix between vampirism and cannibalism. it has dark and sometimes genuinely triggering takes on disability and mental illness, specifically postpartum depression and the realities + struggles of motherhood. it was, however, written with a truly understanding and considerate perspective towards the latter topics mentioned above, and it even got a bit inspiring towards the end. i feel the need to say that im surprised considering this was all authored by a man, and you normally wouldn't expect them to have sensible opinions about such matters that aren't downright disrespectful, tone-deaf and/or written insensitively. at this point i didn't even mind the jarring inclusion of covid out of nowhere.

i'm so sorry mr. cassidy, i was unfamiliar with your game. 4.5 stars for you sir.

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chessakat's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A creepy, claustrophobic tale of motherhood, body horror, belonging/outsiders, and weirdly, community. The audio production is excellent! Hearing Cassidy describe the events of 2021 that led to the writing of the book was so harrowing - don’t skip the afterword.

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mmccombs's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

3.5

That was nuts! And gross! It was a more gruesome version of Rosemary’s Baby and it really packed a punch. I enjoyed the setting and the creatures and the dynamics of disability and Jewishness at the intersection of horror. I did find this book a little long, it felt very flat plot-wise until the end. But the payoff was really interesting and the ending was unexpected in a good way. This was a compelling horror read, would definitely recommend!

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cottagecoregrandma's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I loved this! It’s gross, emotional, and creepy.
It wasn’t as scary as I would hoping (or told) it would be but it still creepy enough. I really loved the new take on vampires in this as well! I’ve also never teared up at an afterword before so thanks for that Nat Cassidy.

I didn’t personally like the mentions of covid and the pandemic, just because I read books to escape reality, but I understand why Cassidy included it.

I also loved how it doesn’t really have a happy ending, I feel like that’s very rare in horror books lately (or maybe just the ones I’ve picked up). The ending made me tear up, and so did the Afterword

I will definitely be picking up more Cassidy books in the future.

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_luuucy_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad fast-paced

4.0

The best horror novel I’ve read that features a Mitzvah Tank! Also affordable housing lotteries! And the intersecting horrors of horrible landlords, bedbugs, and non-accessible subway stations and buildings! I ripped through it and was a little shruggy at the ending, but that may just be because everything came to such an abrupt conclusion. But I’m a sucker for real estate horror and Nat Cassidy’s style, so overall I really enjoyed it.

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