A review by minimicropup
Grim Root by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Someone please make this a show. I loved the mix of reality show camp and haunted house spooks.
 
Energy: Saucy. Reckless. Resourceful.  
 
πŸ• Howls
Dragged in the survival-action scenes. The action sequences seemed too long and knocked me out of the story because they required feats of strength that felt impossible/too complex to imagine (small gripe). 
 
🐩 Tail Wags
Addictive mix of campy fun and a freaky slow burn psychological horror. The haunted house twist on a reality dating show. The uncertainty of what’s real vs what’s staged. The satire. Character reactions that felt authentic given their personalities. The drama and slow unraveling of everything. 
 
Scene: πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ Set in Northern California at an old manor and fruit farm.
Perspectives (2): We follow two of the four remaining women competing to be chosen by the Bachelor Groom. One was invited to the show and very reluctantly accepted after their divorce. The other has fairy tale aspirations and truly believes they are destined to be chosen and find their happily ever after. 
Timeline: Current (2010s or 2020s).
πŸ”₯ Fuel: Escalating stakes. Relationship and competitor dynamics. Race against time. Action-adventure. Who will win? What is behind the haunted location? What secrets are the competitors keeping from each other?   
πŸ“– Cred: Campy satire realism
 
Mood Reading Match-Up:
Botanical scent of gin. Crooked forest. Mildew, pine, mothballs. Corn on the cob. Pungent rot. Pink goo. Fresh bark. Rotting flesh. Motorcycle. 
  • Reality dating competition behind the scenes with a touch of satire
  • Pick Me competitor dynamics
  • Haunted or rigged?
  • Sapphic & close proximity romances
  • Sprinkling of crew drama, unethical production, throuple love, backstabbing, show in shambles hanging on by a thread
  • Isolated by weather
  • Medical horror, mysterious infections
  • Stay out of the woods supernatural survival thriller
  • Destiny, seance, messages from beyond the grave
  • Exploring love, resilience, and what makes a relationship thrive
  • Descent into madness
  • Third person narration, watching the scenes unfold.
 
Content Heads-Up: Family annihilation (rumoured; very brief recall). Alcohol (casual). Sexual content (consenting; on page). Co-dependent/toxic siblings, emotional incest. Alcoholic parent, family dysfunction. Institutionalized parent (psychiatric; brief recall). Chronic undiagnosed illness (autoimmune; very brief recall). Body fluids (blood, slime, injury, infection). Eye stuff. Corpse (death, loved one). Loss of parent (as child). Divorce (brief mentions). Body gore (after death). Patriarchal roles, expectations, entitlement. Fire (burns, forest). Foster care (brief recall).
 
Rep: American. Korean ancestry. Mixed race (Korean-White). Cis. Bi. Hetero. Ambiguous skin tones. 
 
πŸ“š Format: Library Digital
 
My musings πŸ’– powered by puppy snuggles 🐢
Expand filter menu Content Warnings