For fans of dark fantasy with a nuance of horror, Shades of Rust and Ruin is sure to satisfy. A.G. Howard creates a world and setting that is always a little chaotic, unsettled, and unpredictable for both the characters and the reader, and while it is not a homage to Alice in Wonderland, it does give off the same vibe in style. (A.G. Howard already has a New York Times Bestselling Wonderland Series.) The author threads the needle on the appropriate amount of foreshadowing while keeping things incalculable.
Howard’s writing style is intensely descriptive and detailed in its world-building, and the cadence of her word structure is a little unique and of a higher caliber than most, requiring some attention from the reader. Told in first person present tense, the book covers only a couple of days and ends with a cliff-hanger and set-up for the next book. Not cookie-cutter by any means, this is a book definitely worth a read and will appeal to a variety of genre-lovers since it has elements of fantasy, gothic, steampunk, action, and horror.
Review of a copy provided by Bloomsbury YA
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 1 religious exclamations; 1 mild obscenities; 2 anatomical terms.
Violence/Gore: Report of death of family members; description of drawing of dark, graphic novel scenes depicting acts of violence and blood; report of fistfight back in elementary school; gruesome costume; character hits their head; description of fantastical and somewhat gruesome images; frightening scenes; character appears to saw off face with a dagger but instead of blood there is shimmering glitter; frightening pendulum scene where characters are in danger of being cut/killed; dog bites character’s nose; mythical characters attack another fairy; description of mythical creatures from graphic novels; characters are attacked, grabbed by mythical characters; report on past event where character was jumped and beaten up with severe injuries; characters are captured; verbal threats of harm; threat/attempt to slit one’s own throat in a confrontation; character’s shoulder is crushed and they are put in an Iron Maiden; mystical creature’s claws bore into someone’s skull drawing blood; cut hands to use blood for magic; description of oil and blood; characters imbibe blood of a mythical character.
Sex/Nudity: Character grabs another’s hand; character wants to run her hands through another character’s hair; character is attracted to another; characters hints at there being romantic feelings between them; characters press together and begin to kiss.
Mature Subject Matter:
Death of family member(s), addiction.
Alcohol/Drug Use:
Edible item with magic properties.
