Book Review: Feminist Horror

So Thirsty by Rachel Harrison

Published: September 10, 2024

Summary from Goodreads:

Confession:

This book was so hard to put down once I started it. I had planned on both listening to it and reading it, but I found myself just sitting and reading it for the most part, because I just couldn’t stop! I did listen to a little bit of it at the beginning, and I could tell that the narrator, Brittany Presley, did a fantastic job, so I would recommend that you pick that up if you like audiobooks.

“I don’t really desire my life, but I’m reluctant to leave it. There’s comfort in the mundane, safety in the routine. In waking up and knowing exactly what my day will look like.”

I really like Sloane and could relate to her so easily. She is unhappy with her life, her job is boring, her husband cheats on her, but she is so stuck in wanting to be safe and secure that she has forgotten how to live. She is also not happy about how her body is feeling as it ages, and haven’t we all been there at some point in our lives? Like many women, she is afraid of not being seen, or making her life important to others. But then of course she has Naomi to make it all worthwhile. Their friendship is the core of this book, and while it is fraught with issues, they have a true ride or die kind of relationship.

“I’m sure to him, or any other outsider, it sounds like we hate each other, like we’re in some vicious fight, but this is a form of unconditional love, of release. We gift each other the freedom to gnash our teeth, to growl and gnaw, behave badly, be terrible, because we’ll love each other through it and no one else will. Because this ugliness is not permitted anywhere else. At least not without consequence.“

Although Naomi was a bit harder to like, I totally got where she was coming from. She is also having issues with her boyfriend and isn’t happy in her life. But instead of staying the course of what is comfortable, she goes the opposite way. She is totally about living life to its fullest with very little self control. This lack of self control is what gets them into so much trouble, especially after they are turned. A lot of people might think their relationship is toxic and in some ways it is, but their relationship is honest and they recognize the flaws in themselves and each other and yet still love each other to the end.

“‘You remind me of what it once felt like to step into sunlight,’ he says. “To feel warmth. To experience true brightness. All that’s tangible and intangible.“

Now we come to the vampires and to the romance. Henry is the vampire who totally gets Sloane and really wants to be with her. I liked him, even when he was being a bit on the creepy side. I totally got the attraction between them and was rooting for Sloane to wake up to it to. I really respected that he didn’t want to turn her either, until he had to in order to save her life. The vampires are not really fleshed out in this story, but I was ok with that, because this wasn’t really a vampire story. But I liked them all, even when they were being flaky and not helping Sloane and Naomi cope with their new lives.

“Aging isn’t just about our bodies decaying while we’re still inside them. It’s about living with the accumulation of experiences. The heavy burden of the ugly ones, the longing for the beautiful.”

The story is so well done. The pacing was perfect and the actions sequences were well done. I don’t want to go into the plot too much, but there is a lot of mayhem that ensues after they are turned, especially because Naomi has little self control when it comes to her thirst. I loved watching Sloane learn to embrace who she truly is and to learn that her new life might not be so bad after all. There is some gore and horror, but it is not as bad as other horror books. But if blood and people being torn apart isn’t your thing, then this book isn’t for you.

In retrospect this isn’t really a vampire story. Yes there are vampires in it, but they are not the focus of the story. The changes that both Sloane and Naomi go through to accept who they are and what they want out of life as well as their friendship is more what this story is all about. If you have enjoyed the other books by this author, than this is one you need to read as well. I have only read one other book, Cackle, but enjoyed that one as well. I hope to read some of her others sometime in the future. This is a book I do recommend especially if you like stories about sisterhood and ride or die friendships. Oh, and of course the vampires.