This book has been on every single rec list I've seen for horror and even just general rec lists for /years/ now. I keep hearing about it. I finally decided to give it a try and forced myself not to DNF it, because the only slightly negative thing I'd heard was that the first half was a bit of a slog, but it was worth it because it picked right up after that. It did not pick right up, which left the twist (if you could call it that) and climax feeling abrupt- if something so boring and predictable could be considered abrupt. Even if it HAD picked up after the first half, the whole first half of a book, especially a horror, is way too long for a story to grab the reader. That's not justifiable. The first couple chapters, maybe. But Not the whole first half.

This book was the most deeply, thoroughly middling story I've read, possibly ever. I normally reserve one-star ratings for books that are very poorly written, or that I actively, seriously hated. There was nothing egregiously wrong with this book- there was nothing egregious about it in any way. I didn't hate it- it didn't make me feel anything. Even the scenes involving the actual body horror elements and were written with this weird air of detachment that made them seem no more disturbing than anything else. From a genre and trope standpoint, this book is a horror, but I wouldn't even call it disturbing, let alone horrific. There was no real chemistry between the romantic leads- I was being told there was, but I wasn't being shown. The dialogue was inconsistent and in many places made the entire book feel anachronistic to the period it was set in.

The review blurb on the front cover of this book uses the adjectives masterful, gloriously moody, spooky, smart and wry. The blurbs on the back of the book use words like captivating, atmospheric, tense and suspenseful. I want to read the book those people were talking about because, in my opinion, it wasn't this one.