A chosen family literary horror that is the family I would choose in a heartbeat! This is punk, and deviant and full of 90s nostalgia. I loved it and I lived it! It was a visceral feast of the flossie that left me on such a candy high I felt just the right side of unhinged. I want to get my Freakslaw on!

This wasn't one I really connected with. Gave it a good go & the writing was excellent but somehow I just didn't really get into it - can't pin down a reason so probably just me but could not engage with the characters & didn't get the immersive feel I like in a good book

Thank you to the publishers and Net Galley for my advanced copy in exchange for a review. I found it funny and entertaining with some good plot twists . I did enjoy the book and would recommend it

Ooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh my freaky friends are going to LOVE THIS. I can just imagine if I had read this book before watching shows like AHS my brain would have literally EXPLODED

This was definitely something new and different for me. I was able to dive into this book pretty openinded and I'm to do so. It was very much not what I expected in a good way, although I feel I didn't click with it as much as some might and that's due to personal preference but the characters were definitely colourful and loud bringing their lives to my attention so hard I couldn't put the book down.

A fun, gothic horror that gripped me from the beginning.

I loved the writing style and I couldn't stop turning the pages.

I tried to keep this for the spooky season but couldn't resist.

A good all rounder that I'd highly recommend to any horror lover!

Thank you for the opportunity to read before publication.

Gothic and haunting. This book was everything I wanted and more. The writing style had me invested in the characters from the first to the last chapter. A wonderfully well written and executed book.

This book was everything I wanted it to be. I loved the writing, the story and the deviant cast of characters. It was exactly what I wanted when I requested it and I loved every minute

This was a gothic, haunting and atmospheric story that I couldn’t put down. It was gripping and engaging the whole way through with a level of suspense and unpredictability that added an extra layer to the storytelling. It was a chilling read that has stayed with me since I read it.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

http://thesecretbookreview.co.uk

Freakslaw - A travelling funfair of seductive troublemakers arrive in a repressed Scottish town. What could possibly go wrong? by Jane Flett is a hyperchaotic fever dream of delicious goodness that I can read over and over! It was just so much fun and as a huge lover of the Mighty Boosh, it was right up my alley! I don't know why it kept bringing the Boosh to mind, it just did!

Highly recommend, a very enjoyable escapade

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK, Transworld Publishers | Doubleday and the author Jane Flett for this stunning ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

A quiet Scottish town is rocked to its core when a circus/freakshow turn up during the night. The townspeople aren't so happy about this, in fact they're quite terrified. Curiosity soon wins out and they find that they can't stay away.

I will admit that I'm not a fan of circus literature, there's something about circuses that just gives me the creeps--though I suppose that for this particular book that was the point! Anyway, I found this one a bit...well, gross. But if you aren't squeamish and I like a bit of weirdness with your horror, this is for you.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy.

I’m not entirely sure what just read but it was chaotic and unhinged and I think I loved it 😂
It was like American Horror story meets The Greatest Showman but also felt like a dirty little secret 😅

This book is nothing other than pure unhinged chaos. It’s such a fun and wild ride that I honestly found myself laughing at some of the things that happened, even though I’m not sure they were all meant to be funny. I had a great time reading this book and it felt like watching a ridiculous comedy horror movie that’s made for pure entertainment!

There were a lot of characters in the book, and I found it a little hard to follow who was who for a while. I also found it harder to connect with any of the characters in this one, maybe for the same reason?

That being said, the cast of characters is certainly an interesting one. There is a disclaimer in the book regarding the use of the term ‘freaks’, but if you’ve ever watched the Freakshow season of American Horror Story, it’s very much that vibe.

Just like a fairground ride, this book will whip you in every direction possible and leave you grinning and wanting more. I would love love loooove to see this as a film!

I think I'm going to have to revisit this book again to review because my god; what beautiful chaos that I'm struggling to find the words for. It was very literary marmite (thankfully I love marmite) - a mysterious, magical and feverish dream of a story full of wonder and a stunning allegory for the otherness of queer people in society.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for the e-arc, all views are my own.

Very much enjoyed this one, was very atmospheric but also an interesting premise.

This book turned out to be everything I had hoped and more. The premise of a weird and wonderful freakshow infiltrating a neglected Scottish town grabbed my interest, but it was the pure (naked) poetry of Jane Flett's writing that took me by the throat and threatened never to let go. The pure lyrical filth of Freakslaw had me watching my own multi episodic TV extravaganza in my head and by the end I was desperate for season 2!

i’ve been sat for 30 mins trying to firmly rate this and i truly truly cannot tell if i loved this or hated it or both

set in a small town in scotland where everyone knows everyone, a freak show fun fayre rocks up and starts creating havoc amongst the residents albeit maybe not entirely of their own accord.

i think for a book that’s meant to be an allegory for us vs them, queer vs non-queer, “freak” vs “non-freak” it wasn’t exactly a revolutionary spin on the genre and i think that’s what my biggest issue was. at face value it’s an entertaining extremely weird read about strange people doing strange things and the way the town reacts to them. but it’s nothing below surface level and that i think is where it falls a little short.

however, i think for someone new to the genre it’s a great stepping stone, a toe in the pond, a worm in the mud (read it you’ll get it).

the characters were extremely intriguing - especially nancy who i could never fully work out. but i will say this runs into the issue every book with a character list in the front runs into and that is that some were introduced and under-developed. sure i didnt expect a full freak show to have a chapter for every performer but it introduced certain characters in a chapter as if they were about to get their own storyline and then relegated them to background noise for the rest of the book. i appreciate it almost had to be this way or else the book would’ve rivalled war & peace in left but i would have rather they just been background the entire time rather than one dimensional.

all this being said i did get through the last 50% of this is almost one sitting. like it was WEIRD but i ate that shit up!!!!

thank you for an ARC/free copy for review

This is honestly a whirlwind of a read. You get a real sense of being in a funfair with the ups and downs, a real sense of speed and bright lights and chaos. A small Scottish town is the perfect setting for this quirky and unique story.

Much to like about this intriguing book but somehow I failed to connect with the cast of characters. Loved the setting and the premise, the bizarre and the grotesque but despite this was left slightly detached from the characters, maybe that's best!

This booked ticket a lot of my boxes: unusual, set locally (I.e not USA) and weird in all the right ways!

A really enjoyable read, great pace and the most intriguing of characters. Would happily recommend to friends!