Tell Me I'm Worthless is a fascinating, complex, dark book. The narration on the audiobook is wonderful. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and the story.

Amazing how 1 night can change your life forever! I really enjoyed this book. Plenty of suspense, darkness and surprises. I love old house settings, especially when secrets are lurking around.
*Thank you, NetGalley, for providing this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.*

I liked where this was going but it became too MUCH at a point. Almost as though the author is there grabbing my arm while pointing and saying "see what I did? do you get it?"

Unfortunately I don't think this book was for me. I found the way it was told to be confusing and had a hard time following it. I appreciated the social commentary, think the author did a good job with this.

I was really hoping for a scary read, it calls itself a haunted house story, but I really didn't feel the horror. There were a couple moments but not enough. I think it's more of a slow burn trauma than a haunted house. When I stop looking at it from the lens of a haunted house story, it's a really good powerful story.

The writing itself it good, very metaphorical and poetic. The narration was really good as well, Nicky Endres really kept me hooked and was a perfect person to bring the story to life.

3.5 stars

I think this book would be great for some people but it just wasn’t for me. I had a really hard time relating, following and getting into this book. I don’t think the book was bad, it just wasn’t for me.

"Ghosts are born from trauma and violence."

So. I went into this not knowing what Transgressive Horror* is. And was like. Well. I'm in the mood for some scary shit and social commentary. And the Transgressive Horror transgressed I guess. I spent the last section of the book truly very horrified, hand over mouth, GASPING as I listened to this audiobook. Like if you are not ready for drawn out, extensive, body horror and rape please do not read this. Like, did the book do what it set out to do? Yeah, I think so. Did I like it? NO. This was not for me as much as I wanted it to be but I still think it's a great new edition to the horror genre. How the story is told in bits and pieces, from different perspectives, and kind of jumping all over the place along with some dizzying repetition made for a gripping read. I just did not want to be gripped lol.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my ARC!

*"Transgressive horror shatters cultural norms with prolonged representations of desecration, agony, and abjection. Such fictions, along with their authors and fans, are often accused of deviance, if not sheer tastelessness. Through its very excesses, transgressive horror subverts the cultural distinctions governing taste itself by calling into question what is and is not acceptable to show." (sounds cool but I'm not ready)

This one was a tough read for me at times and I also had to sit on it for a moment before I could really articulate how it made me feel. I love haunted house horror, and this went so much deeper that just that. I think the marrying of the concepts that Rumfitt had going was a challenge, but I also think it was effective. There were a lot of cultural references that I am not sure will age well, and I think that the style of prose takes some getting used to, but I also think that the book itself is important and I think its worth reading. I believe this is a debut and I am looking forward to seeing what else this author has to offer in the future.

Tell Me I'm Worthless follows two former friends, trans woman Alice and TERF Ila, whose lives were forever altered by one night in a haunted house. Both are incredibly unhappy and traumatized by what they experienced, and the fact they were forced to abandon their other best friend Hannah in the house. Ila degrades trans people publicly and experiences the shame and consequences of interacting with hate groups, and Alice spends her days partying and selling porn that includes degrading herself for the tiniest compensation for survival. It is clear that the hatred in the house followed them out. They decide to return to try to reclaim their lives and possibly save their friend.

I really enjoyed the first half of this book, it was rich with descriptions and there was one horror scene that was IMPRESSIVE and I can't say I've ever seen a possession like that, but it went a bit downhill and got a little confusing as it went on. It got to be a little draining with the constant trauma and hate speech, and I wish I could read trans/LGBT horror that doesn't have to absolutely torture its characters. Even the "happy ending" was so hateful. I think it is worth a read and really has a lot of important points, but it is NOT a gentle read. I think it is better read over text, although there was nothing wrong with the audiobook, the poetic portions and "internet discourse" come across better visually because they can get very confusing. I think this is the portion where a lot of people were saying this book is "the most internet thing they've ever read," because there is a lot of talk about online message threads, hate speech, and terms that are pretty much solely used online in TERF discourse.

There are many, many trigger warnings. These characters go through absolute hell and back, multiple times. Some trigger warnings include hate speech and nazi symbols, transphobia and homophobia, racism, sexual assault and false sexual assault allegations, physical gore, and terrorism.

Tells Me I’m Worhtless is a story written by Alison Rumfitt about a haunted house story about anti-trans rhetoric and fascism. Is this book dark, yes. Is it unsettling, another yes. Was this book heavy on social commentary, yes and I was here for ALL of it. A very gruesome horror novel that’s full of triggers.

This audiobook was gifted to me on NetGalley by Macmillan Audio and it was a banger of a performance. The narration was awesome and the audio effects were terrifyingly chilling. I love a good horror book. This one came serving me with everything I love. This book was creative and oh so unsettling. Thanks again for this gifted copy in exchange for my honest review. This is a gothic horror novel you do not want to miss. Happy Reading.

I think the perspectives were a lot for me. I really wanted to love this book but I just don't think I was in the right frame of mind maybe for it. Otherwise the writing was fantastic and the themes felt right, but the execution was a bit of a miss for me.

Thank you Net Galley for providing this book and allowing me to read it in advance. I was unable to personally get into this book but that is the power of reading. There’s books for everyone. I know someone else will adore it!

I tried to read this book a few times and for whatever reason, I just couldn't get into it. I did not finish it so I have not posted a review elsewhere.

‘Tell Me I’m Worthless’ is hands down the best haunted house story I have ever read. Rumfitt is unafraid to get completely raw and honest, and the result is a perfectly uncomfortable execution of using horror to face the worst of the world. With two unreliable narrators and a sentient, malicious house— all scarred and warped by the horrors in all sizes they have faced— there is no lull into a false sense of security, no relenting of the ugliness both real and supernatural. ‘Tell Me I’m Worthless’ is not for the faint of heart, but for those unflappable enough to make it through, it is a brilliant, poignant, and all too relevant look at the horrors of the modern fascism, bigotry and the self.
As an audiobook, Nicky Endres’ narration is appropriately haunted and only lends to the tone the prose sets.

I highly recommend this book but also strongly encourage prospective readers not to skip the trigger warnings before diving into it.

Thank you to netgalley, the author, and Macmillan Audio for an opportunity to read an advanced listening copy in exchange for an honest review.

I appreciate Netgalley, the publisher, and author for an advanced copy in exchange for a non-biased review.

Tell Me I'm Worthless is a trans horror fiction novel that left my jaw on the floor. This novel is a testament to Alison Rumfitt’s ability to craft a truly horrifying and poignant story.

This novel demonstrates the devastating effects of modern fascism and oppression on both individuals and society, while also highlighting the dangerous power of social media to fuel hatred.

The audiobook narration was exceptional, with the narrator's range of voices being particularly impressive when it came to voicing the "haunting" presence throughout the story. As someone who is not part of the LGBTQIA community, I was initially concerned about the representation of these characters, but after doing a Google search, I was relieved to find that both the author and narrator were members of the community themselves. This added to the book’s authenticity for me.

I typically avoid horror books as I don't find them scary, dreadful, or sinister, but Tell Me I'm Worthless checked all of those boxes and then some. The atmosphere created in this novel is suffocating at times but in a way that makes you want more and the writing is surgically incisive while lyrical, pulling the reader into the story and refusing to let go. This is an excellent work of literature that I highly recommend to anyone looking for a thought-provoking and spine-chilling read with the bonus of supporting LGBTQIA authors and narrators.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* This was, a very vulgar book lol i would normally not say that, i swear often but some of the phrases were uh wow lmao, good read though and definitely super creepy! Would recommend to certain ppl

I tried the physical and audiobook of this thriller/horror novel and could not connect with the writing. I will not be finishing this one.

I really wanted to get into this one but the spooky aesthetics of it maybe were just a little too much for me. Glad for the representation in this one, and I feel badly I wasn't able to get into it!

Where's the horror?!!

I felt like I read an entirely different story than what was described in the write up. That is my main problem with this book. It really should have been labeled under social justice and LGBTQ as that's what it is actually about. As a result, it lost me. I was looking for good old fashioned horror and felt swindled.

The horror bits were too few and far between, and when they were around, the way the haunted house was personified, just didn't work for me.

There is a trigger warning at the start of the book as there were a lot of graphic sex scenes. Some made sense, some didn't.

And lastly, the author used a lot of metaphor in her writing. At times, I just couldn't relate to what was going on or the point being made. I felt disconnected from the plot as a result.

This book did not work for me on a few different levels. I feel like some readers will like it much more than I did, particularly if they are okay with a heavy dose of political activism and graphic sex.

I received an advanced audiobook from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book carries every possible trigger warning, but for those who have the fortitude, it is a brave and fascinating exploration of identity, community, and historical trauma

Tell Me I'm Worthless is bleak and violent. Typically, this would have been a DNF for me, but the audiobook narrator kept my attention, so I powered through.

The problems I had with it: The first chapter with the house was creepy and compelling. I wish it could have stayed with this tone. On top of that, it feels like the author thinks the readers are complete idiots and can't figure out what the book is about without said author spending considerable time telling you what the book is about. It struggled with pacing throughout and the writing wasn't mesmerizing in any way. So many of the descriptions were I understand what the author was trying to convey but it really didn't bring it to life for me. There's no nuance. It's many, many, many pages of the author smacking you over the head. I'm obviously not the targeted reader as there are plenty of reviews of people absolutely gushing over this book. Ultimately, it just wasn't for me.