I loved this dark fantasy arc. But then again, I love anything to do with women getting their revenge on egotistical men who believe that they're entitled to a woman's affections. And after having to drag through the bloated middle part, the ending was totally worth it.
When I started reading this, I struggled with the writing style. Catherine's POV starts off around the mid-1800s and I think the author did really well with capturing the character's voice from that time period. For someone who's used to a modern-day tone of voice, it'll read like purple prose.
But 10% in, somehow it all clicked together for me, and it became easygoing.
I loved how the author easily switches writing styles between Catherine's and Angus's POVs. I think it takes real skill to have to switch from a modern POV to something much older and back again and so forth.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for the eARC of this title.**

While this book had a great premise and an amazing cover, I found the reading to be tedious and the story pacing just didn't work for me at all. At 500 pages, I felt like I invested a little too much time into this book for what I got out of the story.

Catherine's ghost was lovely and I enjoyed cheering for her as she found her way through Nautilus. Gus was the worst (on purpose,) but there was just a bit too much of him for this to feel like a revenge story. I didn't want to feel bad for Gus or his projections and his chapters took me way out of the story.

Overall, I think readers that enjoy a lot of character building and some solid world building will enjoy this book! The characters of Nautilus were definitely my favorite part of the whole book.

This was fantastical horror with dual POVs & timelines! This tale flowed effortlessly throughout, and the writing really pulls the reader into their world! Loved the villain in this so much! Would definitely read more by this author!

Imgur link goes to Instagram graphic scheduled for Feb 5th
Blog link goes live Feb 11th
Will be featured in January Reads pt 2

Can I say I enjoyed this book? No, I don't think I can. Will I still look for and try S.E. Porter books in the future? Probably. Let me explain.

This book has some fantastic ideas and the setup was great. Catherine, our primary PoV is a ghost, murdered and then tethered to her murderer. From here we see alternating points of view, both her past and her present. We also have the view of a man named Gus and how he is connected to Catherine while he is bent to this drive to find a mysterious ‘her’.

Again, love the setup and the initial 40% of this, I was super absorbed and sucked in. Unfortunately this was so bloated with so much unnecessary backstory and history that it really detracted from the story. Catherine suffers, both in the past and present, a relentless string of abuses. I was angry for her to begin with, she already deserved all the support and I wanted her to have her revenge already, so why did I need to see her treated so badly repeatedly? At 45% I was certain I was nearly done till I checked my actual pages/percentages and was flabbergasted.

So much of this was so strong but it floated like a balloon (or in this case like a wailing ghost) in circles for 200 too many pages. Because of this Catherine’s story just didn’t hit. I also wonder about the effectiveness of some of the other themes and statements that were touched on in the book as they felt like set pieces (likely due to the bloat).

So overall, yes. I love what S.E. Porter came up with here. I think with a tighter edit and some trimming this could have been a favorite. So I’ll keep an eye on this author moving forward and hope she continues to grow. Do I recommend this one, maybe not. But I think she is an author to watch.

A sorcerer obsessed with a young woman... an bloody obsessive love that spans history and multiple dead bodies. Gus loves Catherine, he loves her more than anything... loves her enough to murder her and trap her soul... to send projections of himself out into the world to seduce women who will return the love that Catherine denied... and if they deny him... they will suffer terrible consequences. Catherine was friends with Gus, but she never was in love with him the way he loved her. Yet he murders her before her engagement... and now she is trapped bound to him. But she will not lie waiting.. she'll wait, plotting her revenge against the man who destroyed her who was so obsessed with her that that she can't ever find peace. Can she kill him before it's too late? This book was a DRAG. I felt like Catherine being dragged on by Angus for years while reading this book. The story's pacing is so beyond slow and for a book that is 500+ pages, this book had me disassociating so much. Angus's constant "woe is me" chapters kept going on and on and on and I would absolutely prefer if we got more Catherine revenge plotline. The story itself is confusing, the constant jumping back and forth does not help at all and for a book about revenge and obsessive love, I was hoping I would love it but I so badly wanted to DNF it over and over but forced myself to read it until the end. This book is beyond slow and the plot drags on and on to the point where you begin to ask yourself what even is the point or what is even happening. Honestly for a book that is meant to be a dark historical fantasy filled with obsessive love and revenge, it sounds right up my alley... yet it's nothing like what I had expected or wanted. This book is for anyone who enjoys extremely slow paced stories and lots of time jumping and drawn out character stories.

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group, Tor Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Unfortunately, this was not the story for me. The idea of a woman haunting her murderer in a dark magic/gothic environment sounded really interesting. The frequent time jumps and point-of-view shifts just did not work for me. I always felt a step behind the story and was always a bit confused as to how the world worked. I did enjoy the writing style and felt that it accurately portrayed the time in which the book was set. If this story had been told solely from Catherine's perspective and given more of her backstory than just her association with Gus I may have enjoyed it more. Thank you to Netgalley and Tor for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

No lie, if the middle hadn't dragged so much, this would've been a perfect 5 stars.

I loved this dark fantasy arc. But then again, I love anything to do with women getting their revenge on egotistical men who believe that they're entitled to a woman's affections. And after having to drag through the bloated middle part, the ending was totally worth it.

When I started reading this, I struggled with the writing style. Catherine's POV starts off around the mid-1800s and I think the author did really well with capturing the character's voice from that time period. For someone who's used to a modern-day tone of voice, it'll read like purple prose.

But 10% in, somehow it all clicked together for me, and it became easygoing.

I loved how the author easily switches writing styles between Catherine's and Angus's POVs. I think it takes real skill to have to switch from a modern POV to something much older and back again and so forth.

I ended up really loving Catherine as an MC. She tries to make do with her situation in life (both in the past and the present), even though mid-1800s society doesn't give a fuck about women.

For most of the novel, she doesn't really have any agency. I thought I'd have trouble with that, but in her situation (she's a ghost tethered to her murderer), it makes sense. When she finally gains some agency in the last third of the book, it felt like a huge relief and I was rooting for her the entire time.

The author really knows how to write a despicable villain. Throughout the entire book, I was pretty fucking disgusted with Gus. And this feeling only grew worse and worse the more I read on. Talk about the jilted lover trope cranked up to the extreme.

I would've loved more focus on Nautilus, the magical city. We're fed bits and pieces here and there, and it seems like every citizen dislikes living in Nautilus to a certain extent. You'd think a magical city where no one ages and everyone has some level of magical skill would be really cool, but it sounds like another neoliberal shithole on Earth.

With all of the themes combined, this is such a depressed girlie book. It's so dark and creative. I'd love to read more from this author!

Thank you to Tor Books and NetGalley for this arc.

This book was really unique. Unique premise, unique magic system, and unique timelines and perspectives. I think the way that the multiple timelines were set up were really well done in particular. The main character of a book being a ghost, who has no hopes of returning to life or otherwise becoming more than a ghost is so interesting, and I came to like Catherine as a character far more than I thought I would. Even though she has very little agency for most of one of her two timelines, her commentary was so much fun to read. The magic system was pretty complicated, I think, but the way it was described throughout the story made it really easy to understand, allowing me to focus more on the commentary Porter is making about sexism, rape culture, and power. I also loved how Porter's narrative voice changed based on the time period the chapter was set in. Catherine spoke like an educated woman from the 1800s, and Angus spoke like a modern guy. This was so well done. The one gripe I did have was I think this book could have been about 100 pages shorter than it actually was. It dragged at certain points, and while the writing style was so enjoyable to read, I think some passages got a little more verbose than they necessarily needed to.

“There is nothing as utterly object as a corpse, its materiality distilled by the subject’s deletion. Gus, in short, had found me not object enough, and had amended that deficiency.”

Projections is part historical fantasy, part horror, with complex characters and a timeline spanning centuries. It is certainly not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but I enjoyed it fully. The narrative voice is very distinctive; this is a big part of what makes the triple timeline effective. I never got lost or confused, which is both difficult to accomplish and key for a successful multi-timeline story. Catherine is bold and opinionated and very offended at having been murdered. Her narration made me laugh just as often as it made me sad. This set of characters are so traumatized and flawed and a big part of the book hinges on these flaws. The reader won't--can't--always root for these characters. They say and do things on impulse or based on misguided opinions, but I found that they each rang true to life.

Here’s my one major complaint. This book is too long. Like, 150 pages too long. I’m not even sure what could be cut, but for how slow the pace is, I felt like 500 pages was just too much. There are also quite a few archaic and/or unfamiliar words used, which made me grateful to be reading an ebook where I could just click and see a definition. It does add to the historical aspect and sets Catherine apart from the new era she eventually finds herself in, but it also slowed down an already slow-paced experience in my opinion.

This is for the ones who love flawed protagonists, character driven stories, and are willing to sit with a character they may not particularly like for an extended amount of time. I had a fantastic time! I’m sure not everyone will. But, if you go into this experience knowing what to expect, I think you’ll be much more likely to enjoy the ride. 3.5 stars.

The last time I read a book as angry as <i>Projections</i> was Joanna Russ's <i>We Who Are About To...</i>, a feminist sci-fi novel from the '70s that pulled absolutely no punches and didn't give a fuck about who it flustered along the way. It gave me a taste for defiantly feminist literature, easily among my favorite books of all time.

<i>Projections</i> may not speak in the same voice, but it is crafted with the same language, the same evocative spirit. Beautifully, powerfully written, <i>Projections</i> is a dense, carefully sculpted masterpiece of feminist fiction. Its study of agency, authority, love, and toxic masculinity and misogyny is a virtual textbook of feminist allegory, with memorable characters and a chillingly elaborate voice.

Although the book is many things, it is also a showcase of Porter's absolute power in prose and voice. The book's story, told nonlinearly through three distinct "movements" of two voices from the past and one from a loose present, is excellently crafted and at times indistinguishable from its historical fiction influences. In spite of its occasional denseness of prose, Porter keeps a keen eye on the story's major themes and gives them ample space to unfold. It's also rare for me to feel like a book of this length is so coherent, but Porter again weaves in so many elaborate world-building elements that directly serve her allegorical goals that not any part of the book feels out of sync with what comes before.

Whether it be metaphors about power and how it is usurped and wielded to uphold misogynistic social structures or about how toxic masculinity blinds men to the very way they torture women and themselves, the book's ideas cover a broad range of concepts from modern feminism in a way that illustrates that patriarchy's problems have really never left--with the book's fictional city of Nautilus only further serving to illustrate how corruption only seems to build upon itself. <i>Projections</i> never forgets its point.

This book is an absolute masterpiece of feminist fiction.

This was unnecessarily long and overworked. The time jumps were messy and confusing. The characters were meh. The plot sounded very much up my alley but unfortunately I was not a fan of the execution of it. Not wasting anymore energy on this one.

Thanks to the publisher for an advanced copy.

Projections initially grabbed my attention with how unique the plot was and I genuinely believe this could become required reading in literature courses with how well written and dissectible it is. There’s so many layers to this story, and the nonlinear timeline slowly revealing everything was very well done. However, the writing style wasn’t my favorite and I found this to be extremely slow paced and hard to get through at times. This feels like a classical literary tale with fresh fantasy elements and societal critiques buried beneath the surface. Essentially, Projections gives me the vibes that it was written in the 1800’s. If you like literary fiction that feels like required reading, Projections would be a great pick for you! If you enjoy annotating and picking apart the deeper meanings and themes, Projections is a perfect fit. I think a lot of people would really enjoy this, it just wasn’t my favorite.

Thank you to NetGalley, Tor Publishing, and the author for providing an early copy - I’m leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to Tor & Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book early. I am thrilled to read books from Tor ahead of publications.

The premise with a murdered woman seeking justice and her murderer determined to have women accept him really sparked my interest. The mere idea left a essence of Handmaid's Tale in my mind. However, by one-fifth of the way into the book I sadly felt myself being pulled along like poor Catherine. The pacing feels very slow, and the world-building of the magical land Angus retreats to only comes in spurts. I love books with multiple povs, but I find Angus to be a truly unlikeable character without depth besides "woe is me" in his chapters. If the entirety of the story was told in Catherine's pov, I would be more inclined to read past 28% (about 130 pages of the expected approximately 460 page book). Even with Catherine's sections, though, my mind feels bogged down with confusion due to unlabeled time jumps and the obsessive Angus constantly present. For me to feel more invested in Catherine's revenge, I need to know who she is outside of her childhood or any association with Angus. Perhaps, if the book opened with that, I'd stick with it, but on the whole I find altogether sluggish, skippy in narrative, and full of negativity.

Readers who seek understanding twisted, obsessive characters like Angus might really enjoy this book, if they do not mind a slower pace and discovering the world & character motivations in short bursts. Unfortunately, I am not one of those readers due to the aforementioned reasons.

"S.E. Porter, critically-acclaimed YA author of Vassa in the Night, bursts onto the adult fantasy scene with her adult novel that is sure to appeal to fans of Jeff VanderMeer and China Mieville.

Love may last a lifetime, but in this dark historical fantasy, the bitterness of rejection endures for centuries.

As a young woman seeks vengeance on the obsessed sorcerer who murdered her because he could not have her, her murderer sends projections of himself out into the world to seek out and seduce women who will return the love she denied - or suffer mortal consequence. A lush, Gothic journey across worlds full of strange characters and even stranger magic.

Sarah Porter's adult debut explores misogyny and the soul-corrupting power of unrequited love through an enchanted lens of violence and revenge."

I mean, we all want to read about endless rejection right?

Thank you @torbooks for the #gifted copy of this book!

Oooh doggie this one was so good! It’s a chonker so buckle in for the ride. Completely worth it and actually read very quickly coming in at just under 500 pages. I would think this book was written specifically for any feminist friends out there.

We meet Catherine who is forever entangled to a man (Angus), and her childhood friend, that killed her simply because she wouldn’t love him back. Angus is such a frustrating character who seems to just take what he thinks he is owed and deserves. It’s a shame to watch such a terrible misuse of power! After Catherine he takes possession of yet another woman he felt he could. In the end after this sweeping story over time these women bounce back and enact the most sweet revenge!

I thought this book was such a uniquely written book that quite honestly made me realize I’ve never read one where the murdered was forever tied to the murderer! What a distinctive and special book! The writing was gorgeously done, the world was flawlessly built and the underlying themes of what “love” really is will make you come back for more! This is a new author for me and I am so lucky that so early in the year I’ve already found one I love! I can’t put into words how much I adored this book. Plus…that cover! 🥰

There is a lot I could say about this book. One comment I must say is the following: this book, this story, is unbearably and unnecessarily long. It’s, short of 500 pages long. This story could have been well under 400 pages, or dare I even say at most 300? Sigh.

It felt like it took too much of my time to read this book. I wanted to like it. It does seem to have qualities I enjoy: a world of magic, magical creatures, ghosts, real world references, and a FMC. What I didn’t enjoy: the length and drawn out back stories and character development, the antagonist and their side characters, the borderline love for a creature (such as an otherworldly odd mush mashed creature not like fae, ghost, or like to like mythological creature), and what is with the repetition of certain words that just seemed quite odd (not made up but seemingly archaic).

I like the idea of the plot and what could have been, but overall did not enjoy the delivery.

I hope that this author and their book find its audience. But I would not recommend this book based on the version available on NetGalley (which I am still appreciative of being able to read this story).

For a debut adult novel, Porter rocked it! This is a story of a lifetime of revenge and love. Being murdered and falling in love with your killer may seem odd, but not for catherine. She wants to help him and find the potential he has deep down in his heart to stop killing.

Thanks to NetGalley & Tor Publishing Group for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. Sadly, I dropped the book at 10% of the way through.

It's been a while since I broke my 20% rule. I give a book a good 20% of the way through before continuing or dropping it but this book was...way too confusing to keep reading.

The time jumps, lack of explanations, bizarre magic world, and unlikable characters...all contributed to my decision to let it go. There was also something about the meandering writing style that wasn't to my taste. Just an overall very bizarre book.

This is just really not my style. I found it long and confusing, but I know a lot of people will be really into this!

Catherine Bildstein has been murdered by her childhood friend, sorcerer Angus Farrow. Their life and afterlife are inextricably linked and keeps Catherine’s spirit alive long enough to seek revenge against Angus for what he has done to her.
Projections is a dark fantasy that will appeal to fans of V. E. Schwab.