What Big Teeth

 

    Have you ever read a book and thought, 'I could have done this better.' 

    Well, this is the thought that crossed my mind once I finished What Big Teeth by Rose Szabo. 

    But don't get me wrong, I actually really like this book. I first read it as a paperback that I bought in Bar Harbor, Maine. We went there in the summer, and I had never been there before, but the town was a blast. Tons of little shops that we explored after eating the best lobster rolls at a restaurant that had seating on the docks. It was also blueberry season. The people I was with don't like blueberries, but I love them, so I enjoyed a slice of blueberry pie I bought at a blueberry stand on the water, while walking the main streets of Bar Harbor. 

    I still dream of this blueberry pie. I plan to return one day. 

    Among the candy, souvenir, and jewelry shops was a bookstore. The doors were wide open, like a mouth through which people filter in and out. So I went in. 

    The store was huge and crowded, but I went to my usual haunts that I'm always drawn to in any bookstore. Horror and then YA. 

    I could write endlessly about YA novels and the discourse surrounding the section, but for now, just know I like YA novels. They are just as important as any other genre.

    Something you should know about me as well is that I love werewolf books. Of any kind, really. Yes, I love monsters in general, but werewolves have always held a special place in my heart. (And before you ask, yes, I was team Jacob. But that's not the main reason I love werewolves.) 

    The cover is what drew me in. It's beautiful, gothic, and eerie. It reminded me of those old, nameless portraits you would spot in a thrift store or a historic house. The kind hat just slightly unsettles you, but you don't know why. And the rip with the sharp teeth perfectly shows the reader precisely what they need to know. 

    It's such a perfect cover. The artist is Aurora Parlagreco, who has done tons of covers for children's, YA, and even nonfiction. Just scrolling through her website, I couldn't believe how many covers I recognized! 

    I highly recommend looking at her website linked here:https://www.auroraparlagreco.com/   

    Now on to the book itself. 

    I like this book, I really do. I still own that copy I bought in Bar Harbor, and I listen to the audiobook once a year or so. (I use Hoopla and get it free through my local library; I didn't buy the book twice.)

    The shortest way to describe this book is supernatural family drama with a great atmospheric gothic tone. Rose Szabo has a unique quality to their writing. One I really like. 

    The characters are fascinating, and Rose Szabo makes you question what they are. It's clear what most members of the family are, but they never use the words 'werewolf' or 'witch'. When characters shift into werewolves, it's grotesque. The main character's grandmother is a witch; the family business is growing plants and making love potions (which was underutilised, but I'll get to that); and she reads tarot cards. But again, it's never explicitly said she is a witch. We know what they are, but the author shows rather than tells. It's perfect.

    But they still leave us wondering exactly what some characters are. We are shown their powers or abnormalities, but we are left guessing what they are. I really liked this, kept me guessing. 

    Elanor and her Mother/grandmother (her mother's mother)  are outliers. We know for sure that her mother is a creature from the sea, but not powerful, just deformed. 

    This family is dysfunctional. 

    Secrets are kept, people are favored, and the main character's father is an ass. The Grandmother, the matriarch, is a stern, mysterious character who haunts the narrative. And where the real story is rooted. 

    The atmosphere and the majority of the book build toward a gothic, supernatural family drama. And I was totally into it. Even if it was a bit slow going. Any soap opera is.

    But then the main character writes a letter to her other grandmother in France, her mother's mother, asking her to come. And everything with the family secrets (and the weirdo that is Arthur, but I'll get to that), the developing family drama, and character development was abruptly put on hold.

    The main character does the exact thing her grandmother said not to do, right as she died (like just out of nowhere), and invites an outsider into the house.

    I don't want to go beat by beat of what happens. I do recommend you read this book. But I will tell you the problems I had.

    As I stated before, the developing plot and character development are just put on hold, and not in a good way. It just drops dead (like Grandma Persephone). I just honestly hate it. I wanted more of the accident that sent Elanor away, of Rhys's implied queerness, of why everyone falls in love with Arthur, and what even is he? 

    If I had my way, we'd focus on the three cousins. Elenor taking the responsibility of the family business and home, and Rhys and Luna discovering themselves. Who they are outside of the family. They are the next generation, full of strangeness and grotesque magic. Will they continue the legacy or form their own path? 

    I do like that, Elanor, and we, as readers, see her powers, her regrets, and her confidence grow. She tries her best to 'take care of them'. We even see her stand up to her father, realize things about her parents' marriage, and questions everything. 

    I wanted that, but with her, her sister, and her cousin. 

    But that is dropped for an antagonist, then we are backtracking to find out what was up with the grandmother, grandfather, and Arthur. A troubled relationship and a murdered baby. In short. And witchcraft. 

    It's just too many switch-ups in one book. The author should have stayed in one lane instead of veering into eight lanes of oncoming traffic on the highway. It felt disjointed. 

    As I said before, many things were dropped or underutilized. Like the family business of love potions, I would have loved to explore that.

    But there was one thing in this book I did not care for: Arthur. 

    He is meant to be tied to the mysteries of the grandmother and grandfather, and to the first Rhys, who died as an infant. 

    But for some reason, everyone falls in love with him. From our main character to her father, sister, and cousin, everyone falls in love with him. It's acknowledged in the book that they do, for some reason, when we find out what happened between him and the grandmother. But it's never truly explained why. 

    What made this uncomfortable is that it's alluded to throughout the whole book that Arthur must do what the Zarrins want. That he gets no say. And that he probably hates every member of the family by default, and only Elanor can free him, but can't outright say that. This is the real horror of this book. 

    Arthur also takes up too much page time. I was way more interested in the cousins and family drama than everyone lusting after Arthur. 

    I again turn back to this thought: the author wanted to do too much and should have just written a separate book for the Grandmother, Grandfather, and Arthur's story. Yes, it's crucial to find out all these things towards the end, but it didn't fit, and I was honestly not super into it after everything I had read before. 

    Still, I really do enjoy this book. I read/listen to it every so often. It claws at the back of my brain, and I believe I know why. 

    What Big Teeth by Rose Sazbo had so much potential. It's what bothers me the most. 

    Thank you for reading. 

一 The Girl on the Slab Writes Back

    Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆