Upon re-read, I have no idea why I almost DNFd this.  Maybe just not in the right headspace, but this is still so amazing!  Everything else I said below is definitely how I felt during this second readthrough.  Bumping this from a 4.5 to a 5!

Well this was a rollercoaster of a read.  I started off almost DNFing it, then became intrigued, then horrified, and ended melancholic.  It was beautiful, frightening, and strangely magical, and also weirdly simplistic and complex.  I feel like I should have been on something to fully understand this story.  It was definitely too smart for me a lot of the time, but I still thoroughly enjoyed what I did understand!