Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Things We Do in the Dark

Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier

85 reviews

savvyrosereads's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Paris Peralta wakes up covered in blood next to her husband’s dead body, but her arrest threatens to reveal the secrets she has spent years trying to hide.

I read this as part of Love Struck Thrills Book Club and found it to be enjoyable overall. It wasn’t particularly “thrilling” (shoutout to Britni (@bitty_gets_litty on Insta) for characterizing it as a “crime drama” which I think is the best descriptor) but I was generally entertained for the entire book and that does go a long way. The characters were well-written and I thought the writing style was pretty engaging—I’ll definitely be checking out other Hillier novels.

That said, the plot was ultimately pretty predictable and I felt a bit “meh” about this one as a whole—I didn’t actively dislike it, but I wouldn’t quite say I actively liked it, either. Still, if you want a quick (and pretty dark) mystery read, this is probably worth a shot!

Recommended if you like: nonlinear stories with lots of flashbacks; slow burn mysteries; detailed character portraits

CW: Child abuse, including sexual abuse; murder/blood/gore; some discussion of depression/suicide/substance abuse; fire/fire injury.

Content Warnings

books_in_badgerland's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

5.0

“There’s a time and place for erect nipples, but the back of a Seattle police car definitely isn’t it.” The first sentence of this book.

“She was familiar with that smile; she’d seen it too many times. It was the smile monsters wore when they were pretending they weren’t monsters.” Eww.

Based on these two quotes, I can tell this book would be a hit for me.

I see why everyone raves about Jennifer Hillier. Wow! This book is hard to describe without giving too much away. The timeline shifts between past and present to discuss multiple deaths and some incredibly complex family dynamics. I love Hillier’s writing style! I felt sad, mad, creeped out, and satisfied at the end. I can’t wait to read more of her books! (5⭐️)

⚠️ Child abuse, physical/mental/emotional abuse, gaslighting, and I’m sure more.

Content Warnings

betterwithabookinmyhand's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Hot damn, what did I just read?! Things We Do in the Dark was deeply transportive and suspenseful! This is easily one of my favorite reads of the year. I now need to binge the rest of Jennifer Hillier’s books!

Paris Peralta is accused of killing her celebrity husband and now she has to prove her innocence while protecting the dark secrets in her past.

The writing, the pacing, the plot—chef’s kiss. I listened to this as an audiobook and I never questioned where the author was going with the story, I was along for the ride and nothing distracted me or pulled me out of that fixation.

The plot is just so artfully laid out. There are dips into the past that are even more fascinating than the twisted present. I had a hunch on one of the big reveals but then Hillier had two more up her sleeve that were vengefully sweet and I did not see coming!

Definitely a high, high rec for me!

Trigger warnings: child abuse, rape mentioned but not graphically described

Content Warnings

maria1085's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was such a great thriller! I read this as part of a group buddy read with @adosenbooks and it was so much fun. Even though I didn’t finish in time for the chat I loved reading what everyone else had to say about the book. This book was fast paced with lots of twists some more predictable than others. It hooked me from the beginning and I got excited every time I picked it up to see what happened next. There are many trigger warnings for this book so make sure you check those out before reading. Even though a lot of the characters were unlikeable the story and plot kept me interested. I really loved how Jennifer Hillier developed the story and the writing was tense and well done. Perfect book for spooky season! This was my first book by this author but it won’t be my last!

Content Warnings