Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Bright Young Women

"Sometimes I think The Defendant is just another old wives' tale. That law enforcement backed up his self-purported claims of brilliance to cover up their own incompetence -- in interviews they have the media, in testimonies they made before the judge -- and it all cemented from there, hardening into a generational truth passed down from mother to daughter. Consider this my own warning: The man was no diabolical genius. He was your run-of-the-mill incel whom I caught picking his nose in the courtroom. More than once."

This book did such a good job at demonstrating how the media and law enforcement have painted well-known serial killers as charismatic geniuses to cover up their own negligence. The way the author completely stripped away serial killer's identity by labelling him as 'The Defendant' perfectly conveyed how small he was. The author did not hold back in describing the misogyny, carelessness, and deceit that was heavily involved in this case which really goes to show how serial killers have had the spotlight for so long. It was satisfying that a book about crime did not glamorize the murderer or hearings in any capacity for once.

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brianna_moye's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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hanhantap's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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tigerkind's review against another edition

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dark hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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emma_vb's review against another edition

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dark inspiring mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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spicycronereads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Ack! Audiobook loan expired before I finished! So I ended up listening to most of this book and then having a pretty long gap between when I heard the last two hours or so. Thinking back to my initial listen and thoughts, I didn’t really find the characters likable. There was enough of a mystery to keep me engaged though.

It’s a thriller with no romance elements. The story is narrated from two points of view over multiple time periods. So that gets a little confusing. And then at the end suddenly there’s a male narrator which really felt like it came out of left field. A lot of the narrative hinges on women bonding together over the violence done by men and forming support networks among systems that failed them.

In terms of diversity there are a few lesbian characters. No racial diversity that I can tell. And obviously no spice or swooniness.

Overall, it was an entertaining listen. The mystery of how everything fit together and the larger themes of society failing women were pretty engaging. Don’t know that I’ll ever need to listen to it or read it again.

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madisonjordan5693's review against another edition

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dark inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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siaeme12's review against another edition

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4.25

This novel takes such a more victim-centric approach to true crime than we are used to and thank God for that. The story is a thinly-veiled fictionalization of real-life events, and I think that step away was vital to both sensitivity and impact of the novel. This isn't just a book about catching a killer. It's about humanizing the in elligent and powerful victims and those associated with them, acknowledging and calling out the all too common tendency for society to glorify these horrible men and their atrocities. This book finally shows in plain sight how pitiful these men are, and how incompetent law enforcement and -- above all -- gender stereotypes are the only reason they got away as long as they did. This novel made me angry in all the intended ways.

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