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lila__thesecrethistory's review against another edition
3.0
Confusing and unclear but intriguing and unsettling at the same time.
selenajournal's review against another edition
3.0
Curiosity had always felt, to him, like something you ought to be ashamed of, an accusing finger pointing out that there's something you don't know yet. -80%
It's not that nobody every gets away: that's not true. It's that you carry it with you. It doesn't matter that the days roll on like hills too low to give names to; they might be of use later, so you keep them. You replay them to keep their memory alive. It feels worthwhile because it is. -94%
It's in the nature of the landscape to change, and it's in the nature of people to help the process along; there's no getting around it. It's the same everywhere in the end. -97%
That's what pictures are for, after all: to stand in place of the things that weren't left behind, to bear witness to people and places and things that might otherwise go unnoticed. -97%
It's not that nobody every gets away: that's not true. It's that you carry it with you. It doesn't matter that the days roll on like hills too low to give names to; they might be of use later, so you keep them. You replay them to keep their memory alive. It feels worthwhile because it is. -94%
It's in the nature of the landscape to change, and it's in the nature of people to help the process along; there's no getting around it. It's the same everywhere in the end. -97%
That's what pictures are for, after all: to stand in place of the things that weren't left behind, to bear witness to people and places and things that might otherwise go unnoticed. -97%
jessiihaze's review against another edition
3.0
I couldn't put it down. The intricate story telling from 3 different eras. The late 90's, the 70's and "present day". The unknown "I" or narrator who would chime in with bits of clues to help us along, encourage you on as you're reading. I seen a video recommending this book as a Stranger Things withdrawal read and it did not disappoint. Jeremy works in a video rental store in his small town when he starts to receive complaints about some of the movie rentals.... Somehow someone has been putting their own video clips onto the VHS tapes and they're quite unnerving ...
frogsreadfantasy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-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? Yes
4.25
gilroi's review against another edition
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I think Darnielle is trying to do something very intentional with the pacing of this novel, the denial of closure and satisfaction, and it just does not work for me. I have other quibbles with its choices - for a novel about mothers, it seems to only be able to envision women as distant helpmeet who uphold the virtuous and unquestionable nuclear family - but all of those pale in comparison to how boring I found reading it. Danielle's prose is astoundingly good, but in service of what?
katelinpro's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
lori85's review against another edition
1.0
Never have I encountered a greater disparity between how a book is presented and its actual content. The blurb promised me a horror novel similar to The Ring; what I got instead was a dull, plodding attempt at a psychological portrait of life and loss in the bland small towns of the Midwest that never rises above being mere catalog of the goings-on of generic random people.
EDIT: Looks like I'm not the only one infuriated by the false advertising. I actually feel kind of bad for Darnielle in that regard. Authors usually can't control how their books are marketed.
EDIT: Looks like I'm not the only one infuriated by the false advertising. I actually feel kind of bad for Darnielle in that regard. Authors usually can't control how their books are marketed.
soyboygirl2000's review against another edition
3.5
as an iowan, i found the emotionally stilted characters and over-reliance on franchise chains to be perfectly authentic. the Spaghetti Works (RIP) dinner was fun for me. that said, i thought this book was slow and excruciatingly mundane (also authentic to the iowan experience) although i feel it would reveal itself further to me upon a second read. i do expect to give it a higher rating on my next go. we’ll see.
dirtnails's review against another edition
2.0
Part one was excellent, part two similar, but three and four????? Wow. What a dud.