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colorcrystals's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Drug use, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Domestic abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault
clareolivia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Rape, and Murder
snoopyfanclub's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Rape, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Murder, and Abandonment
blueskyvibes1point0's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Grief, and Alcohol
Moderate: Eating disorder
novellearts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Drug use and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Rape
katiecummings1981's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Grief, Stalking, and Murder
Minor: Animal death
honey_coated_chapters's review against another edition
2.0
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Rape
astoriareader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
- Margot grew up in the Outer Banks in North Carolina, and she is starting her freshman year at Rutledge in South Carolina. Prior to starting college, her BFF, Eliza, died.
- In the summer before sophomore year, she befriends a trio of girls, Lucy, Nicole, and Sloane. She moves into their rental home, which the girls rent from a fraternity that’s adjacent to the rental.
- At the beginning of the book, there is a time jump to middle of sophomore year, where Lucy is MIA & something has happened to a frat boy next door. The police are investigating.
- What happened to Eliza, Lucy, and the frat boy?
- This is Willingham’s third book, and so far, I’ve read all three & love her writing style. This one, however, was my least favorite of the three.
- This was a slow burn with multiple timelines. The chapters are short & digestible.
- The characters weren’t very likable, and there’s a lot about toxic friendships.
- The ending was okay. It wasn’t bad, and it wasn’t great.
- Side note: the cover of the book was really pretty!
- I did think this was a compulsive read. I ended up finishing in one sitting because I wanted to see what happened.
- The reveal of the mystery about what happened to Eliza was predictable, and I expect readers of the genre to feel the same way.
- I enjoyed the book, and it is well-written.
Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Infidelity and Car accident
clairebonney's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.25
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Animal death is a deer and the description is extremely graphicjillwedemeier's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Still grieving from the loss of her best friend who died three weeks after their high school graduation, Margot spends her first year of college playing it safe, staying in, and studying. Margot has always been the shy, careful one—the sidekick, never the center of attention. At the end of her freshman year, Margot meets Lucy and is drawn to her magnetic, larger-than-life personality. Lucy invites Margot to live in an off-campus house with two other roommates, Sloane and Nicole. Soon, Margot and Lucy become close friends, and Margot begins opening up and getting out of her comfort zone. But then, in the middle of their sophomore year, one of the fraternity brothers from the house next door is murdered, and Lucy is missing without a trace.
I really enjoyed Willingham’s debut novel, “A Flicker in the Dark,” so I was excited to read this book, and it did not disappoint. The book started off slow and then picked up in the second half with so many twists and turns. It really kept me guessing, right up to the very end. The ending was completely unexpected, but everything fell into place perfectly and all the loose ends were neatly tied up. Willingham is a beautiful writer, and she has become an auto-buy author for me. Highly recommend!
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Infidelity