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oliviaclaire's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
I have generally had a very positive experience of Ruth Ware and really enjoyed both The Turn of The Key and The Death of Mrs Westaway but unfortunately The Lying Game just didn't do it for me. This one is a slow burn but unlike the last book I read (The Glass House), this one drags. I found myself flicking forward through pages to see how much further I had to go and wondering when things would begin to pick up pace, which they didn't until quite a rushed conclusion.
My second gripe is that Isa as a main character is just not a likeable woman, she's obsessed with herself and her baby and cares about little to nothing else except for her toxic friendships. Having said that, even these still take a back seat to pages and pages on her holding and feeding her baby at various intervals. (I should caveat this point with the fact that I'm not a mother, so maybe this 'new mum' obsessive paranoia is supposed to act as an important facet of her character or a plot point of its own but it doesn't seem to come to much.) She also takes no personal responsibility, getting incredibly angry at her boyfriend and the father of her child for accusing her of being distant and possibly having an affair when she disappears to the coast for a few days out of nowhere to visit friends she hasn't seen in 17 years and then is incredibly irritable and evasive on her return, even when she is then sent random roses by her childhood crush. It's capped by the fact that she does indeed end up having the affair he suspects her of with said childhood crush and feels no remorse for it whatsoever...
All in all, I really wanted to enjoy this book but unfortunately it didn't have the clever twists and dramatic reveals I'm so used to from Ruth Ware and instead felt like a long book about quite a short and simple story.
My second gripe is that Isa as a main character is just not a likeable woman, she's obsessed with herself and her baby and cares about little to nothing else except for her toxic friendships. Having said that, even these still take a back seat to pages and pages on her holding and feeding her baby at various intervals. (I should caveat this point with the fact that I'm not a mother, so maybe this 'new mum' obsessive paranoia is supposed to act as an important facet of her character or a plot point of its own but it doesn't seem to come to much.)
All in all, I really wanted to enjoy this book but unfortunately it didn't have the clever twists and dramatic reveals I'm so used to from Ruth Ware and instead felt like a long book about quite a short and simple story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Addiction, Eating disorder, Self harm, and Terminal illness
daralexandria's review against another edition
dark
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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Alcoholism, Addiction, Suicide, Grief, Eating disorder, Death of parent, Death, and Self harm
Minor: Terminal illness and Cancer
ellalafontant's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Suicide, Terminal illness, and Violence
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Self harm, Blood, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Grief, Incest, and Islamophobia
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