Scan barcode
chloesumner1317's review against another edition
3.0
I absolutely adored the descriptions that Jaffe used in this book. The first few pages about the depiction of Jane in the rosebush was beautiful. However, the beauty didn't quite carry through the story as we were led on a pretty creepy journey. And since I read this basically in the middle of the night I was a little spooked.
Jane is a flawed main character. Not only are we getting her perspective of everything in pieces, as she remembers it, but she's kind of hallucinating at the same time. And then she has character flaws like always trying to please people, and being a really really good secret keeper, which is not always a good thing. And I got really annoyed at how she basically kissed every guy in the book, even as she was incapacitated in the hospital. Like, really? You're even REMOTELY thinking about that?
I could understand why Jane was upset with her mother, and how she felt like her mother was always putting her career in front of her family. Annie was adorable and how every 7 year old should be. Joe was a little questionable with his mob connotations but was an ok guy by me.
Side note: I HATE HATE HATE the Frost poem "The Road Not Taken" so this book got downgraded for using it
Langley and Kate always did seem a little off to me. Kate initially much more so than Langley, but the tables turned as we discovered that Langley had many more secrets to hide than Kate.
I applaud the bicuriousness presented in the work. Not many authors have enough balls to do that.
Ugh. All of the boys in this book were not attractive to me at all. David was a controlling stoner, Ollie was just crazy, Scott was SCARY and I never really liked his opinion on things, and Pete was just kind of off the whole time.
There were numerous plot twists I didn't see coming at all, which I appreciated. But overall the characters just didn't sit right with me.
Jane is a flawed main character. Not only are we getting her perspective of everything in pieces, as she remembers it, but she's kind of hallucinating at the same time. And then she has character flaws like always trying to please people, and being a really really good secret keeper, which is not always a good thing. And I got really annoyed at how she basically kissed every guy in the book, even as she was incapacitated in the hospital. Like, really? You're even REMOTELY thinking about that?
I could understand why Jane was upset with her mother, and how she felt like her mother was always putting her career in front of her family. Annie was adorable and how every 7 year old should be. Joe was a little questionable with his mob connotations but was an ok guy by me.
Side note: I HATE HATE HATE the Frost poem "The Road Not Taken" so this book got downgraded for using it
Langley and Kate always did seem a little off to me. Kate initially much more so than Langley, but the tables turned as we discovered that Langley had many more secrets to hide than Kate.
I applaud the bicuriousness presented in the work. Not many authors have enough balls to do that.
Ugh. All of the boys in this book were not attractive to me at all. David was a controlling stoner, Ollie was just crazy, Scott was SCARY and I never really liked his opinion on things, and Pete was just kind of off the whole time.
There were numerous plot twists I didn't see coming at all, which I appreciated. But overall the characters just didn't sit right with me.
cjmichel's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed this book! I thought everyone was guilty. For all of Jane’s plain name but unearned popularity, she sure had a lot of people with reasons to take her out of the picture. I never anticipated her past and present colliding, but what a reveal that was to be sure. I am now searching for more books from this author to get some more good reads for my shelves.
foreveryoungadult's review against another edition
Graded By: Meghan
BFF Charm: Yay!
Swoonworthy Scale: 2, 5 and 8
Talky Talk: 2 Legit 2 Quit
Bonus Factors: Boys!, Memento, LGBTQ
Relationship Status: College Boyfriend
Read the full book report here.
BFF Charm: Yay!
Swoonworthy Scale: 2, 5 and 8
Talky Talk: 2 Legit 2 Quit
Bonus Factors: Boys!, Memento, LGBTQ
Relationship Status: College Boyfriend
Read the full book report here.
andiabcs's review against another edition
2.0
Not at all what I hoped for as a reader. I wanted a real story, a real mystery with twists and turns. Instead I got a predictable one with cliche after cliche that went on entirely too long and was reaching at times. Jane was the one redeaming quality of the story and at times she wasn't even all that likeable. Her mother made me crazy, her friends were annoying and the guys she "liked" were random and not needed for the story at all. Romance was the last plot point Rosebush needed. Actually that is all the book was filled with...one plot point after another. Sadly not really anything I would want to get into again or suggest to anyone else.
pegahe's review against another edition
4.0
Oh my, what have I just read? Rosebush was a roller coaster of a read. It's a who did it story but it was done very well.
The main character was Jane, a plain girl who felt lonely and needy. She'd do anything not to be alone, even hurt her supposed friends. The truth was that Jane was not really alone. She had a wonderful family and friends who care for her but she couldn't seem to see that. When someone drove a car into Jane after some party, she started to question her friends, history, and her sanity.
Jane was a complex character. I didn't know whether to love her or hate her. She had so many needs and acted so weak, but she felt so real. What I liked about the characters in Rosebush was that they all had their reasons for doing something. They all had faults, but there were many good things about them too.
The story kept me guessing till the end. Seriously, I guessed 4 or 5 different people and until the end, I never got it right. The motive of the killer was a bit weird but they're insane which is clear. And the murder plan is well thought out. It's very creepy and interesting.
Overall, this book kept me flipping the pages and guessing. It's a bit of a psychological thriller but ultimately it's the story of a girl who needs to realize that the people she needs are already there. 4 stars,
****
The main character was Jane, a plain girl who felt lonely and needy. She'd do anything not to be alone, even hurt her supposed friends. The truth was that Jane was not really alone. She had a wonderful family and friends who care for her but she couldn't seem to see that. When someone drove a car into Jane after some party, she started to question her friends, history, and her sanity.
Jane was a complex character. I didn't know whether to love her or hate her. She had so many needs and acted so weak, but she felt so real. What I liked about the characters in Rosebush was that they all had their reasons for doing something. They all had faults, but there were many good things about them too.
The story kept me guessing till the end. Seriously, I guessed 4 or 5 different people and until the end, I never got it right. The motive of the killer was a bit weird but they're insane which is clear. And the murder plan is well thought out. It's very creepy and interesting.
Overall, this book kept me flipping the pages and guessing. It's a bit of a psychological thriller but ultimately it's the story of a girl who needs to realize that the people she needs are already there. 4 stars,
****
lpcoolgirl's review against another edition
5.0
I enjoyed this book, it kept me guessing till the end, I thought I had the bad guy figured out, and then the author just switched everything up for me! Loved it!
midnightbookgirl's review against another edition
3.0
Just a few pages into this book- reading it as part of a book blog tour. It's got a great hook in the beginning.
smlunden's review against another edition
4.0
Wow, I really did not want to put this down. The twists and turns of the mystery were so beautifully laid out, I had no problem ignoring all of the dreadful choices the main character kept making.