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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
Didn't blow me away, but I did like this a good amount and definitely think it's worth the read if you're interested! A dark little read.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
SAMANTHA PLEASE REPUBLISH I WANT IT ON MY SHELF
(Edit - I have it on my shelf and it is beautiful)
(Edit - I have it on my shelf and it is beautiful)
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a grim, dark, and disturbing story, told from the perspective of a young girl who is a serial killer.
It was interesting to see the descent into evil from a woman’s perspective, as this is usually a story trope reserved for men. This story reminded me of the movie Confessions of a Serial Killer (p.s. this film is far superior to the more well-known Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and I highly recommend you seek it out). It has the same bleakness, that gripping sense of dread that nothing is going to turn out OK no matter how desperately you wish it to.
I am a huge fan of the true crime genre; it will never not be interesting to read about how people go wrong, the extent of damage we can do to each other, even if the “why” is sometimes unexplainable. There is something cathartic to reading real stories like these, examining tragedy so we can hopefully find a way to avoid it in our own lives.
This novella, to me, did not capture the gritty realness of an actual true crime story. Though it is well-written, beyond the gender of the narrator, the plot didn’t offer a new story. It rehashes time-worn tracks that we know about killers—both real and fictional. Suzy and her brother, Lim, are abused—mentally and physically—by their mother from a young age. They know nothing but fear and anger, so of course they would turn to a life of crime, reflecting back what they know of the world. They are victims and this point can't be overlooked but as far as the narrative goes, it felt ineffective to me.
This story also reminded me of the difference between Stephen King’s The Shining and the Stanley Kubrick adaptation. In the book, Jack Torrance begins as a guy with a shaky past who is trying to make things right for his family, but he is slowly taken over by the hotel and returns to his vices. In the movie, Jack (Jack Nicholson) is crazy the whole time. There’s no character arc, and therefore it’s difficult to feel for Jack as a person. We really just root for his downfall.
I felt the same way about Suzy. She begins the book as someone with an evil outlook, that serial killer mindset, and it isn’t a surprise when she fulfills that role. What she endures is certainly horrible, but it doesn’t humanize her. It doesn’t make for compelling storytelling, to me. What I wanted to be left with was an internal struggle about Suzy. If she had been raised in a nurturing home, would she still have turned out the way she did? Or was it solely the violence enacted upon her that made her emotionally dead and violent herself? I didn't feel this struggle about Suzy's character and therefore wasn't invested in her. The narrative was more interested in the violence itself than the interiority and character development that makes fiction come alive.
My thanks to the author and Grindhouse Press for my copy of this one to read and review.
It was interesting to see the descent into evil from a woman’s perspective, as this is usually a story trope reserved for men. This story reminded me of the movie Confessions of a Serial Killer (p.s. this film is far superior to the more well-known Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and I highly recommend you seek it out). It has the same bleakness, that gripping sense of dread that nothing is going to turn out OK no matter how desperately you wish it to.
I am a huge fan of the true crime genre; it will never not be interesting to read about how people go wrong, the extent of damage we can do to each other, even if the “why” is sometimes unexplainable. There is something cathartic to reading real stories like these, examining tragedy so we can hopefully find a way to avoid it in our own lives.
This novella, to me, did not capture the gritty realness of an actual true crime story. Though it is well-written, beyond the gender of the narrator, the plot didn’t offer a new story. It rehashes time-worn tracks that we know about killers—both real and fictional. Suzy and her brother, Lim, are abused—mentally and physically—by their mother from a young age. They know nothing but fear and anger, so of course they would turn to a life of crime, reflecting back what they know of the world. They are victims and this point can't be overlooked but as far as the narrative goes, it felt ineffective to me.
This story also reminded me of the difference between Stephen King’s The Shining and the Stanley Kubrick adaptation. In the book, Jack Torrance begins as a guy with a shaky past who is trying to make things right for his family, but he is slowly taken over by the hotel and returns to his vices. In the movie, Jack (Jack Nicholson) is crazy the whole time. There’s no character arc, and therefore it’s difficult to feel for Jack as a person. We really just root for his downfall.
I felt the same way about Suzy. She begins the book as someone with an evil outlook, that serial killer mindset, and it isn’t a surprise when she fulfills that role. What she endures is certainly horrible, but it doesn’t humanize her. It doesn’t make for compelling storytelling, to me. What I wanted to be left with was an internal struggle about Suzy. If she had been raised in a nurturing home, would she still have turned out the way she did? Or was it solely the violence enacted upon her that made her emotionally dead and violent herself? I didn't feel this struggle about Suzy's character and therefore wasn't invested in her. The narrative was more interested in the violence itself than the interiority and character development that makes fiction come alive.
My thanks to the author and Grindhouse Press for my copy of this one to read and review.
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was excited to get a hold of True Crime, Samantha Kolesnik’s first novel, after all the 2020 buzz about the book. I’ll admit I was wary of it, as I’ve had very hot and cold feelings toward the press that published it. I’ve read some winners from them for sure, but I’ve also read some fiction that I didn’t understand or didn’t like. I know, I know, “Grindhouse” should give it away. It should tell me there’s a mixed bag.
Suzy and Lim are abused, tortured, and forgotten by their Mama and the world around them. After the straw breaks the camel’s back, the pair strike out on their own, no idea or design but to leave their old life in the dust. Can they escape what happened in their past? Can a new start erase the stains of the most low of humanity? Or does the nature of the abuse cycle reduce those in it’s grasp to food for the machine?
At first, about thirty pages through the short read, I thought, “This is not for me.” That’s okay, not everything should be written for me, and I like to read those things anyways to broaden my horizons. It’s the type of book where there are no redeemable characters or story lines.
Towards the middle of the book, things speed up and I began to feel more connected with the reading, more understanding, and like we were finally going somewhere. Suzy develops as her surroundings and influences change. I still struggled to empathize or even sympathize with our main character. Her observations are borne out of trauma, however I felt so down and hopeless. she has the opportunity to reach up, to change, to make some sort of forward movement, but it doesn’t really come to fruition.
I kept wishing that there was some action, development, connection that Suzy could make. We take two cautionary steps forward, then forty steps back. Lim is just about the most two-dimensional character that could be written. The constant observation that women are whores and all men destroy and hurt the world around them is never informed or changed in spite of Suzy’s otherwise shrewd mind.
This book upset me. I didn’t see any redeemable qualities to the story or characters even after finishing it. I think the point was to shock and dismay the readers, and leave the reader feeling like not all endings need to be (or can be) happy. I’m not a stranger to an unhappy ending, but I like for there to be some character movement, revelation, change, etc. There is none to be found in this except the highlighting of human depravity and sickness. However, I did think the writing was solid and will try to read Kolesnik the next time I have the chance. Three of five from me.
Suzy and Lim are abused, tortured, and forgotten by their Mama and the world around them. After the straw breaks the camel’s back, the pair strike out on their own, no idea or design but to leave their old life in the dust. Can they escape what happened in their past? Can a new start erase the stains of the most low of humanity? Or does the nature of the abuse cycle reduce those in it’s grasp to food for the machine?
At first, about thirty pages through the short read, I thought, “This is not for me.” That’s okay, not everything should be written for me, and I like to read those things anyways to broaden my horizons. It’s the type of book where there are no redeemable characters or story lines.
Towards the middle of the book, things speed up and I began to feel more connected with the reading, more understanding, and like we were finally going somewhere. Suzy develops as her surroundings and influences change. I still struggled to empathize or even sympathize with our main character. Her observations are borne out of trauma, however I felt so down and hopeless. she has the opportunity to reach up, to change, to make some sort of forward movement, but it doesn’t really come to fruition.
I kept wishing that there was some action, development, connection that Suzy could make. We take two cautionary steps forward, then forty steps back. Lim is just about the most two-dimensional character that could be written. The constant observation that women are whores and all men destroy and hurt the world around them is never informed or changed in spite of Suzy’s otherwise shrewd mind.
This book upset me. I didn’t see any redeemable qualities to the story or characters even after finishing it. I think the point was to shock and dismay the readers, and leave the reader feeling like not all endings need to be (or can be) happy. I’m not a stranger to an unhappy ending, but I like for there to be some character movement, revelation, change, etc. There is none to be found in this except the highlighting of human depravity and sickness. However, I did think the writing was solid and will try to read Kolesnik the next time I have the chance. Three of five from me.
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I can appreciate it for what it is, but this type of horror isn’t for me. Anything involving animals I skipped.