Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

You Should Have Left by Daniel Kehlmann

9 reviews

torihbu's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

a short sci-fi thriller about looping through time. a metaphor for rumination and being stuck in the past. very atmospheric and descriptive. you're right there wit the main character as they lose their grip on reality. the slow descent into madness fills you with sinking dread. read this in one sitting!

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clovetra's review

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challenging tense fast-paced
  • 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? It's complicated

2.0

what the hell 🔥
no but seriously. what the hell just happened
this is way too short of a book to understand wtf i just read
like im still wrapping my head around it, and honestly, i think i might have to read a couple of other reviews to try and understand what happened
like i get the narrator is in the dark. but therefore we are in the dark.
sure i felt the perpetual dread, but because the narrator is so god-awful at explaining what is happening, i had no idea.
like if you asked me what the ending was. i would have no response. because i don't know
sure that confusion may be some people's cup of tea. but not mine. i like to know what ive read.
anyways i liked the beginning. i did like how sentences sometimes finished in the middle and an entire new paragraph ended. the middle was pleasant. the ending was incredibly rushed. granted that's what you get for 114 pages but still. 
anyways um i actually cant say more because what can you say about a book so short!
i will say though i do want to try reading some of kehlmann's other works in the future. i generally did enjoy his writing! i just fear this was too short to be fleshed out in an appealing way to me.

edit (5/2/2024): i was too nice to this book so ive dropped it a star as i realised i didnt actually enjoy this at all

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smolfem's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25


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katiemack's review

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dark emotional mysterious relaxing tense fast-paced
  • 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

4.5

This is a short and (not-so) sweet listen for Halloween. The narrator's voice lulled me into complacency, making the eerie moments all the more terrifying. I am glad this leans more House of Leaves than Amityville Horror, though. 

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szyca's review

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challenging 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

3.75


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winsomefish's review

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-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

3.0


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kermit_the_wrong's review

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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madarauchiha's review

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emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

✨🌠 my about / byf / CW info carrd: uchiha-madara 🌠✨

Neat architecture horror, time loop except not quite loop thingie. I loved the prose and the symbolism produced, despite the brevity. I liked how they introduced the odd architecture of the house, it felt pretty natural and smooth to the narrative. I never saw the movie so I cannot say how it holds up against a different medium.

Content warnings

Medium infidelity, 

Major infidelity, toxic relationships, confinement


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srm's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • 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? It's complicated

3.75

A screenwriter with a rocky marriage takes his wife and daughter to a haunted vacation home. It's all pretty interesting, but I'm discovering that my attempts to go into books cold is leading to me reading stuff (horror) that I typically wouldn't. 

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