Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - The Girls in the Garden

Definitely not my favourite book by Lisa Jewell. The second half - ‘after’ the crime was much pacier and better than the first half. But I didn’t find myself invested in the characters and there were some loose ends that didn’t quite feel resolved for me.

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pippamillerxoxo_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious slow-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

4.0

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hkburke2's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-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? Yes

2.75

I loved the map and the setting - very atmospheric and cozy. I did not like the way the characters were described (a child could see another child's green eyes from across a backyard/garden?), and it seemed like big issues were not handled through to completion.

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kenmorxo's review

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The book really did have me asking "whodunit" alot but the more I got to the end the more I found myself saying "umm no way. This isn't enough. What!" and I think that's why I couldn't give it a full 4. It is however a really good book and something to think about when reflecting on your life and how you interact with neighbors.

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dalmavatai's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Unsurprisingly, I really enjoyed my fourth Lisa Jewell and she's absolutely become a go-to mystery/thriller writer for me! The characters and their relationships are well developed and interesting to read about, and you feel for each one of these characters in the Garden. I liked the past mystery interwoven with the present one, and enjoyed that we get multiple POVs, mostly from Adele and Clare but also from Pip and Grace, and we also get to see the letters Pip writes to their dad which were really sweet and heartfelt.

I do wish the pacing had been done a bit differently, there was a LOT of setup, much of which was needed, but maybe it could've been shortened just a tad bit so that we could've gotten more at the end. I liked the resolution though, and especially enjoyed the way that we kept going back and forth between the past and the present towards the end which created a really frantic atmosphere where you just wanted to get to the truth.

It was a bit slow paced, especially in the first half, which is why I didn't enjoy it as much as I could've but honestly this book made me really excited to get to more of Lisa Jewell's backlist!

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