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nialiversuch's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Infidelity, Body shaming, Death of parent, Death, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Mental illness, Violence, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Classism, Cursing, Misogyny, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Alcoholism
Minor: Vomit
naturally's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
i'm dying to read more feminist thrillers now!
(there were a few minor details stopping me from giving TFWDTOF 5 ⭐s...mainly that
Graphic: Alcohol, Murder, Violence, Misogyny, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Sexual content, Suicide, and Classism
Minor: Medical content, Xenophobia, Pedophilia, and Vomit
aliyachaudhry's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Sexual assault, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Sexual content, Violence, Suicide, Infidelity, Murder, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Animal cruelty
iemilia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
It had an interesting premise and I was going into it thinking it would potentially by a 5 star read but unfortunately it didn’t wow me and all in all fell a bit flat
Graphic: Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Suicide
caitdonlew's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Vomit
vanillanightmare's review
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Toxic friendship
Moderate: Suicide, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Grief, Emotional abuse, Stalking, and Murder
Minor: Vomit, Torture, and Sexual assault
mothumn's review against another edition
3.0
A compelling and dark story of all consuming toxic female friendships set in an academic setting, with many twists and turns.
From the beginning I really enjoyed reading about the friendships between the girls, the depiction of toxic friendships between girls felt so eerily familiar, with the snide petty remarks, backhanded compliments, and yet a total obsession with each other. I thought it was so well done and was extremely realistic, however I felt like it was missing the part about why they were so obsessed with each other in the first place. I often felt like I was simply being told things without being shown it and just had to trust that it was true.
This friendship is the main driving point for the book, as you may have inferred from the books title, and although there is actually a plot outside of just there obsession with each other, I was mostly interested in them. Because there was so much focus on this other plot, especially in the last two parts of the book, it left me wanting more of the first part, and so the book did slowly lost my interest.
However, that's not too say I didn't enjoy it or that it was bad, it's just that I was wanting something different from the book, something that from the first part the author had shown she was capable of. It's an interesting literary thrilling with shocking twists that I didn't see coming and kept me hooked (even if I did lose some steam towards the end). As far as thrillers go, I actually liked it quite a bit and would definitely recommend. If you liked the group aspect of Mona Awad's Bunny but didn't enjoy the absurdity and also like thrillers, then this might be the book for you. However if you’re looking for a dark academia read as I’ve seen this grouped in with, you are going to getting much more dark than academia as only in the beginning there is only a few scenes that take place in that setting.
I am interested in what this author writes in the future and even though this wasn't necessarily for me I am looking forward to her career.
Please note content warnings for this book because there are definitely some that a lot of people may find difficult to read about.
Moderate: Suicide, Toxic friendship, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
Minor: Addiction, Confinement, Pedophilia, Stalking, Vomit, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Animal death
atsundarsingh's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
*Thanks NetGalley for a copy in exchange for review* This novel is due out 10 Jan 2023.*
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Torture, Child abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Suicide
jos_haunted_library's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The book for me was a slow burner for sure but it allowed to understand how Clare always had the need to re-invent herself and it increases how intoxicating it is as you read it. As she meets a new group of friends she tries to find her way to fit in despite the clear differences in lifestyles, and secrets…
The book is well written, I love how to gives the dark and gloomy ambience typical to Edinburgh. The characters are well written and the plot is nice and intense. An excellent debut!
I would definitely recommend checking for trigger warnings before hand as it has some heavy themes such as SA, m*rder and su*cide.
If you like the toxic friendship trope meets thriller I really recommend this book. Although if you don’t like slow paced books you might struggle a bit.
Thanks NetGalley and the author for this eARC.
Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Vomit
_bookishbella's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The Things We Do To Our Friends has all the right elements:
🤔an unhinged and not-quite-unreliable-but-definitely-untrustworthy main character
😈a seemingly impenetrable group of mysterious and complex rich kids who will stop at literally nothing to get what they want
🏰a luxuriously dark and gothic Edinburgh setting
🌪a whirlwind of a plot with twists and turns for days
☠️sharp and almost venomous writing style with a toxic undercurrent that hints at the horrible and is completely compelling
I was obsessed from page one. It’s been ages since I’ve read the first 100 pages of a book in one sitting and so that was a real joy. I, like Clare, found myself completely hanging on to every word of Tabitha and her friends, and even though the foreboding sense of a car crash waiting to happen was always in the back of my mind, I couldn’t seem to look away. Clare is unlikeable and her actions and thought processes hint at a shameful past, but it’s not til the end that you get a true glimpse into who she really is, despite being in her head for the entirety of the novel. I was repeatedly surprised and sometimes disgusted at the secrets revealed, and while I do think it loses its way slightly towards the end, for the most part I couldn’t put it down. It’s one that’s best to head into blind, so I won’t say much more, but it’s definitely one to mark in your calendars for a dark, wintry afternoon in January, when it’s released. You won’t want to miss it!
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Drug use, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Physical abuse, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Murder, and Vomit