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blissofalife's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I spent most of the book confused, and the twists and explanations felt like a reach but a very original plot and like-able main characters. “The Village (2004)” vibes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Confinement, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Alcohol, and Body horror
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Torture, Gun violence, Murder, Violence, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, and Gore
melissalynn117's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Gaslighting, and Pregnancy
kayelina's review
mysterious
slow-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? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder, Confinement, Blood, Medical content, Pregnancy, Violence, and Gaslighting
kristinv20's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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? No
3.25
this had a great premise but it just ended up being really underwhelming, i called the big twist less than a third of the way into the book and didn't really have fun putting together all the pieces like i did with other thrillers i figured out fast. the ending was kind of underwhelming and the process of getting there just didn't click well for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Child death
Moderate: Death and Gaslighting
miak2's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.0
Perhaps just like Eloise and the Fox, we have feared the wrong thing, when we should have feared what's right here within our own borders. Within our own walls. The beast is already inside the castle, tearing people apart, yet we stare into the woods waiting for it to appear.
3.5 stars
I liked the premise of this a lot but thought the execution of it was just okay. The book hinged on a few twist reveals which, largely, I saw coming. But I still enjoyed getting the full picture uncovered - all the motives and the explanations. I especially appreciated the multiple narrators for the audiobook, it made listening such an immersive experience, and all the narrators did a great job.
I want to praise Ernshaw for really creating the perfect, mysterious vibe for Pastoral. I could really picture their community and the spaces they occupied. The narrators all had strong voices that conveyed their speculations and emotions well. I also liked how the book wrapped up. The big reveals, while not surprising, all did make sense with the story and were pretty interesting.
You know the 'big book small book' meme? Throughout reading, though, I kept thinking about how many things could have been solved if straight people could just communicate. Theo and Calla. Bee and Levi. Just...talk to each other. Work together! Express your emotions!
Some other things I didn't like. The use of blindness as a plot point. I won't say much more, as I don't want to spoil anything, but what I thought was great disability rep ended up being...not quite that. Travis is shown to have a neat almost supernatural power that doesn't really come into play much at all. And there's some late-book reveals, past the climax of the plot, that seemed both super relevant but also very much an afterthought.
Very excited that I read this for my book club, though, as I think there'll be a lot to dissect!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Gaslighting, and Murder
Moderate: Pregnancy
cursed_sapphire's review
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
This book kept me guessing around every turn, keeping me on the edge of my seat. At first a bit confusing, as it starts off with an event and a character that doesn't seem to fit into the rest of the narrative, but as the mysteries slowly unfold, the beginning is only made better. This book was well crafted in a way that I haven't experienced in a while-- where the twists were both surprising yet made complete sense, and tempting me to read the whole book again with my newly-gained perspective.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, and Grief
Minor: Gun violence and Suicidal thoughts
hillbilly_heroine's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It’s a fun page-turner but relies on some weird old chestnuts to move the plot forward, e.g. that visually impaired people have super-human hearing. The big reveal was oddly disappointing. That said, the characters are well-written and I was invested in what happened to them. I’d read more by this author, particularly if she ventures outside the mystery genre. Not bad at all.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, and Death
Minor: Confinement, Gaslighting, and Alcoholism
marpaige's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Blood, Emotional abuse, Confinement, and Death
Minor: Drug abuse and Suicide
toriwatson's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
3.0
The premise of the book was interesting, I really liked the beginning. It kind of felt anticlimactic/like it didn’t deliver though? Like the answers were given but not in a satisfying way… The switch in narration sort of gave away one of the reveals (not all of it, but if you were paying attention it was fairly easy to spot). Also I wish Bee & Travis' abilities were more explored! It was a quick read though and nice to read on this rainy day!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, and Murder
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, and Suicide
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
torturedreadersdept's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Alcohol, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Infidelity