Reviews

The Dark Beneath the Ice by Amelinda Bérubé

alyram4's review

4.0

Marianne has been having a tough time with the recent events of her parents starting the process of a divorce. Things are stressful enough for her, but she finds that she can't remember certain events. She's losing track of time, and it seems that things are happening around her while she believes she's in a dream. Is she just having bad anxiety due to the divorce, or could something more disturbing be in play?

This book is definitely a slow burn. The author does a fantastic job with setting up the plot and characters, giving great details and backstory that is beneficial, but not unnecessary. The author has such a unique writing style that, even when things feel to become really slow, the details we get make me keep going. The slowness of this book is absolutely necessary, as it adds to the effect later on in the book. This is a great example of a slow burn book.

Although I enjoyed the book, I do actually with that I felt a bit more for Marianne. I found myself a bit more intrigued in Ron, but it didn't deter me from enjoying the book. This is more a preference thing for me, so others may become more emotionally attached to Marianne than I did. Overall, I really enjoyed the book and recommend it. I think it's a great story for those who like slow burn books and are really interested in the details.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley for free is exchange for my completely honest review.

nicothedragonquene's review

emotional mysterious reflective sad 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

4.0

christina_newell's review

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

marisnini's review

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

2.75

bookbrig's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No

Ugh I hated this. I hate horror stories. I end up freaking out over small sounds afterwards and my imagination makes even non-gory stories into something awful in my head. I think our teens will like it. There was a review somewhere that called it Black Swan meets Carrie which isn't quite right, but it does involve ballet and a malevolent presence throwing knives around or whatever. 

The best part for me was the slow blossom friendship-to-more-ship. If you like creepy stories that read like hauntings or possessions, this could be a good choice. But I will reiterate I HATE SCARY STORIES AND ALSO I HATED READING THIS. That's probably an endorsement for our teens at least 

87_launchpad's review

tense medium-paced

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

4.0

skimmed a lot but still enjoyed

gracefromstatefarm's review

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

kellyjo's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I loved this book from the beginning! Some parts scared me shitless, some parts made me cry, and some parts were relatable. Four stars because part of the ending just didn't do it for me. 

bookdarling1987's review

3.0

The Dark Beneath the Ice by Amelinda Bérubé The Dark Beneath the Ice is blurbed as Black Swan meets Paranormal Activity, and honestly, I think that’s about accurate. I have to do a full disclaimer I do not often read young adult books and found that the cover really caught my attention that I had to give it a chance, I found the writing style rather poetic and it made it easy to follow. This is one of those spooky stories you should pick up on Halloween. While the blurb is correct in the two-movie comparison it is on a much tamer scale then I expected. Like I stayed in the beginning this was just not my cup of tea. I have recommended it to a few people that have found it enjoyable. Not bad for my first read by this author may continue with her work in the future.

america_maxon1096's review

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.0