Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - Night of the Mannequins

Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Night of the Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones

28 reviews

cheye13's review against another edition

dark emotional fast-paced

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

3.0

I think I took too long to read this one, and the tension slipped right through my fingers. I'm not typically a horror fan, but I didn't find this all that scary. I'd call it more of a psychological thriller.

I did go in without having read the full synopsis, which I think really helped. I quite enjoyed the front half, not seeing a lot of the reveals coming. I really appreciated the nuances within the content: Sawyer is very much an Indigenous teen boy with a very specific experience, but he also has a very Everyman vibe to him. He has parents, friends, hopes, dreams – just like everyone else. It feels like any of his friends could step into his role and the story would be the same, which brings the mannequin concept full circle, imo.

The writing style and voice is very unique; it fits the story so well and is very fun to read. It's very evocative of a film and also a campfire/sleepover story, but still takes moments to use written word to full effect. There are a few sentences that stopped me short to either send a chill down my spine or an ache through my heart.

I think the writing style was spectacular, but the brevity and predictability of the storyline crossed with the universailty of the main perspective didn't really let me sink my claws in.

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

NIGHT OF THE MANNEQUINS is an absorbing thriller, expertly balanced and engrossing until the last moments.

Sawyer is a careful but unreliable narrator. He faithfully tells what happened, but his idea of what is literally happening versus what he's merely convinced is happening leaves a lot of very unsettling possibilities open. By the end I settled on an answer, but part of me still thinks the second option is viable. It shook me on a fundamental level and I’m still thinking about it days later. The story is told mostly linearly, and those small deviations from linearity start to add up as Sawyer gradually decides to tell backstory when it becomes necessary (but usually well after it’s first relevant).

It’s fantastic, I loved every minute! I can’t recommend it highly enough.

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kstericker's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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robertjgannon's review against another edition

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dark 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? Yes

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podanotherjessi's review against another edition

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dark sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This was really, really not what I expected, and I mean that in a good way. The only real major flaw in this was that the characters were rather shallow, which meant I didn't worry about them as much as I liked. I do think the book gave away one twist a little too early - as in, intentionally revealed, not that I guessed it fast - and there might have been a little more tension if it had gone on longer. Besides that though, a really interesting read.

Character: 7
Plot: 9
Setting: 8
General appeal: 8
Writing style: 9
Originality: 8
Ending: 8

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