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lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"Girl A" follows Lex Gracie, a woman who has spent the majority of her life trying to forget about her family. Lex was one of the siblings that grew up in the infamous House of Horrors, and she was the one who escaped and finally brought the torment to an end. Her father did not make it out of their home, and her mother has been in prison ever since. Her siblings were all adopted by different families and do not see much of each other anymore. But, when Lex learns that her mother has died and left her the rest of her possessions, including the house, Lex feels compelled to finally face what happened all those years ago.
I was so pleasantly surprised with this novel. This is not a thriller in the traditional way, but it definitely is mysterious. We know what ultimately happens to most of the characters, but we do not know how and we do not necessarily know how they are doing in their adult lives as they try to cope with the fallout from their childhood. There is one big "reveal" that I did anticipate, but I was not left feeling let down that I figured it out early on.
Lex is an interesting point of view to read from. Her life was irreversibly altered by the decisions her parents made, and it is difficult to read about the horrors she has faced, but she seems so strong. Some of her siblings have really struggled ever since their escape, and although Lex is clearly affected, she manages to seem the most levelheaded.
Each sibling gets a dedicated chapter, and we get to learn what their life was like in childhood and then what it was like trying to overcome their trauma. Each sibling handled things very differently, but it was still so interesting to see. There was one sibling in particular that made me very angry. They knew much more than they let on back then, and even contributed to the abuse in their own way. They seem so put together now, and I think it was because they did not face the same fear as their siblings. They do not deserve the beautiful life they have created, and I was angry learning of the transgressions against their siblings they committed.
The pacing of this book felt slow, but there was always so much happening, and we were learning so much about the characters that it ended up feeling very appropriately paced.
Overall, I was content with the resolution. I think the siblings are all moving on the best they can, and I think Lex made the best decision she could about the house.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a quiet mystery laced with family drama.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Blood, Toxic relationship, Murder, Mental illness, Bullying, Self harm, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Suicide, Death of parent, Torture, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Physical abuse
carmencolette's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Kidnapping, Domestic abuse, Death, Addiction, Violence, Suicide, Torture, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Drug abuse, Child death, and Child abuse
nialiversuch's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Alcohol, Body horror, Bullying, Body shaming, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Drug abuse, Abandonment, Child death, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Violence, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Suicide
Minor: Excrement, Infertility, and Vomit
bedtimesandbooks's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Confinement, Death, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Child death, Grief, Alcohol, Blood, Torture, Child abuse, Death of parent, Drug use, and Pregnancy
the_escapist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Drug use, Physical abuse, Vomit, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Violence
annabulkowski's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Miscarriage, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Vomit, Child death, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Torture, Violence, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Stalking, and Sexual violence
notlilyburke's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Death, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Torture, Addiction, Alcohol, Child abuse, Child death, and Domestic abuse
taylor95's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Child abuse, Mental illness, Child death, Murder, Death of parent, Death, Torture, Violence, and Gaslighting
peytonliveslife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Child death, and Violence
mrsrjg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It was a quick enough read but the chapters focused on one child each so it made them a bit too long which felt it drag sometimes. I also felt the paragraph time changes were a bit jarring, like there were times when you would just be on the cusp of finding out what was going and it jumped to a different timeline; I just wanted her to get to the point.
It was written quite well (although really grim, so if you're squeamish maybe not the book for you) and at times I had to remind myself that it wasn't real (although possibly inspired by some real life cases) as it came across very much like a memoir.
I felt the big reveal fell a bit flat which led up to the ending feeling a bit empty for me; the whole book felt a bit like a case of the chase being better than the actual reveal.
Graphic: Confinement, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Grief, Pregnancy, Torture, Violence, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse