Reviews

Jackal by Erin E. Adams

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yikesdude's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

bananaba's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

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

4.25

kendragaylelee's review against another edition

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4.0

Oooh, this one made me jump. And cringe. And think.

Jackal is good horror--thoughtful, probing, pushing the boundaries. The social commentary was artfully woven throughout.

And, let's be real: it really sucked me in. I got so engrossed in what was happening that I'd jump every time a person entered the bookstore.

I liked the off-kilter feel of not understanding what was real & what was not. In trying to figure out where the evil really was... inside? Outside? was it an construct or something tangible?

Erin E. Adams wasn't afraid to take chances with Jackal. And I think it paid off.

beauxberger's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

juliamolinaro23's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

kristen1416's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

sajifrand's review against another edition

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5.0

So good!!! I love it and I love Caroline and all the characters are well-developed and the plot is engaging. I’m recommending to everyone I know.

clarklyn's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

3.0

I have lots of complicated feelings about this book. I really enjoyed the first part of the book but then it fell off the rails for me and I got lost. I don’t think it knew what it wanted to be…thriller, true crime, mystery, horror?

It seemed like it was thriller/true crime but then I got ambushed by supernatural horror at the end. I wanted to like it, I appreciated the authors perspective and introspection on being a Black woman. However, to be honest, Liz wasn’t a super likable main character, although I was rooting for her and got incredibly frustrated with every obstacle she faced. The “best friend” was SO cruel to the main character but then they pick back up like it was nothing? Mel left Liz in the woods, the woods Mel KNOWS Liz is terrified of, after throwing her phone into the brush…what an absolute fucking asshole!!?

Sometimes the internal narrative was overly lyrical and flowery. It felt very forced and inauthentic and just isn’t my type of writing I don’t think. We spend more time in the main characters head than we do in the story.

Another aspect to this review is that I listened to the audiobook which I would not recommend for this book. I think my experience would have been much different if I had read it and maybe I will give it a second chance one day. The narrator struggled when reading the dialog. The sentences ran together and it was incredibly difficult to tell who was saying what at times. Her voice, while pretty and soothing, was very hard to follow and listen to in regard to the story. She was very soft spoken and mumbled her words sometimes and I just couldn’t follow at certain points.

I almost DNF’d at one point because I was so confused and frustrated. I powered through and while I didn’t *not* enjoy the book, it just wasn’t my favorite and I was left more confused than anything.

Content Warnings

ohyeahshebomb's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

10/5 stars.
Wow, just wow. Gripping from the start, this story is bigger than just the main character. Being a Black woman in this country is a constant battle. Except, here, the monsters are real.

I can not recommend this book enough. If you are Black, it's a must read, if you consider yourself an ally, it's a must read.

Please check trigger warnings.

midnight_toker's review against another edition

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dark hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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