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root's review against another edition
- 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
The majority of the "plot twists" are not plot twists so much as the product of an unreliable narrator jumping to conclusions about small things that, if you look at the actual evidence she is using, is utterly meaningless or at least is missing details. Because she is not just reacting to what's happening now--peppered in are comparisons of people who look like someone else, how she trusts them or wants to keep them safe because they remind her of people, how she distrusts others for the same reason.
I think that itself makes the book outstanding, to depict a variety of very real reactions to trauma in such an accurate way, including their flaws. It is a testimony to the fact that being hurt does not make you inherently better at surviving: it can also make you that much more vulnerable and unsafe. It is a very real look at the effects of trauma, and a good critique of how the true crime community and of the horror genre turn real events into mindless entertainment at the detriment and suffering of real, living people.
Criticisms of the book would be the following:
It is a very rudimentary, white feminist perspective of the world that goes exactly one layer deep in gender politics which is "man evil, violent inherently" and "girl (not woman) innocent, dainty, victim." Even the author's attempted subversion of it still ultimately played back into this rather elementary understanding of the sociopolitical effects of gender. It's very "girlhood is grief" in its angle.
The very few times race is brought up is...unfortunate. I think it can be difficult to include only one Black character in horror media due to the limitations in author choices. His choice in this instance was essentially to have the Black character die or have the Black character live but being chased down and tormented by a white man. Neither of which are particularly good to read about. It tried to be progressive about race but just failed spectacularly.
The last point is something I've seen others bring up. Although the author was presenting a criticism of how the true crime community and horror in general utilize real events and make references to external stories, he was also simultaneously doing the same thing. I understood what the author was trying to do with this. He was trying to show that the book itself is Also That, that the reader should be cognizant that THEY are being criticized and that their consumption of the book itself is participatory in this exact thing. But it wasn't done well so the message was lost on a lot of people and so it just felt flat. I appreciated the sentiment, though.
Graphic: Mental illness, Stalking, Mass/school shootings, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Torture
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Racism and Suicide
c_dmckinney's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcohol, Child death, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, Torture, Gun violence, Police brutality, Stalking, Classism, Cursing, Death, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death of parent, Grief, Misogyny, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Gore, and Emotional abuse
e_fensterle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Hate crime, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Grief, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Stalking, Gore, Torture, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Addiction
alytzel'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? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Death, Cannibalism, Terminal illness, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and Emotional abuse
slpysnek's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Cursing, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer, Drug use, and Alcohol
maryellen's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Death of parent, Drug abuse, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Cancer, Mass/school shootings, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Gore, Vomit, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Stalking, Torture, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Violence, Car accident, and Child death
alexisgarcia'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
3.5
Graphic: Alcohol, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Toxic friendship, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Stalking, Terminal illness, Murder, Sexual harassment, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Gore, Addiction, and Excrement
morningtide's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
I've said it before about the horror & thriller, and it may be a personal feeling, but when you've consumed enough of the genre, you become trained to expect the worst. I'm always going to spend the entire story imagining the most dramatic, gory, twisted, or even happy endings while I go along. I don't necessarily expect to be surprised at this point, only hope that the twist is delivered in a satisfying way. I wouldn't say it was in this case on this one. However, Lynette's character growth made up for this, for me. Despite being an annoying, paranoid recluse, I didn't dislike her. I predicted where the story was going mostly, but seeing Lynette overcome her fears and protect her sister(s) was what truly made this book enjoyable for me.
Throughout the entire book I felt like there was something a tad bit off with the characterization of everyone, and the "man-hating" felt kind of overhanded even for a book where the women are all victims of extreme violence from men, based on a movie industry where the violence against women has always been extra aggressive. I couldn't quite put my finger on it and it didn't stop me from reading, but it was definitely a small criticism I felt throughout the book. Anyways, after looking more at the book after finishing it, I realized I had gone through the whole thing assuming the author was a woman - I didn't think deeply about their name and the premise of "how did the victims deal with life afterwards" felt like a take a woman would have on the genre (and that's on me for assuming.) Finding out it's actually a male author kind of answered what I couldn't put my finger on about what seemed just a little off, but maybe that's just my feelings. But overall gave the inclination of "He's a little confused, but he's got the spirit."
PS. Dani was my favorite, and I actually appreciated Heather by the end - would have liked to hear more about her monsters
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
sunsetcity's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Terminal illness, Vomit, Addiction, Blood, Body horror, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, and Chronic illness
cinderrunner's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Suicide, Torture, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Drug abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Alcohol, Mental illness, Blood, Terminal illness, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence