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tessisreading2's review against another edition
3.0
Disappointing, honestly. The most interesting part of the book - the Burial Society - was not the focus, the family mystery was, and that part was just... kind of formulaic.
alifromkc1907's review against another edition
4.0
Gut Instinct Rating: 4.5
Characters: 4
Believability: 5
Uniqueness: 5
Writing Style: 4
Excitement Factor: 5
Story Line: 5
Title Relevance: 5
Artwork Relevance: 5
Overall: 4.72
Characters: 4
Believability: 5
Uniqueness: 5
Writing Style: 4
Excitement Factor: 5
Story Line: 5
Title Relevance: 5
Artwork Relevance: 5
Overall: 4.72
usbsticky's review against another edition
2.0
2 stars = "it was ok' by GR's rating system. This is a neutral rating from me at best.
This book is confusingly written from different POV (points of views) in very short chapters. The chapters are much too short for me to get a grip on the narrative before it switches to someone else. I also did not find the writing easy to read or follow. The way it was written made me did not want to read or like the book. I have no idea why an author would want to do this to their readers.
I got this book as a free ARC.
This book is confusingly written from different POV (points of views) in very short chapters. The chapters are much too short for me to get a grip on the narrative before it switches to someone else. I also did not find the writing easy to read or follow. The way it was written made me did not want to read or like the book. I have no idea why an author would want to do this to their readers.
I got this book as a free ARC.
allyssanicholas's review against another edition
2.0
I had very high hopes for this book. The overall premise seemed so promising that I genuinely figured it would be impossible to be dissatisfied. Unfortunately, I was wrong. My issues with this book are tri-fold:
1) The pacing of the overall book is OFF. It was very hard to get through, and I actually had to take a break. The beginning was so slow, and the ending didn't really seem to pay off either.
2)The storyline is so messy and jagged, that it doesn't feel complete. I imagine putting together a jig saw puzzle, and attempting to jam two pieces together that are similar, but not matching; leaving a small but noticeable gap between the two pieces. That is precisely what is happening with the different plot lines in this book. They don't quite match up, but they do just enough that I'm sure some will find it passable. I simply couldn't get behind it.
3) The character arches were all over the place. I usually LOVE when books go into multiple perspectives. However, with the way this book played out, the overall perspectives of some characters, don't match at all with what the truth was evidently in the end. I know in passing this may just sound like a plot-twist, but its more than that. One of the character's end game doesn't even seem related to the rest of their arch. It's more like their personality or whole being completely did a 180 in a way that is unbelievable, and simply forced. (Natalie specifically.)
I could certainly be alone in my opinions, but personally I don't think this one is worth a read. Highly disappointed.
1) The pacing of the overall book is OFF. It was very hard to get through, and I actually had to take a break. The beginning was so slow, and the ending didn't really seem to pay off either.
2)The storyline is so messy and jagged, that it doesn't feel complete. I imagine putting together a jig saw puzzle, and attempting to jam two pieces together that are similar, but not matching; leaving a small but noticeable gap between the two pieces. That is precisely what is happening with the different plot lines in this book. They don't quite match up, but they do just enough that I'm sure some will find it passable. I simply couldn't get behind it.
3) The character arches were all over the place. I usually LOVE when books go into multiple perspectives. However, with the way this book played out, the overall perspectives of some characters, don't match at all with what the truth was evidently in the end. I know in passing this may just sound like a plot-twist, but its more than that. One of the character's end game doesn't even seem related to the rest of their arch. It's more like their personality or whole being completely did a 180 in a way that is unbelievable, and simply forced. (Natalie specifically.)
I could certainly be alone in my opinions, but personally I don't think this one is worth a read. Highly disappointed.
mbarron57's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House/Ballentine Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for a honest review.
“The Burial Society” is a quick-paced thriller by author Nina Sadowsky. This is the second book by Sadowsky and while her debut novel, “Just Fall”, was an excellent read this book will make you a Sadowsky fan. The book reads very fast (most chapters are no more than 8-10 pages) so it’s the perfect book to pack for a beach vacation or long weekend. Thriller authors can occasionally throw too many details in a book or add character elements that bog down the story but this book did not have any of that. There was the perfect amount of “twists” in this book without getting redundant and even though it seems like you’ve figured this book on fairly early you really have no idea until the last few chapters. I look forward to reading Sadowsky’s next novel and you should definitely put her books on your TBR list.
“The Burial Society” is a quick-paced thriller by author Nina Sadowsky. This is the second book by Sadowsky and while her debut novel, “Just Fall”, was an excellent read this book will make you a Sadowsky fan. The book reads very fast (most chapters are no more than 8-10 pages) so it’s the perfect book to pack for a beach vacation or long weekend. Thriller authors can occasionally throw too many details in a book or add character elements that bog down the story but this book did not have any of that. There was the perfect amount of “twists” in this book without getting redundant and even though it seems like you’ve figured this book on fairly early you really have no idea until the last few chapters. I look forward to reading Sadowsky’s next novel and you should definitely put her books on your TBR list.
carleneinspired's review against another edition
3.0
The Burial Society has the sort of passages and fantastic phrasings you could highlight all day long, but there's no real connection between those and the story itself. The concept of a business that extracts people from dangerous, unsafe conditions and helps them start anew, all while getting revenge against the bad guys, is fantastic, but it's a large idea that requires a lot of book to come to life. We're sold on this book by the blurb, with varying people expressing their opinion on whether we should be told Natalie's story or Catherine's story...rather than told five different character's stories all at once, which is what we really get. There's Catherine, Natalie, Jake, Frank, and their poor deceased mother. There's the present day, the past, first person perspective, and even third person perspective all mixed in to one book. If that sounds confusing then I've made my point clear. There's a murder, there's misguided, lost young adult children, and there's two outsiders who are just a bit too involved for things to be normal. Each character was so complex and their perspective so different, really making for a multifaceted mystery that had so many variations of the truth. Plus, three of the four are fairly unreliable, which we all know is my favorite. Mix in a bit of murder, a heaping pile of lies, and a woman who goes by many names and has a pile of tricks up her sleeve and you've got The Burial Society. It's an incredibly interesting plot and Nina Sadowsky reveals her writing skills with the extensive development given to the murder and aftermath, but the layout just doesn't work for the story.
The idea of The Burial Society is a great one, but the execution just didn't work out in my opinion. The changing perspective, changing tense, and alternating time frames really made for a lot more work as a reader than I find necessary in a novel. I love a good whodunit type of book, but if I can guess it right away and I'm still lead on a very long wild goose chase it no longer is entertaining. The most interesting story was Catherine's, we're drawn into it by the promise of more later on, but we're never given it. We're left to guess her true intentions and about her previous cases, left only with her ties to the Burrows' unfortunate incidents.
Overall, The Burial Society is a unique novel, one that'll tick all the boxes if you're looking for something new, but that doesn't make up for the excess details, very short chapters, and frequently changing POV. Though I read the book in one sitting, I wasn't left with any "AHA that was great" moment and no real understanding of the story Nina Sadowsky intended tell. I likely wouldn't read this again, nor would I recommend it to friends. Unfortunate miss for me.
ARC provided.
The idea of The Burial Society is a great one, but the execution just didn't work out in my opinion. The changing perspective, changing tense, and alternating time frames really made for a lot more work as a reader than I find necessary in a novel. I love a good whodunit type of book, but if I can guess it right away and I'm still lead on a very long wild goose chase it no longer is entertaining. The most interesting story was Catherine's, we're drawn into it by the promise of more later on, but we're never given it. We're left to guess her true intentions and about her previous cases, left only with her ties to the Burrows' unfortunate incidents.
Overall, The Burial Society is a unique novel, one that'll tick all the boxes if you're looking for something new, but that doesn't make up for the excess details, very short chapters, and frequently changing POV. Though I read the book in one sitting, I wasn't left with any "AHA that was great" moment and no real understanding of the story Nina Sadowsky intended tell. I likely wouldn't read this again, nor would I recommend it to friends. Unfortunate miss for me.
ARC provided.
crolovr's review against another edition
5.0
The Burial Society is a psychological thriller that had me turning pages late into the night. The Chapters are short which makes for quick reading. Some of the chapters go into the past to fill us in the background of the characters. The story is told in alternating voices of Catherine, Frank, Jake and Natalie. This book is dark at times and contains secrets, lies, grief, mental illness, and murder. The plot twists will keep you guessing to the end. Thank you Nina Sadowsky, the publisher, and netgalley for an ARC of the book and this is my honest review.
bookishmama13's review against another edition
4.0
I was kept on my toes, trying to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. I still had no idea...
sionna's review against another edition
*I received this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
DNF @ 15%
I gave up on this book ultimately because there was no depth to the characters. The short chapters did nothing to endear me to the characters. I'm not saying that short chapters in general aren't great, but that the way things were written I was never able to break through to any depth of the characters. Also, it felt like so many narrators and so much going on, when really not much has truly going on-- there was nothing for me to feel rushed about or give me that "all over the place" feeling. I do think it was written this way as a way to make it a "Thriller" but it didn't work for me.
On the topic of writing, the different POVs threw me -- not the different narrators (what I usually call POVs), but some narrators were written in third person and some in first. I really didn't like this.
I also feel like the summary is a bit misleading since in 15% Natalie isn't the narrator very long. The Burial Society organization was way more interesting, albeit confusing... do these people not know they are being 'saved'?
In the end, I think this is a book some people might like and the short chapters make it a faster read. I just prefer a deeper connection with characters.
DNF @ 15%
I gave up on this book ultimately because there was no depth to the characters. The short chapters did nothing to endear me to the characters. I'm not saying that short chapters in general aren't great, but that the way things were written I was never able to break through to any depth of the characters. Also, it felt like so many narrators and so much going on, when really not much has truly going on-- there was nothing for me to feel rushed about or give me that "all over the place" feeling. I do think it was written this way as a way to make it a "Thriller" but it didn't work for me.
On the topic of writing, the different POVs threw me -- not the different narrators (what I usually call POVs), but some narrators were written in third person and some in first. I really didn't like this.
I also feel like the summary is a bit misleading since in 15% Natalie isn't the narrator very long. The Burial Society organization was way more interesting, albeit confusing... do these people not know they are being 'saved'?
In the end, I think this is a book some people might like and the short chapters make it a faster read. I just prefer a deeper connection with characters.
mbarron57's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House/Ballentine Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for a honest review.
“The Burial Society” is a quick-paced thriller by author Nina Sadowsky. This is the second book by Sadowsky and while her debut novel, “Just Fall”, was an excellent read this book will make you a Sadowsky fan. The book reads very fast (most chapters are no more than 8-10 pages) so it’s the perfect book to pack for a beach vacation or long weekend. Thriller authors can occasionally throw too many details in a book or add character elements that bog down the story but this book did not have any of that. There was the perfect amount of “twists” in this book without getting redundant and even though it seems like you’ve figured this book on fairly early you really have no idea until the last few chapters. I look forward to reading Sadowsky’s next novel and you should definitely put her books on your TBR list.
“The Burial Society” is a quick-paced thriller by author Nina Sadowsky. This is the second book by Sadowsky and while her debut novel, “Just Fall”, was an excellent read this book will make you a Sadowsky fan. The book reads very fast (most chapters are no more than 8-10 pages) so it’s the perfect book to pack for a beach vacation or long weekend. Thriller authors can occasionally throw too many details in a book or add character elements that bog down the story but this book did not have any of that. There was the perfect amount of “twists” in this book without getting redundant and even though it seems like you’ve figured this book on fairly early you really have no idea until the last few chapters. I look forward to reading Sadowsky’s next novel and you should definitely put her books on your TBR list.