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sourgreen's review against another edition
4.0
this was bleak, brutal, and uncomfortable, but the portrayal of the potential effects of trauma was incredible. the author perfectly captured the pain, disgust, shame, emptiness, and debilitating rage that can result from trauma. she also managed to get me to feel for the narrator (which is quite a feat seeing as she’s, yknow, a murderer) because of the insight we get into her traumatic upbringing and the lasting effects it has on her
bookish_withsky's review against another edition
5.0
“I wondered how the world made its villains and why it never apologized for making them.”
Before I start, definitely look up the trigger warnings for this. It can be a lot, especially if you aren’t used to the genre.
That being said – fucking great. I was hooked to begin with, did not want to put it down at all. So many memorable quotes for such a tiny book. Just absolutely fucking phenomenal. I do wish we knew more about Lim, mama, Alice, and the others‘ no one missed’. It gave so much but I still wanted more. Definitely going to pick up waif
Before I start, definitely look up the trigger warnings for this. It can be a lot, especially if you aren’t used to the genre.
That being said – fucking great. I was hooked to begin with, did not want to put it down at all. So many memorable quotes for such a tiny book. Just absolutely fucking phenomenal. I do wish we knew more about Lim, mama, Alice, and the others‘ no one missed’. It gave so much but I still wanted more. Definitely going to pick up waif
cr4nkyp4nts's review against another edition
5.0
This short book blew me away. From the first page to the last, I couldn't pull my eyes away. Dark, sad, disturbing, and beautifully written. I will absolutely read it again and definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys horror.
Again, this is very dark and graphic. But not gratuitously graphic. So good though.
Again, this is very dark and graphic. But not gratuitously graphic. So good though.
neverbpractical's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Abandonment, Blood, Death, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Incest, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Death of parent, Pedophilia, and Violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Rape
Minor: Pregnancy, Kidnapping, Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Animal cruelty, and Fire/Fire injury
menastarr's review against another edition
3.0
disturbing! the pacing was effective and kept me engaged. "true crime" has the atmosphere of "bones and all", but definitely a little heavier in content. please check trigger warnings before going in because there are ALLLLL kinds of upsetting topics present within the story. something i'm very sensitive to is violence surrounding animals, and that is something present at the opening, middle, and conclusion of the storyline.
i found the ending to be a little unsatisfying, as i felt like there was not any character development for suzy. some of her actions felt very unrealistic and unjustified, particularly in the very last chapter. don't get me wrong, i love a storyline where we see a character's psyche unravel and crumble, but with kolesnik's "true crime", i think it held the overall plot back.
i think it would've been interesting to have the backstory on suzy and lim's father a little more–i felt like that wasn't thoroughly addressed and would have built more character info for our two main characters.
trigger warnings:
- abuse
- child molestation
- incest
- death of family members
- SA and rape
- animal death
- animal cruelty/torture (pigs, dogs, cat)
- murder
i found the ending to be a little unsatisfying, as i felt like there was not any character development for suzy. some of her actions felt very unrealistic and unjustified, particularly in the very last chapter. don't get me wrong, i love a storyline where we see a character's psyche unravel and crumble, but with kolesnik's "true crime", i think it held the overall plot back.
i think it would've been interesting to have the backstory on suzy and lim's father a little more–i felt like that wasn't thoroughly addressed and would have built more character info for our two main characters.
trigger warnings:
- abuse
- child molestation
- incest
- death of family members
- SA and rape
- animal death
- animal cruelty/torture (pigs, dogs, cat)
- murder
desireeslibrary's review against another edition
5.0
True Crime follows Suzy and her brother, Lim, who murder their mother after the abuse becomes too much for them to handle, and embark on a cross-country murder spree.
"The world never accepted the unwanted child. Firmer than any scripture was the belief that no matter how ugly or horrid a child could be, at least the child's mother would love it. Perhaps the worst damage to society had been the perpetuation of this myth..."
I loved this! Kolesnik writes in a way that as a reader, you find yourself empathizing with the siblings, despite all of the horrid things they have done. I will say that the content in this book is not for the faint of heart. Kolesnik provides some pretty graphic descriptions of what Suzy and Lim do and experience. It is HEAVY but so worth it.
CW: murder, child abuse, sexual abuse, animal cruelty, incest.
"The world never accepted the unwanted child. Firmer than any scripture was the belief that no matter how ugly or horrid a child could be, at least the child's mother would love it. Perhaps the worst damage to society had been the perpetuation of this myth..."
I loved this! Kolesnik writes in a way that as a reader, you find yourself empathizing with the siblings, despite all of the horrid things they have done. I will say that the content in this book is not for the faint of heart. Kolesnik provides some pretty graphic descriptions of what Suzy and Lim do and experience. It is HEAVY but so worth it.
CW: murder, child abuse, sexual abuse, animal cruelty, incest.
jhallett's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
krista_mae's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sequoviah's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0