Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

61 reviews

calamity_jane01's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book was a surprise. Just when I thought I had figured it out, it took a turn. The story centres on Ted a loner, the disappearance of a child  many years earlier, a cat and a dark, boarded up house. I won't provide more detail than that, because the story is best read going in with little knowledge. The book is a horror/murder mystery and can be very dark. The writing is incredible; despite the unlikeable characters the writing is able to provide the complexity of the reasoning as to why the characters are the way they are. The style of the book is quite unusual with different narratives, and again the writing shines through with providing authenticity to the different voices and perspectives. Overall, quite a unique novel, and a very good exploration of mental health, trauma and crime and how it impacts people differently. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Murder

Moderate: Abandonment

xkwright's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Medical trauma, Child death, Alcohol, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Confinement

Moderate: Abandonment

Minor: Animal cruelty and Animal death

teganbeesebooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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

4.25

This did not go in any way that I expected, and I mean that in the best way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Abandonment, Child abuse, and Murder

thewordapothecary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

A rollercoaster for sure. There were multiple times I swore I had it all figured out. And I guess in a way I did, but not fully. There are so many ups and downs with the characters, you love them and think they’re good and then the next you hate them and think they’re the bad guy.

Not a challenging read, but you do have to get used to how Ted speaks. Once you do though, it’s a very fast read. 

Really dark, but so good and I can tell it was well researched. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Gore, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, Physical abuse, Vomit, Body horror, Grief, Mental illness, Self harm, and Violence

aranmn's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Torture, Suicide, Kidnapping, Blood, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, and Death

melliedm's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Gore, Animal cruelty, Medical trauma, Stalking, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Blood, Alcohol, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Ableism, Kidnapping, Adult/minor relationship, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Child abuse, Body horror, and Mental illness

Moderate: Abandonment, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Child death, Homophobia, and Vomit

chrisljm's review against another edition

challenging dark informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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

3.75

I've never really found myself enjoying twists in thriller novels because they often feel like the author trying to pull a fast one on me, but I think it's done well in this book and I was positively stunned I must say. I thought I was able to see what was coming but I truly didn't. This was a very unique story, so creative, and honestly more than being a thriller, it was very sad. 

I can tell the author truly did her research on DID and I really appreciate that. I enjoyed reading the ending author's note where she detailed her research process, as well as the people and resources she utilized. I also love seeing her inclusion of a bibliography with all her sources.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide attempt, Animal cruelty, Child death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Alcohol, Grief, Torture, Violence, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Physical abuse, Stalking, Confinement, Gore, Kidnapping, and Mental illness

Moderate: Self harm

Minor: Cursing, Fatphobia, and Eating disorder

spulls99's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Confinement, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Blood, Suicide, Child death, Pedophilia, Self harm, Stalking, Alcoholism, Kidnapping, and Mental illness

hotdrinks's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Really vivid atmosphere! I cared a lot about the characters.

Kind of exposition heavy at the end. I usually really hate exposition and clean endings where most everything is answered, but honestly I just really loved Ted from the beginning, so it was nice seeing them get a happy ending. It's also very refreshing to see DID used in a mystery and not end up being the source of the horror. Even though there is a happy ending, there's still a good bit of tragedy with Dee's story. Over all I really liked it!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Stalking, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Child death, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Cursing, Death, Murder, Ableism, and Blood

chris_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Child abuse, Mental illness, Confinement, Dysphoria, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Stalking

Moderate: Death, Blood, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Gore, Kidnapping, and Medical trauma

Minor: Torture, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and Animal death