Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St. James

74 reviews

lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I was absolutely blown away by this novel, and it has climbed the ranks to be one of my favorites so far this year. This story follows Shea, a young woman with her own troubled past who loves all things true crime. When she gets the opportunity to talk to the infamous "Lady Killer", Beth, she takes it and begins to unravel a 30-year-old mystery that no one has been able to solve. 
This was such a well-crafted mystery and I kept not seeing the next twist coming. I loved the realistic paranormal feel to this story, and I loved how many layers to the truth there were. I really enjoyed uncovering Shea's trauma and seeing how far she has come. It was also really satisfying to watch Shea help Beth unravel decades of secrets.   

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, and Death

Minor: Child death and Child abuse

midnightgarden's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, Child abuse, Alcohol, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Death

Moderate: Rape, Domestic abuse, Child death, and Sexual assault

rosebud_925's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Rape

cbarsa9's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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 book is a masterful example of pacing, and as a result I managed to binge read it two days. The author does a remarkable job of creating that certain atmosphere that a murder mystery NEEDS, without ever becoming cheesy or predictable. Absolutely nothing feels forced it extraneous. Literally the only thing I could consider changing would be to give a more complete sense of who Shea is outside of plot-relevant info…but I have no clue how you’d go about that without ruining the flow so I’m not mad at it. Just read it, if you like complex you whodunnits, you’ll like this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Infertility

_savannahreads_'s review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Drug use, Alcoholism, Blood, Abandonment, Alcohol, Car accident, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexism, and Misogyny

Minor: Sexual violence and Sexual assault

paronomaniac'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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Terminal illness, Sexism, and Murder

Minor: Addiction, Car accident, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Infertility, Sexual assault, Rape, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage

booknerdnative's review against another edition

mysterious 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? No

3.5

A really strong 3.5 stars for this one! I really enjoyed the true crime elements to this story as a true crime reader and podcast listener myself. So, I loved that our heroine was fully immersed in that obsession. Ultimately what didn't work for me was the paranormal element. I felt that using that plot device in this case was cheating just a bit, and I wanted the plot elements to be brought together differently (trying to be vague to avoid spoilers!). I did really like the bit of romance that was added in, even though it wasn't necessary. I thought it was sweet, and liked how it tied into the story. This one was so easy to breeze through, I think that although this isn't a perfect mystery, it would make a great book to take with you to the pool this summer! Thumbs up overall.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism and Child abuse

Minor: Sexual assault

kassfromtheinternet's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Violence and Kidnapping

Minor: Sexual content, Sexual assault, and Child abuse

kaylashauntedlibrary's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

The main thing off about this book for me was the pacing. I’ve seen others say similar things. 

This is actually my first Simone St. James book and I definitely still want to read more by her! 

There were points that were really atmospheric and creepy, but sometimes things sort of dragged. I found what I was told from the book important, but as I said, maybe it could have been done a little differently to be more engaging. 

I also found the paranormal aspect to not quite go with the story? I don’t know. And also, I found the main character’s whole “almost got kidnapped” part odd since it didn’t tie in a whole lot. 

Overall, though, I still enjoyed it and will be holding onto my copy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Rape, and Child abuse

bekah1210's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Murder, and Rape