Reviews

Guilty by Laura Elliot

cleverbibliophile's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • 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

4.75

lemopolis's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

rmarcin's review

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3.0

This is a story of one journalist's thirst for a story, how her aggressive and unflagging investigation into an innocent man ruins his life, and how his vengeance ruins hers. Constance, a young girl, goes missing one night. She has a very close relationship with her uncle Karl, but Karl doesn't know what happened. Amanda, a reporter, digs into Constance's relationship with her uncle, and puts a sinister tone to it. Based on her insinuations in her reporting, Amanda turns public opinion against Karl. Amanda is unscrupulous, and stops at nothing to get what she wants. Her reckless behavior causes her to ruin Karl's life. But, later, Karl exacts his revenge.
The story was good, but it went on for too long. I think it could have been better if the story was about 100 pages shorter. It would have heightened the intensity of the novel.
This story certainly did make one thing clear to me - and that is, do not automatically assume something about someone, and check and recheck what you read!
#Guilty #LauraElliot

mmc6661's review

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3.0

When 13 year old Constance goes missing one reporter jumps on the bandwagon determined for a story. When a finger points to the Constance's uncle Karl, journalist Amanda Bowe creates a media frenzy against him that will cause repercussions tying them together for life.
A fast paced suspense that reminds us how much our actions can affect someone's life forever.

panicatthebookstore's review

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5.0

My feelings about this book changed continuously as I read it. The beginning of the story was great; a missing teen, a family member falsely accused, said family member losing everything and falling as low as they could possibly go. It showed just how quickly your life can change when someone in the media chooses to believe you are guilty. The second part of the book was pretty slow. I found myself getting bored and wondering if I should continue. But by the end, I was glad I did. It was an ending I did not see coming at all, and it made the story come full circle with a tale of very satisfying revenge. 

maria_grace00's review

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense 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? No

4.0

in a story of similar fashion to Gone Girl, Guilty holds your attention well as the story develops. 

hcmiller11's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious tense medium-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

3.0

The parts make following the book slightly difficult. Theres a lot of time that passes in between parts and a lot of characters names to remember, but it was a good mystery. 

nannyf's review against another edition

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4.0

I have read a few of this author's previous books and enjoyed them. As a fan of psychological thrillers I was looking forward to reading this, and it didn't disappoint. However I'm not totally sure about the thriller part of it as it came across as something else to me.

The initial part of the story involves a missing girl, Constance, and the hunt to find her. During the investigation journalist Amanda Bowe becomes increasingly involved in finding out what happened to the young girl. She starts to form her own opinions as to what happened and, in doing so, helps to destroy a mans life. The way the press stories are written shows just how intrusive they can be, and that is so true even now in real life. I have watched news programmes a lot in recent weeks, and it pains me when journalists on live television are pushing witnesses to some horrific scenes far more than they should, all to get a good story. This book is so relevant right now due to what has occurred recently.

The main thing I got from this book is just how far journalists will go in order to do their jobs, and the consequences those caught up in the news stories have to suffer as a result. I actually enjoyed the latter part of the story a lot more as, if I'm being honest, I actually felt far more empathy toward the main male character rather than the journalist.

This is written well, it kept me gripped throughout, and is a good story for fans of psychological stuff. Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for providing a copy.

rfwads's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense

3.0

There's nothing quite like sweet revenge and karma.

What I liked about Guilty:
Although Guilty wasn't action-heavy, it did succeed as an engaging psychological thriller. The book was both complex and intriguing. The search for Constance was gripping and interesting which led to a startling and unexpected finale in part one. Equally chilling is Amanda’s measured, cold-blooded dismantling of Karl's life. It depicted the unsettling reality of how the media often remains indifferent to the chaos caused by sensational stories, regardless of the truth behind them. We have all seen how powerful the media can be and the damage they cause to people's lives just to make headlines.

What I disliked about Guilty:
Occasionally, the book's pace was slow which would lead me to skim through certain paragraphs or pages. However, the book retained enough of my interest to carry me through those slower sections.

What I think would have made Guilty better:
Though occasionally slow, the book remained captivating throughout. If there is anything that I would change, it would be to increase the suspense in the first two parts to match the gripping intensity of the later parts.

Would I recommend Guilty by Laura Elliot:
Although I wasn't fond of Laura Elliot's past works, I found Guilty to be enjoyable and would recommend it to others.

****

Split into four parts, Guilty opens with the disappearance of thirteen-year-old Constance Lawson. Amidst the investigation, the media aggressively points fingers at Constance's uncle, Karl Lawson. Fast forward six years, Karl's life is in ruins while journalist Amanda Bowe, who accused him, flourishes. However, a sudden call thrusts Amanda into a catastrophic scenario reminiscent of every mother's worst fears.

stina_33's review against another edition

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4.0

This book was really interesting. Tons of twist and turns and clues that made you think. The only thing I didn't like was how they sped up Lar and Amanda forming a relationship. Everything else was well paced and made for an interesting read. I would recommend this book and will read it again.