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carlottalw's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Self harm, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent
cmlalonde's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
3.5
Overall decent book. The story jumped back and forth between two timelines: following the three brothers from childhood until the incident, and following the three brothers as adults, but backwards in time. I wasn't a big fan of this method, sometimes difficult to follow.
I probably didn't enjoy it as much either because I was overthinking the big climactic story point. My guesses weren't even close.
I did enjoy the characters though, especially their awkward interactions with each other. It does make conversations seen more real when people don't always say the right thing or there's miscommunications.
I probably didn't enjoy it as much either because I was overthinking the big climactic story point. My guesses weren't even close.
I did enjoy the characters though, especially their awkward interactions with each other. It does make conversations seen more real when people don't always say the right thing or there's miscommunications.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Child death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Mental illness
sara_n's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide attempt, Death, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, and Child abuse
Moderate: Child death, Car accident, Vomit, Bullying, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, and Terminal illness
jessiiiru's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Moderate: Alcoholism
heylaurita's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-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
3.0
This one was an interesting read. In it, we follow Benjamin’s POV in two separate timelines. One of three brothers, Benjamin takes the reader on a journey as he and his siblings return to their family cottage in Sweden to spread their late mother’s ashes. It’s also through Benjamin’s POV that we gradually learn of a catastrophic event that forever changed the family’s life some twenty years ago.
It’s evident pretty early on in the story that we’re dealing with some very unhealthy family dynamics. The root cause of these dynamics are relatively unclear for the majority of the novel and are revealed literally in the last few pages. I can see what the author was trying to do and I can see how this was meant to be a thriller (both psychologically and domestically), but there were a few things that just did not work for me -
First, the two timelines! The present-day timeline, where the adult siblings are meeting up to spread their late mother’s ashes, is a linear plot line. Great, I had no issue with that. The timeline of the past, that catastrophic event that happened when Benjamin was a boy, was written in reverse; as in, it’s told backwards. It threw me! I had a really tough time keeping up with the storyline. The second issue I had with it was how abruptly the whole thing ended. The author drops this massive truth bomb on the reader and the whole thing ends a few pages later. Like, wait, that’s it?!
Now, disclaimer, this story does contain heavier subject matter that is not my typical read. I’m sure that has a lot to do with my feelings about this book too. If you’re looking for a dark, tense, and atmospheric slow-burn, this may work for you.
It’s evident pretty early on in the story that we’re dealing with some very unhealthy family dynamics. The root cause of these dynamics are relatively unclear for the majority of the novel and are revealed literally in the last few pages. I can see what the author was trying to do and I can see how this was meant to be a thriller (both psychologically and domestically), but there were a few things that just did not work for me -
First, the two timelines! The present-day timeline, where the adult siblings are meeting up to spread their late mother’s ashes, is a linear plot line. Great, I had no issue with that. The timeline of the past, that catastrophic event that happened when Benjamin was a boy, was written in reverse; as in, it’s told backwards. It threw me! I had a really tough time keeping up with the storyline. The second issue I had with it was how abruptly the whole thing ended. The author drops this massive truth bomb on the reader and the whole thing ends a few pages later. Like, wait, that’s it?!
Now, disclaimer, this story does contain heavier subject matter that is not my typical read. I’m sure that has a lot to do with my feelings about this book too. If you’re looking for a dark, tense, and atmospheric slow-burn, this may work for you.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Mental illness and Alcoholism
archaicrobin's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I had no idea what The Survivors was about when I grabbed it, but I saw it EVERYWHERE! I’m so happy I decided to grab it from the library when I saw it because it was such a tragic and moving story about brothers and how they deal with the trauma of their childhoods.
The story is told backwards, starting at the end and making its way back to the beginning. Told from Benjamin’s perspective, the middle brother or three, you see glimpses of a dysfunctional, and at times abusive family, as they try to bond and enjoy themselves at their summer lake house in the Swedish wilderness.
Schulman does an excellent job of capturing that temperamental bond between siblings where you feel like you have a constant companion that you sometimes love fiercely but also sometimes hate with the same tenacity. While tragic, I could not put this down and finished it quickly in two days.
Warnings: animal cruelty, animal death, parent deaths.
The story is told backwards, starting at the end and making its way back to the beginning. Told from Benjamin’s perspective, the middle brother or three, you see glimpses of a dysfunctional, and at times abusive family, as they try to bond and enjoy themselves at their summer lake house in the Swedish wilderness.
Schulman does an excellent job of capturing that temperamental bond between siblings where you feel like you have a constant companion that you sometimes love fiercely but also sometimes hate with the same tenacity. While tragic, I could not put this down and finished it quickly in two days.
Warnings: animal cruelty, animal death, parent deaths.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Grief, Physical abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, and Suicide attempt
serendipitysbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
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
3.75
The Survivors is the tale of three estranged brothers who come together to scatter their mother’s ashes and confront some past trauma.
The opening had me hooked - police arriving to a lakeside cottage after one brother has called them on his fighting brothers. I also really enjoyed the structure. The present day storyline unfolds in reverse order, jumping back in two hourly increments. Interspersed with this are chapters which look at events from the past. It certainly kept me reading, trying to find out what led the three brothers to their present position. Many of the book’s themes - grief, childhoods marred by inadequate, negligent and problematic parenting, recovery from trauma, memory, complex sibling relationships - are those that I enjoy exploring via literature.
However, I never fully connected with the story or the characters and always felt like a remote observer. This is sometimes an issue I have with translated works - a combination of different cultural mores and the translation putting an extra step between author and reader. I had figured out the big reveal quite some time before, which didn’t really bother me, but meant I missed the feeling of massive surprise. I spent more time wanting to talk some sense into the parents regarding their parenting failures that I did sympathising with the three boys/men who suffered as a result. The ending felt too-little-too-late for me, although had I been in the position of Nils, Pierre, and especially Benjamin perhaps it would have provided some solace and measure of healing.
I’ve seen this marketed as a thriller. I think dark family drama or family suspense is more accurate. The characters frustrated me but the structure kept me interested. This was a good palette cleanser for me.
I enjoyed it but wasn’t absorbed by it if that makes sense.
The opening had me hooked - police arriving to a lakeside cottage after one brother has called them on his fighting brothers. I also really enjoyed the structure. The present day storyline unfolds in reverse order, jumping back in two hourly increments. Interspersed with this are chapters which look at events from the past. It certainly kept me reading, trying to find out what led the three brothers to their present position. Many of the book’s themes - grief, childhoods marred by inadequate, negligent and problematic parenting, recovery from trauma, memory, complex sibling relationships - are those that I enjoy exploring via literature.
However, I never fully connected with the story or the characters and always felt like a remote observer. This is sometimes an issue I have with translated works - a combination of different cultural mores and the translation putting an extra step between author and reader. I had figured out the big reveal quite some time before, which didn’t really bother me, but meant I missed the feeling of massive surprise. I spent more time wanting to talk some sense into the parents regarding their parenting failures that I did sympathising with the three boys/men who suffered as a result. The ending felt too-little-too-late for me, although had I been in the position of Nils, Pierre, and especially Benjamin perhaps it would have provided some solace and measure of healing.
I’ve seen this marketed as a thriller. I think dark family drama or family suspense is more accurate. The characters frustrated me but the structure kept me interested. This was a good palette cleanser for me.
I enjoyed it but wasn’t absorbed by it if that makes sense.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Death
sideknee's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Child death, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Emotional abuse
bingsdings's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Abandonment, Death, Child death, Alcoholism, and Mental illness
mariannevoyager's review against another edition
emotional
sad
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? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism and Child abuse