Reviews with content warning for Miscarriage - The Paying Guests

Reviews tagging 'Miscarriage'

The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters

19 reviews

raix's review against another edition

emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Most of the tension falls in the last couple of chapters. I honestly had no idea how it would turn out! I was surprised even til the last scene!
I really liked that Frances was already established as being gay/liking women, rather than this being a new experience for both of them. The detail of her previous relationship (and the fact she still hangs out with her ex lol) felt very realistic. I'm still not really sure how I feel about Lillian.

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humbee's review against another edition

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Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I'm not sure what I think of this book.

I don't dislike it, but I don't love it, but I couldn't put it down.

I think my main issue was none of the characters were remotely likeable. The first half was a bit wishy washy and took ages, and I wasn't a fan of how the romance/'connection'/obsession was written. It just felt a bit off for me. At the end of act two, I got more hooked, and wanted to see how it ended. The will they won'y they confess got a bit tiresome, and I kinda wish they didn't end up together at the end. I feel like it's what they both deserved.

I think I would read another one of Sarah Waters' books, mainly to see if it's the writing I didn't vibe with, or just the particular characters in this story.

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aduqu's review

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emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Wow wow wow. This book enraptured me. I cannot recommend it enough!

The only reason it didn't reach 5 stars is because Part 3 does slow down the pace significantly, despite the fact that is the tensest part of the book.

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mxpringle's review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This book took such insane turns that I never expected from the start of it. I thoroughly enjoyed how real the characters felt throughout all that they were faced

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throwback682's review

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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

5.0

I read this book based on how much I remembered loving the same author’s Tipping the Velvet fifteen years ago. I only read a short blurb and didn’t know what the meat of the plot was actually about. I was very surprised.

If you want to know more of the plot, but not major twists or ending:

An older woman and her spinster daughter, living alone after the sons were killed in WWI and the husband died of a heart attack, are financially ruined and have to take in a young married couple as lodgers. The daughter is a lesbian and starts having an affair with the woman lodger. Then the man lodger dies unexpectedly and that’s where the majority of the tension in the book comes from. So it’s a sapphic love story? But also mostly a murder… not mystery? A crime drama, perhaps.

If you want to know whether it has a happy ending:

Yes? It leaves you hanging a bit but it’s not the tragic ending I feared.

Further ending spoilers:

The male lodge is the only person in the book who dies. No LGBTQ+ deaths.

Content Warnings