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teadiprima's review against another edition
5.0
This book was both fascinating and absolutely nothing like I expected. It is a murder mystery where the who died and the who done it are out of the way on the first page. Because these basic questions are answered so early on, the reader is instead left searching for a shred of humanity or remorse or true motive from the protagonists, all delivered from one of the most out of the loop and unreliable narraters I have ever encountered. Most of our questions, as a result, are left unresolved.
I usually don't annotate but for some reason I decided to highlight one line in the beginning of the novel, and looking back I think it perfectly captures the motives behind each character's remorseless descent into what can only be described as mental insanity.
"Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful we quiver before it. And what could be more terrifying and beautiful, to souls like the Greeks or our own, than to lose control completely?"
Overall I loved this book. It was unique and disturbing and interesting and I need someone to talk to about it because the end left me with so many questions and not a whole lot of answers.
I usually don't annotate but for some reason I decided to highlight one line in the beginning of the novel, and looking back I think it perfectly captures the motives behind each character's remorseless descent into what can only be described as mental insanity.
"Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful we quiver before it. And what could be more terrifying and beautiful, to souls like the Greeks or our own, than to lose control completely?"
Overall I loved this book. It was unique and disturbing and interesting and I need someone to talk to about it because the end left me with so many questions and not a whole lot of answers.
sydneybeavers's review against another edition
5.0
Just holy wow. So good. Would give anything to read again for the first time
prishukla's review against another edition
There is a mid- book reveal that the suspense up until that point ... Just didn't pay off for me. And it sort of made me lose interest in figuring out how the rest of the pieces fall into place (this is a book where the "ending" is revealed up front, and the rest of the book is reconstructing everything that happens to that point).
bloodroses's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Alcohol, and Murder
Moderate: Incest
celendine's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
slatereads's review against another edition
2.0
What to say about this book?
At parts - at the beginning, especially - I really enjoyed this book. I found it's premise compelling and the characters interesting, with the notable exception of the protagonist, who truly seemed not to matter in the thick of it all. The setup of this mystery - this tragedy about to unfold before your eyes with you knowing the ending - hooked me in.
And then it did not deliver on any of that.
The plot was both simple and bizarrely contrived, with some plot connections playing themselves up as complex and then being annoyingly simple and others being needlessly hard to follow. The elements that I have seen people praise about this book - the cultlike atmosphere of the reading group, the twisted, dark academia tragedy of it all - did not come across for me; the parts that belabored this were written mostly in a way that dragged on and made your mind gloss over. The characters started out interesting, and then staled as the plot drew on; later plot points seemed haphazard and thrown in for shock value, diminishing the worth of the characters as a whole.
I look back on this book with neutrality and a little boredom. It was fine. I would not read it again.
At parts - at the beginning, especially - I really enjoyed this book. I found it's premise compelling and the characters interesting, with the notable exception of the protagonist, who truly seemed not to matter in the thick of it all. The setup of this mystery - this tragedy about to unfold before your eyes with you knowing the ending - hooked me in.
And then it did not deliver on any of that.
The plot was both simple and bizarrely contrived, with some plot connections playing themselves up as complex and then being annoyingly simple and others being needlessly hard to follow. The elements that I have seen people praise about this book - the cultlike atmosphere of the reading group, the twisted, dark academia tragedy of it all - did not come across for me; the parts that belabored this were written mostly in a way that dragged on and made your mind gloss over. The characters started out interesting, and then staled as the plot drew on; later plot points seemed haphazard and thrown in for shock value, diminishing the worth of the characters as a whole.
I look back on this book with neutrality and a little boredom. It was fine. I would not read it again.
kate1015's review against another edition
dark
slow-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
3.25
starrydreamer's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25