Reviews tagging 'Infidelity'

The Decagon House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji

7 reviews

hue's review

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dark mysterious slow-paced
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

1.0

I'm just so . . disappointed.
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fraise's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.25

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nightlight_reader's review against another edition

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mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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_maia3_'s review against another edition

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

2.5

I'm rating this a very safe 2.5 because whilst I did enjoy the book, a lot of it felt a little off in a bad way. 

Either this reads better in its native language, or the writing is by design a little amateur-ish. Further, the characterisation is lacking (which is tentatively fine, one can only explore so much in a single novel), and this leads to emotional beats lacking punch. The actual set-up for the murders is rather unrealistic - I cannot fathom how any of the students thought staying at a remote island for a week with no contact or escape was a good idea, even if there wasn't a murderer around. 

It's clear that this was written for people who are already deeply entrenched in the mystery genre, as a lot of the novel references mystery tropes and this specifically guides the characters in who they suspect/ what they think - but the psychological aspect wasn't very much explored and I think that was a pity. 

As for the final twist, it was unexpected-yet-earned, although the overall explanation was a quite convoluted, which meant I didn't feel like much could have been pieced together until the author decided that it was time to give everything out.

Overall, it was a good book which was worth the afternoon I read it in, but it does feel like it may have benefited from a couple more drafts, as it feels too loose and messy. Read at your own peril?
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atalea's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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toffishay's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was a really engaging, creepy, but fun mystery! The homages to classic mysteries, especially Agatha Christie were really fun as a lover of mystery and detective media. I won't spoil the ending, but I think it's a worthwhile read if you are a fan of the genre. The only things bringing it down for me, is that I think there could have been a little more drama at the end and one character in particular, I felt was under-used.
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crows_in_a_trenchcoat's review

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challenging dark tense medium-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? No

4.75

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