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lacemac's review against another edition
- 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 sobbed, I gasped, I cringed and I squirmed.
The most gripping book I have ever read.
Graphic: Car accident, Gore, Kidnapping, Drug abuse, Torture, Violence, Child death, Murder, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Addiction, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, Mental illness, and Rape
ernareads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Also, we can also see how it affects the victim’s family members. The aftermath of the case, the devastation, the breakdown of relationships. One of the parents became obsessed with the case, the other one tried to ‘move on’. People grieve differently, and marriages break because of that. Sam was obsessed with his daughter’s disappearance, Helen on the other hand, still grieving for her, but had to move ahead in order to take care of her other living daughters: Lydia and Claire.
Probably 50% into the books, it got too graphic. I just skimmed through it, but it was rather interesting how Paul was also involved in abusing the victims. I wonder how he got involved. How did he first start committing these gruesome crimes? Did his father introduce him to these crimes? I will probably read this book again to better understand Paul’s involvement. The history between Paul and his father was briefly mentioned, and I really think it would be great to further elaborate their relationship. As for Paul’s mother, she was innocent. She was in fact looking for Julia during one of the searches for Julia’s disappearance. [Paul’s father was a psychopath and obviously a sadistic person. Was Paul being introduced to these violents and became like his father, or was he born a psychopath?]
As the chapters come to an end, we can see how Claire managed to piece the puzzles together. Claire was written as a frail woman, someone who depended on others. In order to uncover the truth, she had to go out of her comfort zone and dig into her husband’s private life. For once in her life, she had to think for herself, and she had to take action on her own. For a while, all these decisions are made for her by her husband. Another red flag in her marriage.
In conclusion, the book was well written: the plot, the twists at the end, and the characters.
Graphic: Blood, Alcoholism, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence
ameliez's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
Graphic: Murder, Kidnapping, Violence, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Blood, Torture, Rape, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Death of parent, and Confinement
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, and Animal cruelty
rchltnnswd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Gore, Sexual assault, Blood, Torture, Sexual violence, and Sexual content
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Drug use, Rape, Suicide, and Addiction
Minor: Fatphobia, Gun violence, and Fire/Fire injury
cheeseandsausages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
Graphic: Kidnapping, Murder, Suicide, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Gore, Death, Torture, Violence, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Addiction and Alcoholism
katybugggg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Murder, Stalking, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Excrement, Blood, Confinement, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Fatphobia
amsswim's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was incredibly violent and graphic, so I'd recommend reading warnings before starting.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Vomit, Child death, Death, Body horror, Drug use, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Grief, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Body shaming, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Rape, Sexual content, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Misogyny, Car accident, Sexism, Classism, Dementia, and Medical content
Minor: Cannibalism
elliott_the_clementine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
0.25
I gave this novel 0.25 stars because it was a book that was written. For a book lauded for its thrilling aspects and thoughtful family drama, there is no thrill and there is no thought, just bloody, useless horror that fails to do anything but shock. Unfortunately, instead of representing the rage of women victimized repeatedly by their society, Pretty Girls tortures its main characters for the pleasure of an audience clearly imagined as male while seeping its depiction of violence against women in privilege and glamour. An irresponsible and poorly done romanticization of torture. In a word: careless.
Also, I would ask Karen Slaughter to be more thoughtful in her depictions of mental illness. There are many resources online and in libraries for authors to read about mental health and therefore accurately and safely portray it in their work.
Graphic: Blood, Stalking, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Gun violence, Fatphobia, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Car accident, Child death, Death, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism
sennaje's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Gun violence, Rape, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Stalking, Trafficking, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Fatphobia, Gore, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, Body horror, Body shaming, Car accident, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, and Grief
ellilo's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
I hate saying i enjoyed this because it’s not a nice topic to enjoy, but i just love dark and disgusting thriller and horror books. This book had me in a chokehold the past four days, and i barely find time to read so that’s always a good thing about a book for me, fast-paced and packed with adventure so i don’t want to stop reading.
Some of the turns in the story were weird and from the beginning you already know that the guy is bad, but you don’t know about the extent of the cruelty. That was weird for me because i’m used to not knowing who the killer is, in this book it was rather the question who you can trust and what’s the truth.
The ending made me cry, but i have to be honest and i feel really weird saying this:
I heard this book was SO disgusting and graphic, and of course, there were some scenes that made me a bit uncomfortable but i’ve read worse. I don’t think that it’s the description that makes it disgusting, but rather the topic.
I still enjoyed this book! It wasn’t as cruel as i thought it would be and at the same time it was worse. But in a good way.
Graphic: Gun violence, Suicide, Murder, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Death, Blood, Hate crime, Child death, Stalking, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Rape, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Alcoholism, Dementia, Eating disorder, Vomit, Car accident, Body shaming, and Excrement