Reviews with content warning for Death - The Agathas

Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Agathas by Liz Lawson, Kathleen Glasgow

39 reviews

dblue236's review against another edition

adventurous dark lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

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

Trigger warnings: Domestic abuse, domestic violence, toxic relationships, toxic friendships, brief discussion of being unknowingly drugged.

While this book was wildly, massively unrealistic, I absolutely loved it. The entertainment value of it was off the charts, and while for the most part it was just a fun, corny murder mystery involving high school kids, it also dealt with some really heavy subject matter in a very impactful way. I had heard next to nothing about this book before I picked it up, and I'm really glad I gave it a chance because I got much more than I was expecting.

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aseel_reads's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

The mystery was okay but god I hated the characters

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izzyproudfoot's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I really enjoyed this. I knew who it was right away so that wasn't a huge thing for me but I'm good at this kinda thing. Guess I'm perfect for the Agatha's. I liked all the little twists and the building of the characters and friendships.

This is definitely triggering though.TW disappearance, death, murder, drowning, domestic abuse, child abuse.

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avspen04's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

I read this book in one sitting, it was impossible to put it down ones I started it!!!! Amazing murder mystery with a hint of modernity frown into the mix. The characters, especially the main girls, are very lovable and flawed which makes them the perfect narrators for this action filled ride! I feel like the book focused mostly on the plot, but it did also have part that had strong focus on the characters that were both heartbreaking and inspiring! Loved it!!!!! <3

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av0ncor3's review against another edition

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dark lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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tigger89's review against another edition

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mysterious 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? No

3.0

I can see why some people would really like this book, but it didn't hold a lot of appeal to me. I thought the mystery was well done, particularly some of the reveals leading into the climax. I wasn't really a fan of the wealthy community setting, but I think it was used well even though I didn't personally like it. The fact that we had two narrators was used to great dramatic effect plot-wise, though I did find their narrative voices difficult to tell apart. The chapters are labeled with their names, but sometimes if I got distracted I'd forget partway through a chapter who I was following, and I'd have to flip back until I found a clue to remember, oh yeah, this is Iris or this is Alice.

I was somewhat disappointed that the involvement of Christie was limited mostly to literary quotes at the beginning of chapters and the fact that the main characters like her books. This might have been an unfair expectation on my part, based on the marketing for the book, but I was expecting something where specific scenes or twists would be referenced from Christie's canon to apply to the situation at hand. That didn't really happen, apart from the most general inspirations. But this really is kind of a quibble. If I'd read a different blurb that didn't stress Christie's importance so much, I don't think I would have complained about this at all. Blame it on the marketing!

The other thing that I couldn't help but laugh at is the chase at the climax. If you know, you know. The whole time I was like, that's not how horses work! None of this is realistic for your relationship/trust level with this ~~panic machine~~ horse! It's a silly horse girl fantasy moment in an otherwise serious title, which sticks out. But again it's not a major complaint, and the unrealistic nature of the climax doesn't really affect the mystery itself, just the drama surrounding it.

All in all, I didn't like the book, but I think that's more down to us not being for each other than any significant fault in the book itself. There is definitely a kind of person out there who would be very into this story. In fact, if I'd had this book in my hands 20 years ago, I know exactly which girl in my scout troop I would've handed it to. It's just not my thing, and that's okay.

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library_kb's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced

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

3.25

This is a good YA mystery to hand to fans of We Were Liars and Karen McManus. It was a slow start for me, and I didn't get fully invested until the second half of the story. I did like the twists the story took toward the end (I didn't guess them at all), even though I feel like the school district needs to take a hard look at their professional development because all the teachers in this story could definitely be fired or have their license revoked for ethical violations. Actually all the adults in the story need to take an ethics course. Even students who know nothing about Agatha Christie will be good, because while referenced, it is not integral to the plot. I will have to say that I wanted to know more about the mysteries in Iris' and Alice's lives and was a little disappointed with the development of those reveals. Overall, recommend to 8th grade and up!

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