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bookishgoob's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
“Sometimes a thought is closer to truth, to reality, than an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can't fake a thought.” Slow burning and confusing, taking place over the span of 1 evening, this book will have you questioning things the entire time. is the main character being treated poorly? is she being gaslit? what is going on? why isn’t he telling her anything? why won’t he listen to her? those are all questions i had while reading this book. those questions didn’t get answered until the very end. it’s a very quick read but the slow burn aspect will make you wonder how long you’ve actually been reading. the conversations the main characters have can be incredibly dull and boring, but it really is kind of like that in a relationship. not every conversation is going to be interesting, and not every conversation you have will be interesting to others. this book ends sort of the way that the outsiders does, but that isn’t necessarily as clear, so i recommend that once you finish, you go back and re read the first couple pages. maybe even just the 1st page could be helpful, it really ties the story together completely. the imagery was unsettling and the story telling was great. all in all, 3.5/5 just because i was confused for a lot of it and it was too slow for my liking. but it is a good and suspenseful read good for a spooky season one-sitting book or even a cold and comfy evening when you’re in the mood to be unsettled.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Sexual content, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence
dizzyindecision's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I feel similarly about this book as I did about the movie adaptation: I really wanted to love it but was ultimately disappointed. I definitely prefer the book over the movie though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Animal death and Gore
nefeli_08's review against another edition
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, and Mental illness
Moderate: Suicide
nadia_qf's review
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Suicidal thoughts, and Stalking
Moderate: Animal death
maddiesmith's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Animal death
Moderate: Gore
hutao's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Moderate: Gore and Stalking
averiereads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence
chloe260497's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence
lindas_reads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
My biggest mistake was putting off reading this book because all of the mixed reviews. Shout out to ___for putting this book back on my radar!
I don't want to say too much about this book. I think just going into this book complete blind is the best way to fully experience this book. First off, I cant just broadly recommend this book, I would encourage you to find a sample of this book and then see if this book is your cup of tea.i I would call this a book more of a literary mystery that will work for a certain audience and I am that audience! This book ticked off a lot of boxes for me and it scared me in a very unique way. The small draw back was I figured out the twist, but... reading how this author unfolds that twist was truly masterful.
Simply put, this book earned his rank as a new favorite book of mine. The writing was just (sigh) so masterful. Ian Reid writes in a way that captivates you, makes you ponder and just leaves you with such an intense feeling of melancholy and foreboding. I also want to say this book was not written for the masses as a lot of other books are. I respect that he wrote this and left everything as is. This book is clever, unique, fresh and unparalleled from other books I have read. In fact, I want to re-read this book and catch all the nuances I missed. This book resonated with me and left me in awe. Some people are going to love or hate this one. I'm just happy I loved it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Gore
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
Minor: Animal cruelty
meli's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Hmmm, I don't know how to feel I'm very confused.
Ok after reading discussions on afterthingsend.com I feel better about it. This is the kind of book that merits discussion afterward. All I can say is that it was an interesting and cleverly done story. I'm looking forward to rereading this with the end in mind.
Also, I recommend the audiobook it does some interesting things with the narrative voice that adds to the story.
Ok after reading discussions on afterthingsend.com I feel better about it. This is the kind of book that merits discussion afterward. All I can say is that it was an interesting and cleverly done story. I'm looking forward to rereading this with the end in mind.
Also, I recommend the audiobook it does some interesting things with the narrative voice that adds to the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Animal death
Moderate: Gore and Mental illness