1.68k reviews for:

This Wretched Valley

Jenny Kiefer

3.34 AVERAGE

nebula_314's review

4.25

dark tense slow-paced

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Not rating this book higher because I did feel like it was a little longer than it needed to be, which kind of slowed down the tension. However I'm glad I read it!! Creepy ecohorror, reminded me of Scott Smith's The Ruins. I like that things weren't fully explained. 

pbandjane_library's review against another edition

5.0

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror

stefanieleigh's review against another edition

3.5

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

aethermoss's review against another edition

3.5

dark tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

mjohnsen's review against another edition

3.75

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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I liked this overall.  It kind of reminded me of The Blair Witch Project and The Ruins.  I think the first half was better than the second half.  The first half with the discovery of the rock and the slow deterioration of everyone’s mental state is well done.  It does get a little repetitive towards the second half.  I think there could have been some reduction to make the pace better.  I think that the violence and the tension is well done here.  Overall I liked how the themes of the characters ambitions led to their tragic ending.  I would probably read another Jenny Kiefer book if she releases a new one.

feralhobbit's review against another edition

1.0

slow-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

benklingenberg's review

3.5

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

kate_bedrossian's review against another edition

4.0

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

mangocult's review against another edition

3.0

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This was... weird. And not my favorite.

I'm not gonna lie - it started out a bit boring for me. There was a lot of aerial surveillance and fretting about Instagram sponsors before we got anywhere near the preternatural elements, at which point it DID get interesting.

... And then it got confusing and weird again. I felt like there was way too much missing from the lore and backstory to really appreciate the suspense of our main cast. For me, the most interesting chapters were the ones that took us back to prior tragedies in the valley; I wish the book would've been made up entirely of those snippets as opposed to constantly bringing us back to the pathetic and relatively uninspired (in comparison) present. Usually I am all about a good survival horror romp, but not this time.

burningupasun's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous dark 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

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This was pretty good tbh. My only complaint was there was a point in the middle where it dragged a little. But I really liked it. True crime meets Stephen King, meets the Dyatlov Pass.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Gun violence