Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine

69 reviews

lindsayvale's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Abortion

ronnieb's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

3.0

Trigger Warning: Abuse, Rape, Forced Pregnancy, Fertility Issues, Abortion Discussions, Consent Issues

This was perfectly fine. The story follows a woman named Amber as she wiggles her way into the life of the Parrish family. The novel unfolds in a way you probably would think from there but it is still a fun ride to see how everything turns out. I think the strongest aspect of this book was the characters. I hated Amber and found her to be an annoying character but not in a bothersome way. The authors did a good job crafting her in a way to make the reader never be on her side. I think by the end of the book she was more cartoonish but in this soapy and over-the-top thriller it works. 

The book is split into three sections and the weaving of parts 1 and 2 was done well and connected some interesting scenes that had stuck in my mind. There is also a POV shift in part 2 and I think this was my favorite part of the novel but also where a lot of the trigger warnings start so it becomes a more difficult read. 

I think there is very little mystery or thriller present here. What is happening and going to happen is obvious but not foreshadowed. You must have seen this story before so you know where it will lead. There are some tense scenes toward the back half but they are scenes of abuse or characters being taken advantage of so it was difficult to read. 

There is also some weird talk surrounding abortion in this novel. It was blurring the lines and at times I could not tell if the authors were trying to sway me one way or the other. (I personally support abortion, and it seemed at times the authors didn’t) Just something I noticed and it was used as a plot point twice in this novel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Abortion, and Pregnancy

Minor: Confinement and Suicidal thoughts

kimnicol's review against another edition

dark 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? It's complicated

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Classism

ehnkay's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content warning: sexual abuse, emotional abuse, physical abuse

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

kelly_e's review against another edition

dark 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

3.0

Title: The Last Mrs. Parrish
Author: Liv Constantine
Genre: Thriller
Rating: 3.0
Pub Date: October 17 2017

T H R E E • W O R D S

Fast • Twisted • Unoriginal

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Amber Patterson is sick of being invisible, and wants more for her life, so she concocts a plan to get what she wants.

Daphne and Jackson have a what appears to be the perfect life: a beautiful home, two lovely daughters, and lots of money.

When Amber befriends Daphne, soon becoming her closest confidante, it's all part of her master plan. She wants money, power, and most importantly, Jackson Parrish for herself. But something from her past has the potential to blow her plan to pieces.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I added The Last Mrs. Parrish, the debut novel from sister duo Lynne & Valerie Constantine under pen name Liv Constantine, to my 2022 Summer TBR Bingo board because the cover screamed summer. I decided to tandem read the physical book while listening to the audio. Marketed as a thriller it's definitely lacking the thrill, and is more of a domestic drama with some very unlikeable characters, and in all honestly and I found the narrator's voice lacking.

Told in three parts from Amber and Daphne's perspectives, I was hooked in part I (Amber) as the plot built slowly with Amber's devious and manipulative ways but I figured out where the story was going by the time I got to part II (Daphne), which was less engaging and got a bit repetitive circling back to places I'd already been in part I. By the time I got to Part III by interest had waned and I just wanted to finish. I will say that I was somewhat satisfied by how it wrapped up, but it was definitely nothing special. What really frustrated me was I'd have liked to know more about Jackson and his past.

At the end of the day, the writing was straightforward, the plot was fairly predictable, and the addictive draw of glamour and power is something I don't overly enjoy, With all that said it was just okay, and felt like something I'd read before, and definitely had no reason being 400 pages.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• domestic thriller enthusiasts
• fans of The Silent Patient

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"Everything had begun with such promise. And then, like a windshield chipped by a tiny pebble, the chip turned into deep cracks that spread until there was nothing left to repair." 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Chronic illness, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Abortion, and Pregnancy

abusive language

shaziareads's review against another edition

emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Body shaming, Rape, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Death of parent

lindehoffman's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Pregnancy and Dysphoria

nicole_g_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

sarahluux's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Child abuse

raelin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I couldn’t put this down once I had started it. I highly disagree that there are any twists to this story though. Even though there were no surprises I wanted to see how it all played out and the story ended. 

I spent the first half of the book sure that Daphne knew what Amber wanted and that Jackson was a controlling asshole of a husband and that she just wanted out so she was making sure that Amber and Jackson got together. When Daphnes half of the book started it was hard to read just how terrible she was treated and how she was manipulated and imprisoned in her life. But if anything, I was disappointed that Daphne was so taken in my Amber in the beginning. I really really though she had caught on earlier.

I really wanted there to be resolution as to what would happen to Jackson Jr at the end. His dad is going to prison, his mom doesn’t care about him and will be poor and resentful. Who is going to care for him? I wish there would have been an added line about how he was adopted by one of Amber’s (real) sisters or something. That poor boy has an awful life ahead of him. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol