Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcoholism, Alcohol
Just an FYI: **This book deals with physical and mental abuse, as well as neglect of children. Please be aware if this may be a trigger before attempting to read this book.**
4.5 stars. This is a hard book to rate, because it really touches upon some very, very heavy topics, and because it wasn't particularly easy to read; both because of the subject matter and the way in which the book was written.
IMO Dean writes this book very well from a victim's perspective, which can be somewhat chaotic to read and keep track of. This is chaotic timeline is something that is frequently brought up in many reviews as a reason for the reader to DNF this book, but I have a possible reason for this style. (This may be TMI: I have had some trauma in my past, and while speaking with certain people it does make me think about/trigger the past and the experiences that I have had while I am in the middle of that conversation). So, while it did make much more difficult to read in a book, I understand why the author had written the book in this way, and actually, I did appreciate her effort. (If it was intentional).
We all hear about these terrible traumatic situations on the news or on criminal shows, but you rarely hear about how the victims have dealt/coped with that traumatic event and how it effects their everyday life. That is another aspect of this book that I appreciated; the insight of how people adapt/cope with such terrible situations. This book really illustrates a variety of coping mechanisms as our narrator, Lex (AKA Girl A), speaks to her siblings.
I'm glad that the author really worked in the importance of long-term mental health needs in this story, as our narrator, Girl A, recollects about meeting with the counselor that she had after her escape from her family's "House of Horrors", and, after much trepidation, meets with that same counselor years later, during this story line.
It took me a bit to get through this one (I had to put it down and walk away for a bit), but I found that it was well worth it. I found this novel to be haunting, and downright heartbreaking at times, so I wouldn't necessarily say that I 'enjoyed' this book, but I did find it very intriguing and interesting...so, in that way I did enjoy it. I think that this book will stay with me for a while.
4.5 stars. This is a hard book to rate, because it really touches upon some very, very heavy topics, and because it wasn't particularly easy to read; both because of the subject matter and the way in which the book was written.
IMO Dean writes this book very well from a victim's perspective, which can be somewhat chaotic to read and keep track of. This is chaotic timeline is something that is frequently brought up in many reviews as a reason for the reader to DNF this book, but I have a possible reason for this style. (This may be TMI: I have had some trauma in my past, and while speaking with certain people it does make me think about/trigger the past and the experiences that I have had while I am in the middle of that conversation). So, while it did make much more difficult to read in a book, I understand why the author had written the book in this way, and actually, I did appreciate her effort. (If it was intentional).
We all hear about these terrible traumatic situations on the news or on criminal shows, but you rarely hear about how the victims have dealt/coped with that traumatic event and how it effects their everyday life. That is another aspect of this book that I appreciated; the insight of how people adapt/cope with such terrible situations. This book really illustrates a variety of coping mechanisms as our narrator, Lex (AKA Girl A), speaks to her siblings.
I'm glad that the author really worked in the importance of long-term mental health needs in this story, as our narrator, Girl A, recollects about meeting with the counselor that she had after her escape from her family's "House of Horrors", and, after much trepidation, meets with that same counselor years later, during this story line.
It took me a bit to get through this one (I had to put it down and walk away for a bit), but I found that it was well worth it. I found this novel to be haunting, and downright heartbreaking at times, so I wouldn't necessarily say that I 'enjoyed' this book, but I did find it very intriguing and interesting...so, in that way I did enjoy it. I think that this book will stay with me for a while.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I found it heavy to read, the story was much more about the psychological impacts of the event of children and it was hard to read throught.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It's an interesting and horrific story, the aftermath of a brood of kids abused by their religious zealot father and passive mother. Could be the hazy transitions from past to present were intentional, blurring the lines, but they didn't always seem intentional. Some curious word choices (I believe in the interest of "lyricism") often fell flat. Still, the momentum built well and I read the second half more quickly and ardently than the first.
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death
2.5 to 4 stars. The story was intriguing enough to keep me interested and the writing itself was great. BUT...the non-linear timeline and the overall vagueness of so many key points of the story were a little too much. I don’t mind when writers leave some details up to the reader to infer, but there were too many left open for me to fully enjoy the story. A little mystery is good, but as the reader, I don’t want to have to write the story myself.