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maljacks87's review
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
1) the occasional use of GD;
2) the technical aspects of the big reveal, specifically the pictures, were hard to follow and seemed too technical for the time period everything originally occurred.
3)
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Cursing, and Suicide
oxfordcommas91's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gore, Kidnapping, Infidelity, Murder, Mental illness, Drug abuse, Child death, Confinement, Addiction, Car accident, Cursing, Violence, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Suicide
Moderate: Vomit
ecstarr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Vomit, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Medical trauma, Addiction, Suicide, Violence, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Torture, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Murder, and Self harm
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Gun violence, Murder, Grief, Kidnapping, Suicide, Violence, Addiction, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Torture, Bullying, Death, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Child death, Infertility, and Gaslighting
kayceeisbookish's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Minor: Confinement, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide attempt, Infertility, Grief, Child death, Police brutality, Death of parent, Cursing, and Death
katelynprice's review against another edition
4.0
Moderate: Murder, Blood, Infertility, Suicide, Vomit, Cursing, Torture, and Kidnapping
Minor: Death of parent, Drug use, Cancer, Alcoholism, Infidelity, and Gun violence
brookey8888's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Child death, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Torture, Violence, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Murder, and Grief
random_reader's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.5
Moderate: Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Child death, Death, Violence, Murder, Suicide, Death of parent, and Grief
Minor: Vomit, Drug abuse, Infertility, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Alcohol, Cursing, Addiction, and Infidelity
bookishwondergoth's review against another edition
- 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
2.75
This was a pretty solid locked-room murder mystery set in an Australian ski resort and concerning the Cunningham family who, by the narrator's own admission, have all killed people one way or another. The manner in which these family members have killed people is actually pretty anticlimactic and dull, but it makes for an interesting premise, and I was drawn into the story nonetheless, albeit against my will.
The thing that makes this book stand out from other books of its ilk is the narrator, who breaks the fourth wall continually, even going so far as to sometimes spoil the events of later chapters. He tells you the "rules" of how a murder mystery novel should work, and then doesn't break a single one of those rules, meaning he is knowingly not really subverting anything. And yet, despite spelling everything out so clearly and explicitly, this book still managed to surprise me in terms of who the culprit actually was, and why.
That being said, the mystery itself is not all that interesting, and things did get a bit convoluted in places. I struggled a little bit to keep up sometimes. It definitely didn't help that I was already uninterested in what was going on (because of aforementioned having to read it for work book club), but I can see reading other reviews that I'm not the only one who thought this, so I'm not blaming it entirely on that.
If you enjoy murder mysteries and want something that's told in a slightly different way than what you're used to, definitely give this one a try.
Graphic: Death, Car accident, and Murder
Moderate: Infidelity, Child death, Kidnapping, Cursing, and Torture
Minor: Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, and Addiction