Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett

27 reviews

seventhswan's review against another edition

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

1.25

I believe in "if you don't have anything nice - or at least informative - to say, don't say anything at all" and I really don't have any concrete reason why this book just didn't work for me, so I'll leave it at that. I'm sad, though! I really thought I would enjoy this!
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aileron's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • 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

3.5

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thisbookisbananas's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

That was a wild ride! I haven’t read a lot of mixed-media books,so I had to get used to that. Once I did though I was completely captivated. I haven’t been so invested in a mystery in a really long time. I look forward to reading this author’s backlist. Headed for the Twyford Code next.
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mels_reading_log's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book is like a season of the Podcast Serial mixed with a Sherlock Holmes novel. I’ve never read anything like it and I was engrossed from the first page. Instead of telling a story in a normal, linear way, you are presented with all of the evidence (emails, articles, text messages…) and it is left to you to figure out what to do with it. Highly recommend for anyone who is a fellow true crime junkie!
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megelizabeth's review

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot

4.5

"It sunk into the scene like a stone beneath quicksand. Like the truth sinks lower with every telling of a lie."

I really, really enjoyed this. For a while I wasn't sure about it because I didn't really like the main character and couldn't tell if we were supposed to, but that ended up bothering me less and less because a) she does become a bit more bearable but more importantly b) the story is just SO ridiculously clever and tightly-plotted and honestly pretty genius. It's so layered and fascinating and had me so, so gripped, and I shouldn't have doubted the mixed-media format as it was SUCH an interesting way to tell the story (and in itself raises such interesting questions about what was inevitably omitted). I also loved the subtle commentary around true crime and the ethics of writing about it.

I will say that there were a couple of elements I was still slightly confused about by the end, hence it not quite being a 5*, but I don't know how much of that was the book versus how much was just me (and me reading it very late whilst extremely tired because I couldn't put it down). It also ended up being a lot darker than I expected, but mostly in a good way and definitely in a really interesting and unique way, and yeah I just really loved it!
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dizzymisslizzy's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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bessadams's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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nadiajohnsonbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

 I absolutely adore Janice Hallett's quirky found-footage/epistolary take on mysteries. Hallett is in top form with the Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels, which balances quite a dark mystery with her characteristic wit and humor.

The first book of hers that I read was the Appeal, which I found to be quite cozy and irreverent. While the style of Alperton Angels is the same, the characters were a more vicious and the themes considerably darker.

Alperton Angels consists of the collected research materials of fictional true crime writer Amanda Bailey as she digs into the events surrounding the apparent collective suicide of a small cult 18 years prior and the murder of their neighbor. The tragedy left four survivors: the leader, a man who claims to be the archangel Gabriel come to Earth, a teenage boy and girl, and a baby who would now be on the cusp of adulthood. Her publisher wants her to track down the baby and revisit the crime from their perspective.

Her investigation reveals a twisty knot of characters with varied motivations and levels of fanatical belief and so, so many secrets. The closer she gets to answers, the more dangerous the investigation seems to become.

This mystery was an utterly wild ride, and you truly don't know who to trust for the bulk of the text.

With cynical call-outs to the salacious world of true crime publishing and podcasting, Hallett shows how well she understands the genre. I wasn't surprised to see her list the impeccably researched brainchild of Michelle McNamara's obsession, I'll Be Gone in the Dark among her inspirations.

I would enthusiastically recommend this book to anyone who likes learning about cults, reading true crime, and mysteries delivered with a side of cheeky British humor. 
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embey's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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taylormoore's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.75

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