Scan barcode
bknight16's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
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
3.25
Okay so I ruined this book for myself by finding out that he studied at Durham because then the references to Milton and Capote became irritating… Milton especially! I’m not sure anyone quotes Milton that much ever?!
I enjoyed the twist.
I enjoyed the start of the book, I felt the pace and the plot was clear….
By by the end: the plot was SUCH a mess! It was everywhere.
Also for a man that escaped to the Caribbean he seemed very comfortable to still have a job and endless dates?!
I’m not even sure if the giant twist made sense - it probably did but would V Bloom not have recognised Clara? How did her and Ben meet?
3 solid stars. I don’t usually love a thriller and this did have me hooked at the start and I genuinely didn’t guess the twist - I thought that Bloom might be Patient X lol…
Maybe that says more about the book (i.e. my lack of understanding) than this review.
I felt like the middle slogged a little and while I’m a fan of short chapters by the end it was just silly!
Yeah not sure I’d read another by Blake because genuinely unsure if I can face all the author references from my undergrad again!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Mental illness and Suicide
jowright's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
lailajm's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Stunning. So incredible. Perfect for fans of intense psychological thriller. The constant plot twists and surprises were perfect! I read it so fast and couldn’t stop! Hugely recommend for fans of ‘the silent patient’ and other psychological thrillers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Medical content, Murder, Mental illness, and Suicide
hannah_mck'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? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Minor: Suicide and Alcoholism
drybay's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
3.5
I was hooked! By the end, the book was going towards a dissapointing ending but then it had me pleasantly surprised.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Death, Forced institutionalization, Child death, Confinement, and Suicide
Moderate: Death of parent, Torture, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Mental illness
Minor: Addiction, Drug use, Misogyny, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Bullying
tigerkind's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Started off a bit weak, picked up pace in the middle and crashed and dragged somewhere before the end. A good read, but a tad convoluted for my taste.
The MC seems to be a self insert for the author – I don’t see any other reason why everyone (including himself) keeps going on about how handsome he is.
A big part of the narrative depends on the use of gender-neutral pronouns and assumptions about gender roles.As soon as Harriet refers to her partner by „they“, things were pretty clear and all the puzzle pieces fell into place as the narrative went on.
It’s a bit silly to expect the reader to be led astray by gendered assumptions in a book where all the leading figures are women.
(Ben is the MC but to call him leading would be a stretch)
The MC seems to be a self insert for the author – I don’t see any other reason why everyone (including himself) keeps going on about how handsome he is.
A big part of the narrative depends on the use of gender-neutral pronouns and assumptions about gender roles.
It’s a bit silly to expect the reader to be led astray by gendered assumptions in a book where all the leading figures are women.
(Ben is the MC but to call him leading would be a stretch)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Animal death, Medical content, Body horror, Gaslighting, Murder, Suicide, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Alcohol, Infidelity, Alcoholism, Drug use, and Torture
Minor: Bullying, Classism, and Misogyny
yensidsunflower's review against another edition
mysterious
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
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, and Suicide
whatsophreadnext_'s review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Minor: Suicide
peppypenguin's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The storytelling in this thriller is so good and I genuinely enjoyed the ride, but it stumbled across the finish line in the last quarter.
The author did an excellent job of switching between character POVs, managing unreliable narration, and adding a neat twist that makes you rethink the way you've digested the entire story. Great, I loved it, couldn't put it down. I was questioning motivations and developing theories galore. It was exciting I loved it.
Then there is the final part where all is revealed in a lackluster explanatory unsatisfying narrative dump that I felt did not dive nearly enough into the final motivations of the character that we needed it from most. Based on the first twist I mentioned, it's logical that this is how it was done. It just wasn't entertaining and it felt like something was missing.
I also didn't care for the way some of the themes were handled, for example women in the spotlight and how their stories are determined by everyone except themselves. It was a bit heavy handed, with characters actually directly pointing these things out, pulling me out of the state of suspended disbelief.
Despite this feedback I do recommend this read because the ride is enjoyable. Other readers may also completely disagree with my sentiments about the ending!
The author did an excellent job of switching between character POVs, managing unreliable narration, and adding a neat twist that makes you rethink the way you've digested the entire story. Great, I loved it, couldn't put it down. I was questioning motivations and developing theories galore. It was exciting I loved it.
Then there is the final part where all is revealed in a lackluster explanatory unsatisfying narrative dump that I felt did not dive nearly enough into the final motivations of the character that we needed it from most. Based on the first twist I mentioned, it's logical that this is how it was done. It just wasn't entertaining and it felt like something was missing.
I also didn't care for the way some of the themes were handled, for example women in the spotlight and how their stories are determined by everyone except themselves. It was a bit heavy handed, with characters actually directly pointing these things out, pulling me out of the state of suspended disbelief.
Despite this feedback I do recommend this read because the ride is enjoyable. Other readers may also completely disagree with my sentiments about the ending!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Suicide
classicallyzo's review against another edition
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.0
Decent read, fairly predictable pretty early on who Patient X was, but had some good twists.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Suicide, and Self harm