Reviews with content warning for Animal cruelty - Black Sheep

Not my usual genre of book but I was instantly drawn into this story and finished it in a day. It had the right level of suspense and tension, it gave clues to the twists without outright giving it away.

Vesper was such an interesting character, she wasn't typically likeable but there was something about her that made you root for her and be firmly on her side. You could understand her actions and thoughts, she just made a lot of sense and felt strangely quite real. The rest of the characters brought in throughout the story were difficult to characterise because we saw them so strongly through Vespers point of view. I felt about them how Vesper felt about them because they were only really brought in through her memories and experiences of them but I found that interesting in its own right. It seemed like no one was quite what I thought they were going to be, something about them just seemed 'off' but I couldn't always place my finger on why.

A really enjoyable and intriguing book and I particularly liked the epilogue, I feel like it added to the story.

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eli99's review

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dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

I really enjoyed this book. The only thing was some of how it was writing was giving 2010s YA novels. The multiple references to Twitter and Reddit sometimes felt like they were bringing me out of the story.

It only had one moment that truly felt scary. Very minor horror like the type you see in YA, but with an older author. Some cliches thrown in, buy that was expected.

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sierraclimbs's review against another edition

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dark funny 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? Yes

3.0

This got a 3 star for the last 30 pgs
The rest of the book, although a quick read, was not very enjoyable. It was predictable, slow to get to the point & unnecessarily wordy.
The whole time I was just thinking “this is meant to be an audiobook & listened to, not read”
I know writing conversationally is a style & I’ve even enjoyed books written this way, but this one just felt too casual
It also completely misrepresents Satanism & uses it as a stand in for Fundamentalism

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mirandalikesbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

3.5

I liked it. Great if you like funny, personal first person POV. Vesper, the main character, is quick & snarky and the story moves super quickly so it's an easy read. Fun.

I thought some of it was a little cliche and unbelievable. Mild spoiler:

So many pentagrams.

It's not doing anything deep really. Reads a tiny bit YA for me.

I would have trust issues for life if I was Vesper.

Would recommend for an easy palette cleanser

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