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ryendnae's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Pedophilia, and Violence
danaslitlist's review against another edition
Which is shame because I was about 6 hours in and overall was having a decent time. This book has good bones and was entirely wasted on an author who is clearly more interested in “BOOM GOT YA!” twists than actual sense and emotion.
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
lwrn2's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
allifaro's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
libby_lectiophile's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
I love her use of language in this quote, found in Chapter 11:
While I stilll had the energy, I knifed bright yellow mustard onto my white bread, stacked thick smushy chunks of Velveeta on top, and swallowed the sandwich while negotiating with three different but equally bored phone operators to reach the Bert Nolan Group Home for Men.
The story is excellent for the first half of the book. The chapters alternate between present day, which is mainly told from Libby’s point of view (main character) and Jan 1985, leading up to the day that the murders happen. Libby, Ben (her accused brother) and her mother all have chapters from their first person point of view. This helps the story come together well.
What I didn’t like is 1) the
The long scene where
Final thought:
Engrossing, well written story. Annoying subplot of molestation that doesn’t tie into the overall plot, unbelievable hit man hired by Patty to kill Patty, and most of all, too graphic and too gory with the satanic teenager angle. The scene where he butchers a cow does not tie into the ending nor provide a foundation for the ending. It’s just gory and graphic and makes you want to skip an entire 15 pages.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexual content, Blood, Excrement, and Pregnancy
fandomchaos_posts's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
allisonnd's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
tinkerbell2706's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Vomit, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
teddylouise00's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism
stellahadz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
In an interestingly self-aware way, Dark Places addresses the morbid curiosity of true crime "fans," which sometimes spirals into boundary-crossing if not downright creepy and borderline abusive behavior towards survivors like Libby (although she cleverly spins that behavior to her own advantage). It would be interesting to see how different the story would be if it had been published in the era of social media and true-crime podcasts. Despite Libby describing herself as mean and unlikable, I couldn't help but feel for her and I enjoyed the dynamic of her friendship(?) with Lyle.
I would recommend this book to anyone who's interested in "whodunnit" type stories and the theme of true crime (despite this story not being based on actual events), or anyone who enjoys Flynn's other work. Definitely check out the content warnings before reading, though, because certain plot points might be disturbing and distressing for some readers, even beyond what can normally be expected of a thriller novel.
Graphic: Death, Pedophilia, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content and Pregnancy