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elsebeok's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- 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
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Violence
kyriannaj's review
dark
emotional
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? It's complicated
3.0
I guessed the main "who did it" pretty early in the book, but the author still did a good job of adding clues, piecing old clues together differently, and having suspicious character behavior where I did consider that maybe I hadn't figured it all out. The narrator was incredibly unreliable, which I thought was really interesting and wished there was a bit more to it. The characters all felt a little two dimensional and like there wasn't a lot to them, but in my opinion part of that was due to the family not knowing each other well enough, especially the narrator, to add depth. The build up was really interesting and the reveal at the 2/3 mark really shocked me, as I hadn't even thought too deeply about it. The last 1/3 played out roughly how I anticipated. I thought the ending was unique and appreciated that there was a bit of happiness. I kind of wish though that the ending was more ambiguous, as it would've fit your plot and vibe of the book. I'm still unsure if that book was in praise of our true crime culture, or criticizing it as the book went back and forth frequently.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, and Gore
Moderate: Alcoholism and Violence
Minor: Death of parent
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