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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
3.5 rounded up
Thanks for the ebook Netgalley! I’m glad I read this faced paced thriller. I rooted for the captured children and wanted them to make it out safely and was gripped in their tale of struggle.
Teenage twins Angel and Bud are kidnapped by a dangerous man named Alfred who holds them captive. There is another girl who is also a prisoner in this house of horrors. He calls them “Dolls” and uses them as props for photoshoots to reimagine and change his dark past. Alfred also likes to play sick games with his dolls who have to fight for their lives with everything they have.
The book lost stars for me for two reasons- I wanted way more explanation for the villain’s backstory. I felt like the author lightly scratched the surface on him, his pathology and plight. We spend so much time with Alfred- I really craved a more three dimensional outline of his past.
This book is compared to “Room” often, and while there are similar themes in this book, the stark beauty of Donoghue’s prose is unmatched here. “The Dollhouse” also lost stars for the many typos I saw while reading. All that said, I couldn’t put this book down and look forward to the next in the series. This book is incredibly graphic and will be difficult for some readers (see content warnings below.)
⚠️Trigger Warning: Kidnapping, Murder of a Child, Torture, Violence, Bullying, Suicide, Graphic Murder, Sexual Assault, Animal Death
Thanks for the ebook Netgalley! I’m glad I read this faced paced thriller. I rooted for the captured children and wanted them to make it out safely and was gripped in their tale of struggle.
Teenage twins Angel and Bud are kidnapped by a dangerous man named Alfred who holds them captive. There is another girl who is also a prisoner in this house of horrors. He calls them “Dolls” and uses them as props for photoshoots to reimagine and change his dark past. Alfred also likes to play sick games with his dolls who have to fight for their lives with everything they have.
The book lost stars for me for two reasons- I wanted way more explanation for the villain’s backstory. I felt like the author lightly scratched the surface on him, his pathology and plight. We spend so much time with Alfred- I really craved a more three dimensional outline of his past.
This book is compared to “Room” often, and while there are similar themes in this book, the stark beauty of Donoghue’s prose is unmatched here. “The Dollhouse” also lost stars for the many typos I saw while reading. All that said, I couldn’t put this book down and look forward to the next in the series. This book is incredibly graphic and will be difficult for some readers (see content warnings below.)
⚠️Trigger Warning: Kidnapping, Murder of a Child, Torture, Violence, Bullying, Suicide, Graphic Murder, Sexual Assault, Animal Death
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
One of the best books I’ve read in a long time.
This book gripped me from page one to the very end. Such an absolute rollercoaster of emotions that has left me wanting more! I cannot wait for the next book to come out.
This book gripped me from page one to the very end. Such an absolute rollercoaster of emotions that has left me wanting more! I cannot wait for the next book to come out.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
The twins Angel and Bud aww I feel die then. Angel is frighten and more vulnerable than her twin bud. The Dollhouse reminds me of the collector from charmed in a way expected more evil and sinister. This is an extremely dark and physiological thriller. It had my attention on every page. The author done an amazing job. Trigger warnings:
Ableist language, abuse, alcoholism, blood/gore, bullying, death, drugs, kidnapping, mental illness, mice, suicide
Ableist language, abuse, alcoholism, blood/gore, bullying, death, drugs, kidnapping, mental illness, mice, suicide
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Suicide, Blood, Kidnapping
For my psychological thriller friends…
The Dollhouse by Sara Ennis
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - Rare 5 star review!!
Loved it!! Horrifying circumstances, interesting twists, excellent writing. You feel like you’re there….and you really don’t want to be given what’s happening…and you can’t stop it… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Dollhouse by Sara Ennis
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - Rare 5 star review!!
Loved it!! Horrifying circumstances, interesting twists, excellent writing. You feel like you’re there….and you really don’t want to be given what’s happening…and you can’t stop it… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book in return for an honest review.
Pros: What a dark and tense book! This story goes to some messed-up places. It kept me at the edge of my seat the whole time.
Cons: Even though the tension was there throughout the book it did seem to be slow in places. There was a lot of action but I felt I was missing a connection with the characters or lacked the feelings or emotions of the characters a bit.
This was a great plot (WOW) and would be a great read for someone that likes a more plot-driven than character-driven storylines.
Pros: What a dark and tense book! This story goes to some messed-up places. It kept me at the edge of my seat the whole time.
Cons: Even though the tension was there throughout the book it did seem to be slow in places. There was a lot of action but I felt I was missing a connection with the characters or lacked the feelings or emotions of the characters a bit.
This was a great plot (WOW) and would be a great read for someone that likes a more plot-driven than character-driven storylines.
Children are abducted to help a disturbed man recreate and deal with his childhood trauma. I enjoyed how the story played out and the character development. I did have a few little niggles in the back of my brain like the children being teenagers. It isn't what I would first think of if I were told someone had abducted children to recreate their own childhood. Additionally there was something I started catching on to later than I think I should have in the book. Maybe I was reading too fast and missed the signs, but the children should have figured it out well before me and there was never a reason given as to why they didn't. I don't need my books all nicely tied up at the end, but this one aspect seemed a bit too strange to ignore. I also enjoyed how the story included others dealing with the trauma of the kidnappings from the FBI agent to the younger brother and even some of the townspeople. It is really easy to forget how so many people can be impacted by trauma. I look forward to more from this author.
Thanks to NetGalley and Sara Ennis for a copy of the book. This review is my own opinion.
Thanks to NetGalley and Sara Ennis for a copy of the book. This review is my own opinion.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
gore score 4/5
Duality #1
Don’t let the pretty gothic mystery style cover fool you, this is one of the darkest grittiest most emotional books I’ve ever read.
A psychological thriller by a new to me author. The story uses the trope of abducted and ‘kept’ children. In this case teenage twins Angel and Bud.
Peter’s story is very moving, his daughter Olivia was stolen. He is obsessed with all children taken looking for links. He is still on a mission a year later to try and find his daughter.
There is a very good pace and plenty of tension. The physical and psychological torture is disturbing and I had a lot of emotional investment with the captive teenagers. In some ways I felt sorry for Albert as we learn of his abusive childhood.
Its very moving, the emotional baggage keeps piling up throughout leaving me wrung out.
It has several threads to the storyline which intertwine and unravel.
This is one hell of a WOW book. It had me in floods of tears.
This is the darkest book I’ve read
It won’t appeal to everyone because of the subject matter.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse
✨ If you’re looking for a twisted thriller for spooky season, look no further. If twins Bud and Angel Evanston didn’t have bad luck, they wouldn’t have any luck at all. Their father is in prison for a bank robbery and their Mom, Sunshine, isn’t winning any parenting contests herself. When Sunshine decides to leave her 14 year olds home alone to take a trip to Chicago their luck goes from bad, to worse. Drugged and kidnapped, they wake up in The Dollhouse. Captives of Alfred and Jennifer, they meet the First Doll and are forced to recreate photos from Alfreds childhood. When everything doesn’t go Alfred’s way, the consequences are dire. The album only has so many photos, will the Dolls be able to escape before their final shoot?
This book was nuts! It’s told from multiple POV’s and has short chapters that will dare you to try to stop reading. It felt like I was watching a true crime Netflix Series or one of the good M. Night Shymalan movies. I would recommend checking out the trigger warnings just to be safe. Highly recommend this one for all my friends that love shocking twists and don’t mind disturbing content. Can’t wait to see what happens in the second book! Thank you to @saraenniswrites and @thriller_chick for getting this book into my hands.
This book was nuts! It’s told from multiple POV’s and has short chapters that will dare you to try to stop reading. It felt like I was watching a true crime Netflix Series or one of the good M. Night Shymalan movies. I would recommend checking out the trigger warnings just to be safe. Highly recommend this one for all my friends that love shocking twists and don’t mind disturbing content. Can’t wait to see what happens in the second book! Thank you to @saraenniswrites and @thriller_chick for getting this book into my hands.
https://book-bucket.com/2021/08/24/the-dollhouse-by-sara-ennis/
This is a rather creepy psychological suspense thriller. The story is mostly told from the perspective of Angel, one of the fourteen year old abductees and this gives the scenes in the Dollhouse a more frightening edge. The rest of the story is told from the POV of the father of a girl who was abducted a year ago and whose mission is to help the parents of other abducted children.
The story and writing style are fast paced so it is a reasonably fast read and it kept me engrossed. There is a good twist and I enjoyed the ending which was a little different and unexpected.
This is a rather creepy psychological suspense thriller. The story is mostly told from the perspective of Angel, one of the fourteen year old abductees and this gives the scenes in the Dollhouse a more frightening edge. The rest of the story is told from the POV of the father of a girl who was abducted a year ago and whose mission is to help the parents of other abducted children.
The story and writing style are fast paced so it is a reasonably fast read and it kept me engrossed. There is a good twist and I enjoyed the ending which was a little different and unexpected.