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readingbooksismyfavouritething's review against another edition
2.0
DNF at 90% I just couldn’t drag myself through until the end. It started off really well but it just spiralled into something that defies all reality and belief an ended up being too silly to actually have any intrigue left. Main character was likeable and funny but like the story, got quite rambling & ridiculous as the book went on. This should have been so much shorter than it was, I just had to skip to the end to see what happened and there was no big plot twist or anything. The story just plodded along until the end which doesn’t make for a very thrilling ‘thriller’....
jufira42's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
3.5
bjohnny's review
3.0
This book started off really intriguing, but it kind of dropped off for me as you start to find out who the anonymous caller is. It was a decent read, but I wouldn't read it again
hyattsarah's review against another edition
2.0
It was interesting until almost the end, and then it suddenly wasn't. What a letdown.
sarahs_bookish_life's review against another edition
4.0
I really don't know what to say about this book. It has to be one of the most strangest books I have ever read.
To start with I have to say I did struggle to get into it. The story flicks between Justine and her family and the story of another family where some very strange murders have occurred. I was really struggling with the concept of the book and to be honest I really thought I wasn't going to like it.
Then came a part where Justine finds herself under protest, becoming the owner of a new puppy called Figgy Pudding and from that moment I was hooked. I have no idea why it was this part in particular, for one I just loved the dogs name and was wanting to rush out and get myself a puppy to give the same name, but obviously that would not be a good idea at all. On reflection I can only say that this is when the story all started to fall into place for me and it started to make sense.
A Game For All The Family is a great title for this book and it felt like the author was playing with my mind. At times I did not know whether I was coming or going there are many twists and surprises and it certainly keeps you on your toes.
Towards the end I couldn't put the book down I had to know how it all ended and the author did not disappoint in messing with my head right up until the very end.
There are quite a few complex characters in the story which just adds to the addictiveness of this book, it may have taken me awhile but once it had drawn me in it just chewed me up and then spat me out at the end. I am still in two minds as to whether it is just one of the most disturbed books I have ever read or one of pure genius but at the time of writing this review I am going with the latter.
A seriously twisted book which will totally mess with your head and one that by the end I would highly recommend.
Many thanks to Bookbridgr and Karen at Hodder & Stoughton for a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
To start with I have to say I did struggle to get into it. The story flicks between Justine and her family and the story of another family where some very strange murders have occurred. I was really struggling with the concept of the book and to be honest I really thought I wasn't going to like it.
Then came a part where Justine finds herself under protest, becoming the owner of a new puppy called Figgy Pudding and from that moment I was hooked. I have no idea why it was this part in particular, for one I just loved the dogs name and was wanting to rush out and get myself a puppy to give the same name, but obviously that would not be a good idea at all. On reflection I can only say that this is when the story all started to fall into place for me and it started to make sense.
A Game For All The Family is a great title for this book and it felt like the author was playing with my mind. At times I did not know whether I was coming or going there are many twists and surprises and it certainly keeps you on your toes.
Towards the end I couldn't put the book down I had to know how it all ended and the author did not disappoint in messing with my head right up until the very end.
There are quite a few complex characters in the story which just adds to the addictiveness of this book, it may have taken me awhile but once it had drawn me in it just chewed me up and then spat me out at the end. I am still in two minds as to whether it is just one of the most disturbed books I have ever read or one of pure genius but at the time of writing this review I am going with the latter.
A seriously twisted book which will totally mess with your head and one that by the end I would highly recommend.
Many thanks to Bookbridgr and Karen at Hodder & Stoughton for a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
sophbean's review against another edition
1.0
DNF
I found this book tiresome and disinteresting; Every single character in this book is utterly dislikable on so many levels. Justine; a self absorbed, away-with-the-fairies, at times unkind, and unrealistic woman, her daughter Ellen who is incredibly rude and far too smart for a child of her age, and Justine's opera singer husband who's so two dimensional and boring that I've already forgotten his name after only reading the book yesterday. I also found the plot of this book slow and dull, while somehow managing to be so far fetched I can never imagine it happening to any real family ever. Not a good combination.
So maybe it's just me, after all I've seen this book highlighted in every book shop I've visited recently, and heard good things from others who have read it - however this book will stand no purpose other that being a bookend for my other much loved, (and in my opinion better) books. Very disappointed overall; more fairytale than thriller.
I found this book tiresome and disinteresting; Every single character in this book is utterly dislikable on so many levels. Justine; a self absorbed, away-with-the-fairies, at times unkind, and unrealistic woman, her daughter Ellen who is incredibly rude and far too smart for a child of her age, and Justine's opera singer husband who's so two dimensional and boring that I've already forgotten his name after only reading the book yesterday. I also found the plot of this book slow and dull, while somehow managing to be so far fetched I can never imagine it happening to any real family ever. Not a good combination.
So maybe it's just me, after all I've seen this book highlighted in every book shop I've visited recently, and heard good things from others who have read it - however this book will stand no purpose other that being a bookend for my other much loved, (and in my opinion better) books. Very disappointed overall; more fairytale than thriller.
jfruth's review against another edition
1.0
I would have loved more depth to the characters and an actual twist. This story was compelling enough for me to want to see how it ended, but once I got there I realized it may not have been worth the journey. Layers and layers of exposition and totally unrealistic behavior from characters. It would be nice to attribute some pieces of this to "magical realism," but the bits about intuition and premonition feel like a clunky plot device to move forward. An interesting idea with execution that could have been better.
susieshanly's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-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
4.5
suneaters's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I enjoyed much of the story, but the humor infused in the writing sapped much of the tension. How am I supposed to feel real fear for the characters when the story is telling me to not take anything seriously? And my suspension of disbelief kept being broken. It's like the author couldn't decide between realism or something more akin to Lemony Snicket's absurdist writing. It's just not the right tone for a psychological thriller. Even so, I did enjoy the characters and the overall mystery was satisfying (I mean, the story within a story mystery since Anne's death really....wasn't. "And she was crazy" isn't really satisfying nor creative plus it makes the school seem even LESS believable) . I loved some of the subtler clues left like that Malachay is a dog and not a thirteen year old boy and that the parents are the ones who killed Perrine (so Allisande tried to ignore this while Lisette left in horror).
I’d give it a better rating if not for the one chapter containing the word “transmisogynistically” as an adverb. That single-handedly (or single word-edly) dropped the book a rating point. The most charitable interpretation of this section of the story is that it’s a cautionary tale against mob mentality, but seeing as the author has a Twitter, I’m sure the true message is that women are evil, lying bitches who ruin the lives of innocent men (less funny of an accusation after Depp DARVO’d the internet and a jury full of idiots) and that women who DARE to divorce autogynephiles are the worst of all as opposed to, I don't know, victims of their husbands' misogyny. Sorry, the one gay boy in your book who doesn’t have internet isn’t gonna know what the fuck “cis” means and neither will the other adolescent girl who seems normal (so she probably doesn’t know unless she’s been booted from a female sports team or harassed in the locker room/bathroom by men in wigs).
Ah well. I liked the mother-daughter relationship at the center of the novel.
Ah well. I liked the mother-daughter relationship at the center of the novel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Child death, Mental illness, Child abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Misogyny
nuggetlover's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0