Reviews

Horrifying. I was so unsettled the entire time, yet I couldn't stop.

I listened to this as an audiobook- Jack Ketchum actually narrated it and he did an amazing job. This story is so upsetting and anxiety-inducing and its made even worse by knowing it was based on true events. My first book by Jack was Offseason, so luckily I went in expecting to be disturbed.

The writing itself is immersive. Our main character toes the line of right and wrong, finding his place somewhere close to the middle (little more on the wrong side IMO). There were times that I think, if I would have been reading a physical copy, I would have skimmed through a couple pages to miss the full affect of the details. But alas, it was an audiobook and I let it play, feeling like an uncomfortable spectator.

I had a hard time rating this book because to say I 'enjoyed' it would not be correct. But I can't give it any less than 5 stars because of all the emotions the author evoked and the way he delivered this tragic story. This book is not for the faint of heart, and neither is the real story of Sylvia Likens. Please check trigger warnings before getting into this one.

blzen's review against another edition

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5.0

I rated this five stars and shelved it as "hall-of-fame." This does not mean I enjoyed the experience of reading it. For all who care: five-star ratings are reserved for books that make a lasting impact on me and change my entire view of something.

jaimekaya's review against another edition

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1.0

The writing is pretty decent, but this is just pure torture porn. It’s based off of the real life case of Sylvia Likens and the real life details are horrible enough. I regret reading this.

marissasj's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad

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

4.5

bookish_withsky's review against another edition

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It feels weird trying to rate this one since I knew the true crime before reading this book. I will say that it's phenomenally written and shows the true depravity that humans are capable of, as well as how young boys or children can be manipulated and convinced to partake in such awful acts. That was always a question that I had when research the true crime. "How could so many people engage in this? What the heck is actually happening right now?" I think this tries to capture that. However, it is not an easy read at all, especially when knowing that a lot of this is based on the true torture that a girl really did go through.

avareadssometimes's review against another edition

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It was fucking disgusting and I couldn’t take it anymore

Content Warnings

tunawidow's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? No

3.0

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