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wickedgrumpy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Torture, Body horror, Car accident, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship
chityty's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Book felt meandering with many a side character brought up and not fully fleshed out. People for the sake of suspects. Had 50 pages left and didn’t feel like anything was wrapping up.
But then it did in a spectacular twist that, though not earth shattering, was executed so well that it is worth the read.
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Car accident, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
pupaebug's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I also really did not understand how Theo kept getting his way. Is he charismatic? I didn't feel that he was. Why did everyone at the Grove just keep letting him do what he wanted? Why did they trust a new psychoanalyst (not a doctor) about medication but not Christian, a medical doctor with experience with patients such as Alicia and far more mental health training than Theo? Why was Theo so easily able to become Alicia's psychiatrist?
Another thing that infuriated me about this book is Alicia's journal. I've written in a diary on and off for my entire life, and I keep a regular diary now. Alicia's diary is not how normal people write. Normal people write about their own experiences from their perspective, which is distorted by their feelings on the matters they discuss. Diaries are stream-of-consciousness style. No one writes lines of perfect dialogue in their diary followed by novel-style narration. It completely took me out of it and made me think that the diary was fabricated as part of the mystery. That would have been interesting. Even Alicia's diary written in a stream-of-consciousness way, with unreliable and distorted perspectives, would have been interesting for the novel. But alas, we got none of those and it turns out Alex Michaelides just does not know how people keep journals.
I honestly also just think I've had enough of this incredibly simple, friendly style of narration I see in books published since 2015. This book just sounded like a guy was talking to a friend, and my personal preference is for writing that requires some mental dissection and thought. Theo plainly stated every single thing that he wanted to get through to the reader. While this isn't a bad thing, it made me feel like I was reading a book written for ten-year-olds who haven't developed the ability to understand other people's emotions yet. It was almost insulting as a reader, do I need it spelled out to me that Theo felt sad when he found out Kathy was cheating on him? Am I not trusted to infer a single thing on my own?
All this aside, the book was entertaining and kept me wanting to keep reading. I was confused by how short the chapters were,
Graphic: Stalking, Suicide attempt, Blood, Body horror, Car accident, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Self harm, and Suicide
gnpunpun's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Self harm, Death of parent, and Medical trauma
hue's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Car accident, Mental illness, Violence, Suicide, Death, Death of parent, Infidelity, Child abuse, Sexual content, and Gun violence
cinnamonroll42'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Infidelity, Self harm, Stalking, and Mental illness
Moderate: Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Self harm, and Suicide attempt
kerianne0's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Mental illness, Murder, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Death of parent, Stalking, Car accident, and Self harm
kromany's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Mental illness, and Stalking
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Gun violence, and Death of parent
tabea1409's review
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Self harm, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual content, Death, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Child abuse, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Emotional abuse, Blood, Stalking, and Suicide attempt
lottyfarmer's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Medical content, Murder, Grief, Mental illness, Confinement, Death, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Violence, Stalking, Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Car accident, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Drug abuse, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Cursing, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Death of parent and Eating disorder