Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James

151 reviews

sehenry20's review

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0


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sea_tea_books's review

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I wasn't interested in a ghost story at the time. 

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skeptic_hecate's review

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

I couldn't put it down, at least until almost the end. The Viv parts of the book were thrilling and told from the perspective of a very interesting, deeply caring, missunderstood and likable protagonist. Ther Varly chapters were not so great. 

Carly reads like a run of the mill "pick me girl", with extra "not like other girls" sprinkled on top. Where Viv used her brains and worked hard, Carly got deus ex machinas in the form of Heather and Nick. The entire character of Nick read too much like a romance book, which is a genre I am not fond of. I found myself wanting to skip Carly's chapters just so I could read more about Viv.

All in all, a decent read, I would read more of the author. I heard this book in audiobook format, and the avllet girl accent of the voice of Carly only made me loathe that character even more. I do however recommend it as a fast and exciting read to get out of a reading slump.

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sunshine_sophia's review

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

this book had it all: mystery, suspense, serial killers, ghosts, and badass women 💪🏼

i was a little spooked, but not spooked enough to stop reading. this book, this mystery, this motel sucks you in and doesn’t let go. i was so enthralled by the story in it’s uniqueness and twists. 

at times, i found it hard to remember which story i was reading: either viv’s or carly’s (which as another reviewer commented was intentional). it is like stepping into a time capsule back to 1982. both characters were meant to parallel each other, decades apart. 

this was so close to a 5 star read, however, i did not love carly’s character. is was very much giving “i’m not like other girls, i’m just quirky and i wear glasses”. her energy was a little too “pick me” for me. i would have preferred  different character traits, but it didn’t completely ruin the story for me. 

overall, this was a fun, gripping, and chilling read. i loved all the twists and turns this book took me on. this book will definitely stick with me for a while. 

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gellyreads's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This is exactly my shit. Ghosts. Revenge.
Girls killing serial killers.
Mystery. Thrillers. A hint of romance. Yes! I was so happy to
find Viv alive
and I feel so stupid to not realize that
Callum was the grandson of Simon Hess.
I knew he was sketchy and violent, but I didn't realize
he was going to be the grandson.

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ashleyaselin's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0


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grclnntt's review

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

3.5

Pretty good and consistently paced. Some slow areas but over all kept it’s pace. Felt like even the slow areas were necessary to explain the next bit. 
See content warnings. 
The r@pe mentions are brief and also swapped out for the word violated. There is no description of them, thank god, just statements or mentions.
But does mention several times as that is what happens to the victim(s).

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sshpurple1's review

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dark informative mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • 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? It's complicated

5.0

This is a two-timeline story with paranormal aspects. It's a little slow to start, but 100% worth the wait.

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racheldallaire's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I couldn't put this down and when I had to, I couldn't wait to get back to it. This was cleverly crafted and I enjoyed it all. I can find the jumping timelines/narrators annoying sometimes, but it worked well in this book. The characters were well-developed and the way everything was revealed as the story unfolded was fantastic.

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ryendnae's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0


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