Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Dead Voices

This is a somewhat generous 3 star.

I have mixed feelings. I really liked the premise, and I liked some things here and there, but overall it was very meh. It had a bit of a meandering plot. A lot of the things I disliked you could say are just because it’s middle grade. (Some predictable plot twists, not very scary, the very tidy ending.

Though I will say, Seth’s reaction to when Coco saved Ollie at the end was very satisfying

). Some of the things I disliked are very nit picky - mainly just weird wording here and there (taxidermy is filled with cotton, not formaldehyde…?). It really bothered me that Brian was so neglected in this book. This felt like Ollie and Coco’s story, with him as a background character. They’re the only two we get a pov from. He was even completely absent for the vast majority of the actual ‘game’, and even when he was there I don’t remember him ever doing much besides what other people told him to. Considering he’s the only black character, that doesn’t sit right with me. I also wanted to know Gretel and Gabe’s backstory, and found it a bit odd that we didn’t get that.

But again, it’s middle grade so maybe I’m being too critical.

Side note: I still think Coco is autistic. Examples:
1. She’s an anxious person
2. She has unique special interests
3. She has very strong emotional reactions to things
4. She’s excessively clumsy in a way that kinda suggests dyspraxia imo

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monsterofidaho's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Sequels terrify me. I'm always worried that they won't be as good as the first book. I want the magic to keep going but it seldom seems to. Dead Voices takes that fear and buries it instantly. Everything I liked about Small Spaces, from the genuinely enjoyable protagonists to the unabashed creepiness of the monsters, is right here in Dead Voices. As someone who grew up both on Scooby-Doo and Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Dead Voices crosses those wires in a way I didn't know I wanted.

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alyvia_jeane's review

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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averyjane's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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emily_mh's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book was like a middle-grade “The Shining”. It had INCREDIBLE atmosphere. However, it didn’t feel super captivating, and the character development was lacking. I kind of wish the whole thing had been engineered to be told from only Coco’s POV so that there was a deeper dive into her character.

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