Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - Magpie

Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Magpie by Elizabeth Day

82 reviews

lynds_13's review

challenging dark emotional tense fast-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

3.75

Overall I liked this book. It was pretty fast paced. The twists in the book were good, and well thought out. It got a bit slow in the middle but did pick back up. I enjoyed the characters for the most part minus the mother which is a given. Overall a decent fast paced psychological “thriller”

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dlrosebyh's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

If this novel had a warning, it would be, “Never trust anyone with a J name”.

Yes, we hear that warning almost everywhere— whether in social media or in our friend groups, however this novel rather takes that warning quite literally.

Magpie follows three characters: Jake, Marisa, and Kate. Despite only having known Jake for a few months, Marisa has never felt quite this confident in a person. She knows she has at last found the unwavering love and support she has been searching for her entire life when he asks her to move in with him and they begin trying for a child. However, when they take in Kate as a lodger, who seems to have little regard for personal boundaries and shows an unsettling interest in both Jake and the unborn child they are hoping to have, their relationship is put to the test.

With the plot given, I didn’t really know what to expect in this novel. I mean, I’ll be honest: I’ve never really liked thrillers or mysteries like the vast majority. With that given, let’s just say that I found this book rather mid. If you know me, you know that if I like a book, especially if I’m reading it digitally, I finish it quickly. Well, while, yes, I did finish this book in like three days, I can’t help but compare it to my experience with other thriller or mystery novels that I’ve finished in one sitting. For me, one of the most important aspects in a thriller novel is for it to be gripping. I don’t want to read a thriller novel to be read slowly, I want to be intrigued; I want to be with the characters. And unfortunately for Magpie, I didn’t really feel that.

I do know that I am not the target audience for this novel. I’ll admit it. I lack knowledge when it comes to marriage, adulthood, surrogation— and I don’t know if it’s because I’m used to fantasy novels, but I wished that some parts were explained more profoundly. And what’s even more annoying is that some parts felt like dragged. And that for me, is a turn-off.

Overall, I think this book is just alright. It’s what you think of when you hear of a three-star-read. While I didn’t enjoy the book as much as other people, I do believe that it is an outstanding book on its own. So if you think this book is for you, then why not give it a shot.

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lhamilton2835's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

This was pretty twisty but more believable than many of the current stories like this. Lots of family dynamics. Worth a read.

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gracetiblem's review against another edition

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

3.75

The plot twist is PHENOMENAL. It absolutely got me.

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bumble_abi's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.0

you can tell I'm not having a great time with my mental health because I'm reading mass market thrillers again

this is blurbed as 'the most mind-blowing book of the year' which is the kind of hyperbole that can only set a book up for a fall. Marisa and her lovely boyfriend move in together and try to start a family, but Marisa is increasingly disturbed by the behaviour of their solicitous and overfamiliar lodger, Kate. There's a decent twist in this but it occurs only about a third of the way into the book, and then the rest is the long unraveling of how we got to that point, followed by a slightly too tidy ending.

This truly did feel like a book of two halves - the first half is great, tense and confusing and addictive, but it peaks too early and doesn't leave enough meat for the second half. There's not enough depth to any of it to justify its ultimate meandering. There's a (not graphic - the narrative voice just tells you it happened) rape scene which didn't have very much of a purpose in the plot except as a shortcut to creating a character who is unstable, which felt unnecessary and distasteful. I enjoyed it well enough but wouldn't rush to recommend.

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stagasaurus's review

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

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tessalort's review

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dark 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? Yes

4.0

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hollymileham's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-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? Yes

4.5

such an interesting exploration of all the different complexities of motherhood, the twists in this blew my mind. defo lying if you say you predicted any part of this
rating 4 stars tho bc i feel like the ending was a bit optimistic for such an intense book

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lucyyybee's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? No

2.5

This book… Um, don’t know where to start. It was boring, exciting plot twist, back to boring. But within all the boring was also just confusion.

Evil MIL who played small role in book ends up being the biggest issue? Somehow thinking the woman with bipolar / schizophrenia who tried to kill her sons girlfriend was a better fit for her son. Mind you, she’s very stuck up and uppity. So that makes no sense as her son is “perfect” and she would otherwise see Marisa as very flawed.

Also paints mental illness in an odd way. I don’t know. I forced myself through it hoping for a good ending. I was let down.

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canttalk_reading's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

The twists in this book took my legs out from under me! At least twice!
The main three characters relationship is written in a way that you can almost feel the unrest between them yourself. I just couldn't put it down

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