Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Plain Bad Heroines

This book was beautifully written, I felt so drawn into both timelines and the characters involved in each of them. They were balanced perfectly and I never felt like one was taking away from the other. I loved so many of the characters, how human and flawed they were, how they made mistakes and felt like people. The writing of the book was amazing and I’ve annotated so many lines that I’ve gone through multiple packs of post it flags. The horror and thriller element was there but it didn’t feel like it was trying To scare you so much as share a story that could scare you at points. Overall everything about this book made me extremely happy and I’ll definitely be rereading and looking for new things now that I know the ending.

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sagemelville's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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kalagallop's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-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

3.5

Of the two timelines in the book, the characters in the present day are much more compelling and likable, while still being flawed. The ending is ambiguous in a way that is slightly frustrating, but the story was engaging the whole way through. I couldn’t put it down.

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mothie_girlie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

2.5

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ehmannky's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

5.0

This book was creepy and weird and queer in all senses of the word. I fucking loved it. It's a dense read, and at times it felt a bit overwhelming. Danforth portrays the oppressive nature of the haunted school area incredibly well, and the mental break some of these characters experience, that it felt like I was having a empathetic experience with them. Also, I love a good use of fictional footnotes, and Danforth uses them so well throughout the novel.

I didn't particularly love the reveal of the source of the curse at the end, and would have preferred if it had stayed much more abstract, but the rest of the book is so good that it kind of renders that complaint to a far off and distant concern.

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lisakey's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes

4.0

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