Reviews tagging 'Death'

Hide by Kiersten White

152 reviews

phantomgecko's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

4.5

I read it in as close to one sitting as I can manage in my life. I very much needed to know what happened next. What happened was along my expectations but still pleasantly surprisingly, if that makes sense.

There were a lot of characters, but even the shortlived ones had enough personality for all of them to be distinct characters. Some were meant to likable, others unlikable, but others still were open to either option. Or neither.

There were a lot of perspective shifts, which usually bothers me (especially multiple shifts within a single scene), but it fed the fast pace of the book. It also helped give dimension to so many people.

Mack's super upsetting backstory was an interesting facet of the story. Of all the motivations in the story, hers was the wildest to me. It made perfect sense, but woof. Like, you have "I am tired of being a door-to-door salesman" and even "I was banished from my polygamist cult" which feel solid and normal (ish). Then Mack's like, "Yeah hiding is kinda my thing (tm) because

my father slaughtered my family but not me because I was hiding well enough.

" I'm glad she had the breakthroughs she did in the book, but therapy would've been better, probably.

I resonated with the social commentary so I didn't mind it. For example, the book divided them into two groups: losers and hustlers, but really, they were all unhappy and unsuccessful. A fun reminder that we have more in common than we think. And then the extensive emphasis on what is or isn't hard work and what people do or don't deserve... (For real, multiple times, my husband has started a conversation this morning about current events, and I was like, "So I just read this book..."...)

Also, a faithful movie adaptation would be incredible.

A lot lot lot of language though, so that's not my favorite.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism

Moderate: Blood, Suicide, Violence, and Death

Minor: Child abuse and Lesbophobia

Gratuitous f-word

jenc's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

3.75

Pretty good collection of wheelhouse tropes that I can tell you about because they're spoilers. Also really good character explorations, some more meaningful and finished than others.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Suicide

Moderate: Child death, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Grief, Lesbophobia, Religious bigotry, Blood, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Body shaming, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Toxic relationship, and Abandonment

caitbrat's review against another edition

mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death, and Murder

kcelena's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Violence, Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Chronic illness, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Grief, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, and Murder

vaguely_pink's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child death, Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, and Racism

Minor: Ableism, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Religious bigotry, and War

senia's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture and Death

Moderate: Suicide

a_libraryghost's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.25

Overall I enjoyed this. I didn’t find it scary but I was genuinely worried for the characters at times. There’s a lot of ‘head hopping’, especially at the start. I’m not sure the physical book broke it up into tiny paragraphs but the characters became very jumbled in the audiobook. I liked most of the characters although some of the dialogue was a bit meh and Kiersten’s way of including ‘diversity’ was uncomfortable. There’s one character who is the token character of colour, token queer and token disabled all in one and she’s very much the saviour character. 

Despite what the reader ratings suggest, this book absolutely is not diverse. 

I’m also annoyed that it seemed to build up a romance between Mack and Ava with no payoff? I have mixed feelings about Ava’s fake out death but at least her death could have been a great emotional trigger similar to her sisters death to spur her into action. I’m also fine with her being alive but why not then let her and Mack have a happy ending?

Unlike some others I actually don’t mind the ending (except for my thoughts above)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Racism and Classism

shannananahey's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Domestic abuse, Violence, Child abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, and Suicide

Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, and Death of parent

Minor: Grief, Homophobia, Colonisation, Misogyny, and Classism

booksofautumn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

A really good thriller novel that contains just enough to be considered horror without being overly gory. It reads really fast and kept me entertained the whole time. A good read for Halloween 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Murder, Blood, Suicide, and Death

Moderate: Child death, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Racism, Death of parent, Gore, Vomit, War, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Body horror, and Drug use

ecn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• 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

I originally wanted to read this book bc a reoccurring nightmare I had as a child was being chased/having to hide in an amusement park. I thought this was going to be SO tense and scare me but it was more of a mystery/thriller than a dark horror. I really liked it, but it stopped being tense about halfway through and then became a race to the finish line type of story. I wish more of the story was built in the hiding and the terror of being hunted instead of the why (maybe if it was longer?)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Blood, Suicide, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Grief, Violence, Toxic friendship, Gore, Racism, Misogyny, Vomit, Lesbophobia, Body horror, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, and Death