Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas

77 reviews

nomron's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

3.75

I didn't really like this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Car accident, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

elisabeth_li's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child death, Death, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Abortion, and Alcohol

aprillikestoread's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I loved the book it constantly had my attention. There was so many plot twists and cliffhangers! And I kept thinking how great a movie this book could be. And it was good because it wasn’t written as only scary or mysterious, real life aspects and perspectives were sprinkled in 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Car accident, and Murder

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Grief

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and Suicide

samantha7815's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

aoife_taylors_version2413's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Car accident, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Abortion

abbeyroad1410's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

3.25

Starting this review on a positive note, The Cheerleaders tackles serious topics very well. One of the best decisions Kara Thomas makes in this book is not revealing exactly how Jen died. When you compare this to other books advertised to teens that cover the same issues (such as 13 Reasons Why), it is clear what a responsible decision this is. 
Speaking of Jen, she deserved more chapters from her perspective. Monica is a good lead and serves her purpose of moving along the plot, but Jen is a far more dynamic character in the few chapters we get of her. Jen and Ethan's friendship is well-written and they provide a complex and compelling storyline (though I wish Ethan's motivations were clarified more.) 
The message of this story seems to be that most things in life are tangentially connected, though how connected they are may not be clear. The ending to this book perfectly encapsulates this idea that nearly everything is intertwined. Additionally, Kara Thomas makes sure not to convolute the plot to the point that the connections are blurry at best.
My biggest complaint about this novel is the multitude of characters with names which leads to an abundance of confusion. I couldn't remember who characters like Varney or Bethany's mom were when I got to chapters with them, sending me on a wild goose chase to find out their importance.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

eleanor_shaw's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident

Moderate: Death and Murder

aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.5

A little slow at the beginning but once things started happening, it picked up. I wish the whodunnit reveal had a little more oomph but it wasn't the worst. And I wish we knew if the person would actually get charged with the all the things they needed to be charged with. I did enjoy the very last bit with Ginny, I wasn't expecting it. And I liked how Ethan's character turned out. 

I wish we found out about what would happen with Tom and Mike knowing that Tom killed an innocent man. And like besides emotion clouding judgement, why he was so quick to kill an innocent man

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, Car accident, and Alcohol

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Abortion

hdelossantos's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Car accident

katherinesreadingalot's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

i liked it but i still feel like some things are left unanswered for me

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol

Minor: Abortion