Reviews

The Scapegoat by Sara Davis

jilliebeanreads's review

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2.0

N (the narrator) is a university professor and oddball who’s thrust into an odd situation. Unexpectedly, he sets off to investigate the mystery surrounding the death of his estranged father. Then he meets all sorts of characters who lead him to a hotel that on the outside appears to hold secrets and/or a surrounding conspiracy.

The thing is that I just didn’t “get” this book. What was real? What was a dream? What was in the future? Despite the audiobook being just over 5 hours, I likely spent 7 hours re-listening to the story to try and figure out what I was missing. For this reason, it’s not a book that I’d recommend to others. That said, I found that the narrator, Michael Brusaso, did a perfectly fine job. It was just the content I didn’t love.

Special thanks to Dreamscape Media for a free listener copy of the book via the NetGalley app. This is my honest review.

kwoolfre's review

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

4.0

I have to read this again

sincitylibrarian's review

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

4.0

nicolearmstrong's review

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dark mysterious fast-paced

3.0

I read this book in one afternoon. I was captivated by the noir style, the David Lynch vibes, and the quality of the writing. This is a plot heavy book--the narrator and protagonist are not interested much in plumbing great emotional depths here--and I wasn't sure what it all added up to in the end. The political activism subplot rang hollow, and I'm not sure how to interpret the ending, specifically the final paragraph. It's a quick and well-written read, yet I hesitate to recommend it. I would read other works by this author in the future.

karlcalagan's review

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slow-paced

4.0

nite's review

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mysterious

5.0

lbenton's review

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3.0

NetGalley gave me the opportunity to listen to the audio book
I feel like I need to process some of it or do I?
The story reads like a man lost in the chaos and discombobulation of his own mind. We are taken along on that journey with him never quite knowing when we are weaving in and out of whichever part of the reality he’s in

Aside from his his journey I found the main character to he rathe lack luster and dare I say boring
His adventure and the authors ability to take you on a literary journey still have me in my head wondering what the hell I just listened to

zukythebookbum's review

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challenging dark mysterious slow-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

4.0

s_h's review

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mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

katertot8895's review

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4.0

I might change the rating once I let the book simmer for a bit, but overall I had a good time reading it (even if I rarely knew what was going on).