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krys_kilz's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was an absolutely searing and timely exploration of wellness culture and family secrets packed into a suspense filled thriller. The desperate desire for an easy answer to explain all pain away along with the toxic, hierarchical, and manipulative relationships at this story's core truly encapsulated the cult-like mentality of many self-improvement and wellness retreat ventures. Throwing this in sharp relief against the similar longings for love, belonging, and acceptance even at the expense of excusing abuse that make up many family dynamics was truly a stroke of genius. A very fresh meditation on power and groupthink!
The twists and turns were shocking and the ending preserved the novel's overall dark and unsettling mood. I just love thrillers that combine astute social commentary with complex characters and page turning anticipation. Wrobel delivered that with This Might Hurt.
tw: child abuse, cult, emotional abuse and manipulation
The twists and turns were shocking and the ending preserved the novel's overall dark and unsettling mood. I just love thrillers that combine astute social commentary with complex characters and page turning anticipation. Wrobel delivered that with This Might Hurt.
tw: child abuse, cult, emotional abuse and manipulation
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Body horror
Moderate: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Cancer
Minor: Addiction and Fatphobia
mrscorytee's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
thebakerbookworm's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
While this book was well-written and I didn't get bored with the story, unlikable characters and a frustrating ending (to me) pushed this book into the "meh" category for me.
We have three narrators: Natalie, Kit, and an unknown voice, who we see in flashbacks from childhood to adulthood. Of the three, I felt like I got to know the unknown voice the best. Natalie was flat the whole time, which was frustrating to me because at the beginning, she's our main character. But she gets no development or real complexity and I found myself not caring what happened to her. We get to know Kit a little better, but I found her more annoying than endearing. The third voice gets the most development, and though I soon guessed who this narrator was, she's still interesting. But how the ending plays out just made her story seem pointless to me. There are other side characters that are interesting at first, but again, they are all pretty flat.
The plot jumps around from present to past, but I actually thought this format worked for the story. I think I was mainly just annoyed by the ending; I felt like it was building up to something and then it didn't end up having a release. Also, there are a lot of *icky* things that happen in the story that unnerved me and I'd really rather not read about those kinds of things...
Lots of people have loved this one; it just wasn't for me. I do think it's well-written though, so it's not falling into the "I hate this" category lol. Just not one I can recommend without caution.
We have three narrators: Natalie, Kit, and an unknown voice, who we see in flashbacks from childhood to adulthood. Of the three, I felt like I got to know the unknown voice the best. Natalie was flat the whole time, which was frustrating to me because at the beginning, she's our main character. But she gets no development or real complexity and I found myself not caring what happened to her. We get to know Kit a little better, but I found her more annoying than endearing. The third voice gets the most development, and though I soon guessed who this narrator was, she's still interesting. But how the ending plays out just made her story seem pointless to me. There are other side characters that are interesting at first, but again, they are all pretty flat.
The plot jumps around from present to past, but I actually thought this format worked for the story. I think I was mainly just annoyed by the ending; I felt like it was building up to something and then it didn't end up having a release. Also, there are a lot of *icky* things that happen in the story that unnerved me and I'd really rather not read about those kinds of things...
Lots of people have loved this one; it just wasn't for me. I do think it's well-written though, so it's not falling into the "I hate this" category lol. Just not one I can recommend without caution.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Cancer and Death of parent
alygarcia's review
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Suicide
tonstantweader's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
This Might Hurt tells the story of two sisters estranged since their mother’s death. Natalie’s sister Kit went off to Wisewood, a retreat on an isolated island, where she was pledged to not contact anyone for six months. But then Natalie gets a letter threatening to tell Kit the secret she has been keeping from Kit.
There are chapters interwoven featuring a young girl being horribly abused and seeking to escape via magic. She becomes fascinated with Houdini and the idea of being an escape artist. In time, she comes to found the Wisewood retreat. I don’t know who is to blame for it, but I spent a good portion of the novel thinking that this young girl was one of the sisters.
Natalie goes to the island to see Kit. It seems as though there is a conspiracy to keep them apart. There is, but it’s not the conspiracy she thought it was.
A book that confused me from the beginning cannot help but be disappointing. Even if the confusion is my fault because I read it late at night, the error should have become obvious to me long before it did. But then, this book was so much about misdirection. Though I guess the person you provided the most misdirection was not the magician.
I thought the ending was nonsensical and did not see the motivation for Kit’s behavior nor did I see Natalie’s secret as the big appalling bad thing. Her secret was a disappointment. Kit remains inexplicable and the book was disappointing.
- This Might Hurt at Berkley | Penguin Random House
- Stephanie Wrobel author site
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2022/03/24/this-might-hurt-by-stephanie-wrobel/
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Violence
thepaperbackbruncher's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-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
[Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for my gifted e-ARC copy of this book, all thoughts and opinions are my own]
Synopsis:
Two POVs, of two sets of sisters. Both with hard childhoods, abusive or negligent parents, but one thing looming in common - Wisewood. Wisewood, a place that keeps your secrets, if you keep theirs. (Keeping it brief, to be spoiler free)
Review:
I love a culty theme to a book, and this book was intriguing from start to finish. The cult leader was fascinating, and my favorite part of the book, but the ending/drama was less than exciting. I felt like it could have gone bigger, or darker, but still thoroughly enjoyed the book overall.
Synopsis:
Two POVs, of two sets of sisters. Both with hard childhoods, abusive or negligent parents, but one thing looming in common - Wisewood. Wisewood, a place that keeps your secrets, if you keep theirs. (Keeping it brief, to be spoiler free)
Review:
I love a culty theme to a book, and this book was intriguing from start to finish. The cult leader was fascinating, and my favorite part of the book, but the ending/drama was less than exciting. I felt like it could have gone bigger, or darker, but still thoroughly enjoyed the book overall.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse
schnurln's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Some of this hit real close and oof. Other parts meh.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Self harm
thaatswhatsheread's review
emotional
mysterious
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Child abuse
ohhthehorrors's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Abandonment, Body horror, Cancer, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Self harm
Minor: Alcohol, Car accident, and Alcoholism
untitledreader's review
dark
mysterious
medium-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
4.5
I had only read about 60 pages of this initially, and I ended up staying up until almost 2am reading the rest of it. I really enjoyed this, I picked it up not knowing anything except that it was culty, and it gave me pretty much everything I hope for when reading a cult book. It was the perfect amount of dark and twisty and the mysterious second timeline/perspective added a lot of interest.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, and Self harm