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cmcvachon003's review against another edition
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Murder
Moderate: Stalking
aoliv__25's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-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? It's complicated
1.5
TLDR: Concept better than execution.
Quick read with twists you can be ahead on whilst reliving COVID. If you like a genuinely good plot twist, a true thriller, developed characters or artful writing, skip.
Clearly this book divides people. I liked the premise, the Dublin setting and not much else. The writing style is very basic; there's nothing skillful about the prose, which makes it accessible but personally I found it dull. I had no investment in the detective chapters (could have been cut), and very little in the MC's, individually or intertwined. I was praying their characters would go somewhere more complex than I was guessing when the backstory started to be discussed, but unfortunately was correct in my predictions and therefore unshocked by the twists. The different POV's using word-for-word repetition felt tedious and lazy, and it seemed unable to create the desired intimacy effect due to the choice of third person narrative to do it - idk it just felt clunky. With the book feeling about 100 pages too long, the repetition really should have been cut in edits. The tension also felt pretty low throughout. For me, this is crime, not a thriller. Overall, I'd recommend reading the full synopsis rather than the actual book.
I have a particular issue with Ciara's later 'true' first meeting section as it just renders the first one pointless for a cliche "it was all a lie" twist with no real meat to it. The "but I accidentally fell in love" element was also so cringey and could have been removed completely and the book made better
Quick read with twists you can be ahead on whilst reliving COVID. If you like a genuinely good plot twist, a true thriller, developed characters or artful writing, skip.
Clearly this book divides people. I liked the premise, the Dublin setting and not much else. The writing style is very basic; there's nothing skillful about the prose, which makes it accessible but personally I found it dull. I had no investment in the detective chapters (could have been cut), and very little in the MC's, individually or intertwined. I was praying their characters would go somewhere more complex than I was guessing when the backstory started to be discussed, but unfortunately was correct in my predictions and therefore unshocked by the twists. The different POV's using word-for-word repetition felt tedious and lazy, and it seemed unable to create the desired intimacy effect due to the choice of third person narrative to do it - idk it just felt clunky. With the book feeling about 100 pages too long, the repetition really should have been cut in edits. The tension also felt pretty low throughout. For me, this is crime, not a thriller. Overall, I'd recommend reading the full synopsis rather than the actual book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Death, Child death, Gore, Stalking, and Child abuse
lostintheplot's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Child death, Murder, and Gore
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
hannah_l2's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book was incredible. I loved the writing style ( a mix between thrid person and first) and I loved the constant changing of perspectives. I devoured this book. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and I hope Catherine Ryan Howard continues to write so I can read more of her fabulous words!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Violence
jenna36's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I am not usually a thriller fan. There are very few that I would even consider rating above 3 stars. This one was so interesting I could not put it down. I can generally guess twists pretty early on in a thriller, which is why I generally dislike them, but this one completely fooled me. My mind was blown, and I will definitely check out more of this author's work, because this was a very intricately plotted and well-written book. I was very pleasantly surprised, it was much better than I expected it to be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, and Body horror
Moderate: Child death
tbell0211's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Murder, Gore, and Chronic illness
chronicallyplotting's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
A suspenseful thriller, that keeps you guessing until the end. Takes place during the Covid pandemic, even though we are still in the pandemic today the book takes place during the lockdown. I wasn’t excited to read a book about Covid and all that transpired but this book only used the time frame and the lockdown part. Without being too stressful with the reminders of those days. Book was a bit repetitive but it switched POVs so we had to hear each side. Overall, really enjoyed this psych- thriller. I am always happy when the ending isn’t obvious.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Confinement, Gore, Death of parent, and Child death
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
an Irish novel written during covid lockdown about covid lockdown and murder 🕵♀️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Murder, Child death, Gore, Blood, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Dementia, Grief, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide
kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, and Confinement
Moderate: Blood, Suicide, Vomit, and Dementia
beckyremillard's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-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? No
5.0
Ciara and Oliver meet shortly before Ireland goes into lockdown for COVID-19. They move in together quickly because otherwise they couldn’t see each other at all.
The story is told from several different perspectives, including Ciara, Oliver, and the police detective, Lee. It also goes back and forth in time.
I absolutely loved this story. I wasn’t sure if I’d like a book about COVID while we’re still dealing with it, but wow it was so good. The nonlinear storyline gave bits and pieces of information and left me desperately wanting to keep reading. It was also great to get several perspectives on the same scene.
I cannot say enough good things about this book. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone interested in thrillers and I’ll definitely read again sometime.
The story is told from several different perspectives, including Ciara, Oliver, and the police detective, Lee. It also goes back and forth in time.
I absolutely loved this story. I wasn’t sure if I’d like a book about COVID while we’re still dealing with it, but wow it was so good. The nonlinear storyline gave bits and pieces of information and left me desperately wanting to keep reading. It was also great to get several perspectives on the same scene.
I cannot say enough good things about this book. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone interested in thrillers and I’ll definitely read again sometime.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Gore
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Terminal illness