Reviews tagging 'Murder'

This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno

33 reviews

malexandriay's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Vomit, Cursing, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent and Animal death

cheyanndow's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Gore, Murder, Suicide attempt, Animal death, Death of parent, Police brutality, Self harm, and Death

caroisreading's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

More than a horror story, this is a love story laced with tragedy and grief. There are supernatural elements that make this a creepy, wild read, and an unreliable narrator who makes us second-guess what is actually happening. 

This book is written from the perspective of Thiago writing to his wife, the love of his life who lost her life to a random accident, only a few months prior. He is still processing his grief and anger, and we sort through his memories together. Then the creepy elements start to appear, like the Alexa-inspired speaker that seems to be haunted. Only Thiago, his wife, and his mother-in-law seem to witness these strange events. As he makes the move away from Chicago and this mysterious darkness, he realizes he's being followed. Layered within this is his in-between identity, being Mexican and American, feeling like he carries the ancestral curse of any family wrongdoings -- racism and the polarizing discourse on immigrants as background themes. 

For me, this story was bleak (rightfully so?) and unraveled in a messy way, continuously confirming there's only darkness in the end, "life is life." I think any comedic undertone got lost on me.

I was so excited to read a Chicagoan author's work, and really appreciated Gus Moreno's writing style -- sparse enough to read with ease, but decorative and meandering where it needed to be. 

You'll like this if you're into horror and supernatural concepts, bicultural perspectives, stories that reflect grief and loss of loved ones.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Gore, Self harm, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Medical content, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

sabrinalexis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Violence, Death, Body horror, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Animal death

hannaheinhorn's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? It's complicated

2.75

this book was a fun read, but i almost felt like it should’ve been longer in order to resolve itself properly. if that were the case, the book would definitely be like 4 stars for me. ambiguous endings are great when they’re not cop-outs, and i felt like this one left enough to the imagination to make the message of the book so unclear. based on how the story ended, it kind of seems like thiago was just suffering to suffer, which is a conclusion that i don’t think the author meant for the audience to come to.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Gore, Car accident, Body horror, Death, Animal cruelty, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Suicide, and Grief

Moderate: Xenophobia, Death of parent, Racism, Classism, and Gun violence

emilyrose486's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

What a gut wrenching gruesome story of grief. This book was awesome and terrifying and made me feel some really big feelings about loss, fear, death, and the hereafter. I highly recommend this book for anyone who needs a ghosty thrill or a good cry

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore

Moderate: Murder, Suicide attempt, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Death

Minor: Alcohol and Drug abuse

hi_its_micah's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Animal death, and Death

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Car accident, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Deportation and Drug use

bookishcookiemonster's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

A solid exploration of what greif feels like. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Suicide, Gore, Medical trauma, Death, Murder, Body horror, Alcohol, Death of parent, Violence, Car accident, and Blood

Minor: Xenophobia, Racism, and Cursing

odd_eye's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Animal death, Grief, and Murder

nithya_natalya's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-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

4.75

This book was written in second person (the narrator is writing as if he is speaking to his wife, so her refers to the reader as 'you'). I thought this was a really interesting way of making the reader connect with the narrator. As the reader, you're watching the narrator cope with "your" death, which makes the whole thing more unsettling. I also love horror that is cyclical, which I think is a key component of horror, and also of grief. Not the scariest thing I've ever read, but I did spook myself while reading this at night. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Grief, Gore, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death of parent