Reviews with content warning for Gore - In My Dreams I Hold a Knife

This was the author's debut and I loved it almost as much as her follow up releases. I swear that Ashley Winstead can do no wrong.

The writing style that this author has is just something that really works for me. I have loved it every time. In this particular book, I feel like the writing was such a strong element because for the majority of the story, nothing superb was happening. I didn't feel like there were any major twists, any crazy plot point, nothing super jaw dropping taking place. However, I love a story that involves the unraveling lives of the super rich and elite. They always have skeletons in their closets and I love finding out what those skeletons are. This is where the author shines. I was so captivated just by learning all the shady shit that these uber rich and successful people were hiding up their sleeves for the past decade that I could have cared less if there was any impactful twists or reveals.

Luckily, the ending really nailed it for me. I don't think the ending reveal was anything that would be mind blowing for the typical thriller reader but it was enjoyable nonetheless. I have to say that the very final twist was so satisfying for me - I think Jessica was such a subtly brutal character and I was obsessed with the ending that she got. On the other hand, there is a male character in this book that is just reprehensible and I had him pegged from the first moment he showed up on the page. I really enjoyed the author's commentary on shitty men in positions of power and the things they do and think that they can get away with. This character's chapter was so unsettling to read and I hate knowing that there are men out there, on a daily basis, thinking these things about women. Gross.

This wasn't a new all time favorite, hence the 4.5 star rating, but I still loved it. So good.

Content Warnings

carina_dreamer's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

✂️ We have a college that is not Ivy League but is famous for its old look and for attracting rich families. Our narrator is named Jessica and she wanted to enter Harvard to please her dad, and when she failed she applied for this college, which she can't pay for. That's how her life of pretence starts and things get easy when she meets: Heather, Caro, Coop, Jack, Frankie and Mint. The seven of them will become The East House Seven, a nickname that would follow them throughout their popular college life.

✂️ Their appearance-focused daily life, mean girls' behaviour, sorority/fraternity crazy shenanigans... All that comes to a halt when one of their friends is murdered and the group falls apart. Ten years later, the crime is still unsolved and the little brother of the victim organizes a college reunion to antagonize the group for answers.

✂️ We have two timelines, I enjoyed the back and forward because it felt like an episode of HTGAWM since every time a secret was revealed in the present we got a flashback about it. And there's a feeling of thriller and anticipation when we start to get closer to the truth and I enjoyed that a lot.

✂️ Unfortunately, for me, I couldn't stand the characters! They're awful people, the high school stereotypes but make it college-centered, their friendship and love affairs are revealed to be full of lies... It's toxicity over and over again. I can't say it doesn't go well with the plot of the book, cause it does, but I couldn't enjoy their self-centred minds to the point I had to DNF my next read the book "Asking for it" by Louise O'Neill because the characters were also awful people.

✂️ The revelation of the true killer was satisfying and the motive was valid, I liked it. The ending I wasn't such a fan, didn't want a happy ending for them...

Content Warnings

pratibha's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

It was such a thrilling book. I loved getting to know the inner working of Jessica and how till the end we thought that she was an unreliable narrator and then when we are cured of that suspicions turns out she also played an important part in the crime. That part shocked me to the core.

Content Warnings

marypetrushko's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.5

Content Warnings

kindlekate's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense

Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

Originally marked this book as DNF at 14% but gave it another chance once I instilled a rule for myself to read up to at least 20% of a book before deciding if I’m truly not into it.

I made it past the 20% but still felt as though I was still forcing myself to finish it. I couldn’t connect with the main character to the point where I found it emotionally draining to read from her perspective.

Despite this, the plot had just enough mystery to keep me going and the additional reveal at the end upped my rating by a bit.

Content Warnings

bootsmom3's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

Content Warnings

clairew97's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Content Warnings

eevacasey's review against another edition

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4.0

Read For: Multiple pov, dual timeline, group of college friends, psychological, unreliable narrator, ticking time bomb

Beware Of: Content warnings (r*pe, gore), toxic masculinity, toxic femininity, general toxic behavior, unlikeable characters

Overall: This went super quickly & was fun to try to guess 'whodunnit.' For some reason I thought this was YA, but it's not. While it was predictable, it was in an enjoyable, not boring, way. I really liked the journey the audience goes on with our perception of the FMC.

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