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bellsdixon's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Child death, Violence, Bullying, Hate crime, Murder, Torture, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Classism, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Death, Alcohol, Blood, Vomit, Drug abuse, Addiction, Misogyny, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Ableism, Lesbophobia, Suicide, Racism, Biphobia, Homophobia, Rape, and Suicide attempt
a_dja's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Gore, Violence, Death, Pedophilia, Grief, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Biphobia, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death of parent, Drug use, Fatphobia, Torture, Addiction, Child death, Mental illness, and Mass/school shootings
zoeygrey's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Bullying, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Rape, Alcoholism, Violence, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Self harm, and Pedophilia
Minor: Mass/school shootings, Body shaming, Outing, Death, and Drug use
lapuce1006's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Bullying and Murder
bookish_hollyx's review against another edition
2.0
Moderate: Bullying, Murder, Child abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Child death, Death, Violence, and Torture
caroisreading's review against another edition
- 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
"Penance" focuses on the perspectives of four teen girls, schoolmates at a small coastal town in England. They are, at varying degrees, involved in the gruesome demise of Joni, a fellow student in their class.
The layer on top of this plot is that we are reading the POV of a fictional author who has interviewed the characters and researched Joni's case. He's an unreliable narrator to say the least. It's Inception-y, and lets us sit at a distance from the horror, like a sobering buffer.
With this in mind, Clark plays with our sense of what is real and what is not. I found myself Googling events that were completely fictional, though there are references to real platforms, psychopaths, books and a school shooting. This disorients you as a reader, and mimics the delusion and untruthiness taking place with the characters, and true crime in general.
What definitely feels real are the Tumblr posts, and the fangirls who idolize and fictionalize mass murderers. Clark spends a lot of time illustrating this world, and we sit in the discomfort for a while. It's a paradoxically naive and dark place.
I should add, the author purposefully avoids going into specifics of what these characters physically do to Joni
After assessing the TWs, I recommend this book as dark, brutal, engaging read with the most well-crafted characters I've ever come across. Keep reminding yourself it's fiction, but not really.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Body shaming, Bullying, Classism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mass/school shootings, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Eating disorder, Incest, Death of parent, Homophobia, Gore, Rape, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Lesbophobia, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Pedophilia, and Vomit
cwgraham's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Murder, Rape, Mass/school shootings, Child abuse, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Torture, Pedophilia, Violence, Toxic friendship, and Mental illness
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Bullying, Alcoholism, and Blood
stellahadz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
As someone who has admittedly listened to and watched true-crime stories (although I try not to engage with media that is sensationalizing or disrespectful of victims and their families), I noticed almost immediately that
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Toxic friendship, Torture, Bullying, and Child death
Moderate: Death of parent, Suicide, Mental illness, Child abuse, Mass/school shootings, and Sexual assault
miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Toxic friendship, Violence, Bullying, Child death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Torture, Death, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, and Pedophilia
niamh33100's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Torture, Child abuse, Incest, Murder, and Bullying