Reviews with content warning for Gun violence - Penance

Not my usual kind of read and certainly not an easy one - because of the subject matter but also because of the sheer length and depth of it. So many characters and angles to keep track of.

A real biting look at the true crime industry though, it definitely made its point and packs a punch.

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catriona176's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A masterpiece in fictional true crime, it examines a horrific crime from the viewpoint of all three perpetrators and an innocent swept up in the aftermath. Clearly inspired by the murder of Shonda Sharer, it is sometimes quite hard to read, but very true to life, particularly in its portrayal of teenage female friendships and their cruelty.

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bethsreading's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Penance is a disturbing and macabre fictional true crime novel ‘written’ by a disgraced journalist about three girls murdering their schoolmate in a small seaside town.

One of the novel’s focal points is exploring the ethics of the true crime genre, particularly the exploitative aspects. A true crime story is so easy to get pulled into, as it offers some of the most extreme and disturbing corners of humanity; but it is important to stop and think: how true is true? Having two writers of the book, Clark herself and the journalist in the story writing the book, adds an extra layer of authorial distortion, demanding you constantly question the legitimacy and trustworthiness of every word you consume.

I particularly love writing that refuses to sit idly within binaries and instead adventures around all the boundaries of a topic, and this book does that. From the subject matter, it seems like there would be an obvious right and wrong, and while there is in the grand scheme of things, the layers and nuances offer a much more complex story. Clark, in my opinion, is quite clear in her stances, but they are thoughtful, balanced opinions that filter in through the story while still leaving room for personal moral engagement as the reader.

I think Clark also does a fantastic job of depicting teenage-hood, especially in the mid 2010s, and the involvement of the internet at the time. Tumblr basically being a main character really transported me back to what teenage life was like in 2015.

I did feel like there was perhaps some unnecessary historical backstory to the town, which did enrich the story and make it feel like a real place, but felt somewhat too much at times and I think some parts could’ve been edited down to streamline things a little.

Overall this was an incredible story and one I’ll be thinking about for a long time! As a warning though, please be sure to check the content warnings first as it covers some difficult topics (though I believe it handles them all well and with respect).

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carly_reads's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Did you listen to a podcast? Did the hosts make jokes? Do you have a dark sense of humour? Did that make it okay? Or were they sensitive about it? Did they coo in the right places? Did they give you a content warning? Did you skip ahead? Did you see pictures? Did you look for them?

From the jump it’s clear that Eliza Clark is an incredibly talented writer. The way she’s able to depict the distinct tone of every character was actually kinda freaking me out- especially when it would be a transcript of a flippant podcast or a tumblr comment. Uncanny.

This is an unflinching look at the ethics of the way we talk about true crime cases and victims as well as how we talk to the people around them. Furthermore, it asks us to consider journalistic integrity and accuracy/objectivity. Who has the right to tell the story? When talking about true crime, it feels like people forget that these are real people whose real lives have been turned upside down and the line between the curiosity we feel and being invasive is thin.

Overarching topics/themes/points of interests: toxic internet culture, toxic friendships, ethics of true crime, men telling women’s stories, fandoms, and more.

Expanding on ways that toxic internet culture is depicted: online bullying and mental health implications, the disconnect between online personas and how people are perceived in real life, and what happens when an online persona is outed in an insular setting like high school. “Tumblr did ‘cancel culture’ before cancel culture was a thing.” Also something I couldn’t stop thinking about was the casual way people tend to talk about horrific things online and even subsequent romanization. Quotes like “entry level serial killers” and the idea of “flower crowns on mass shooters” stood out to me and reminded me of the AHS edits of Tate in the skeleton makeup I’d see when I was younger.

Something to note: the narrator insists he passes no judgement on anyone who was involved but seems to play with the question of whether Joni’s murder was justified. Maybe that was just me. The decision to have a male narrator talking about high school girls was also particularly impactful to me. With the opening letting the reader know that we have an unreliable narrator, it really colors the way he dramatizes the information into prose and dialogue.

I’ve never read a true crime book before but I imagine this is how it would be (although this is obviously fiction). I did get ever so slightly bored at times, but everything adds up to play a role in the bigger picture. I do wish that I understood more about the Brexit implications, but that’s a me thing, not the author. I’ll probably think about this book for the rest of my life.

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vstone306's review against another edition

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dark informative mysterious tense 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? Yes

5.0

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sarahrosebooknook's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

4.0

This book was interestingly done as it modeled a true crime documentary. The amount of things that I learned about teens and the depths of the internet make me really afraid for my kids in the future. I probably would have rates it a 4.5 but the last 50 pages or so are packed with so many trigger warnings. It left me with a knot in my stomach.

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aloe_v'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? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The blurring between fiction and non-fiction was quite trippy when reading the book,

and given the ending guardian interview, within the fiction, which accuses the in-book author of blurring fiction and non-fiction, I realise now the interesting parallels there between the fictional readers and real readers.

It was also interesting that, as I read, I thought it was actually a male author because of the in-book author, and only reading the acknowledgements did i realise it was not. This was another interesting thing that "caught me", as I'd felt a bit uncertain about a male writing about teenage female relationships, and that it was a bit infantilising/dismissive at times, and I realise now, that was likely intentional on the real authors part - or at least, thats my intepretation.

Reading time 5h54m.

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