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savvyrosereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Emma gets more than she expects when she leaves a one-star review of a book…only to begin being stalked by the author.
Thus concludes my mini Taylor Adams marathon! This was probably the one I was most excited to get to because the premise sounded so interesting, and it ended up being the scariest of the bunch—seriously, I’m not even sure why, but it freaked me out SO much I had to only read during the daytime.
That said, I did find most of the twists predictable and felt like, while this one was engaging, it moved along more slowly than the previous Adams books I read. I definitely wouldn’t say I disliked this one (seriously, I wouldn’t, and neither would you if you read what an angry author might do!) (kidding, I think) but it was not my favorite either.
Overall, though, I had a good time and I’m glad I read this. It’s a pretty solid thriller with some creative moments, and a great choice if you’re not ready to let go of spooky season just yet!
Recommended to anyone, but especially if you like: isolated settings; grief recovery mixed with thrillers; books about books
CW: Suicide; death/murder; child death; animal harm; gore/blood/violence/gun violence; infertility
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Gore, Stalking, Child death, Death, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Infertility, Murder, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
stephmcoakley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Stalking, Death of parent, Vomit, Grief, Infertility, Physical abuse, Violence, Suicide, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Car accident, Mental illness, Murder, Alcoholism, Child death, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
collinsd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Suicide, Child death, Violence, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, and Death
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Self harm, Alcohol, and Car accident
Minor: Mass/school shootings, Grief, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
chasingpages1'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
3.25
Graphic: Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Violence, Animal death, Death, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Car accident, Child death, Murder, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Torture, and Vomit
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Mass/school shootings, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Confinement, Cursing, Sexual harassment, Drug use, Gaslighting, Medical content, Addiction, Excrement, and Eating disorder
yvo_about_books's review against another edition
4.5
"Coincidences are fine in real life. But in fiction, they're bad writing."
I’ve been meaning to try his books for years now, and of course there was no way that I was going to resist the blurb of The Last Word for long. I love books with bookish angles, and what is more fascinating AND terrifying than a thriller read where an author slash killer goes after a person leaving him a one star review? And while things can be said about the plot being over the top and you definitely have to suspend your belief, I personally didn’t care because I was too busy enjoying the ride. This was exactly the dark, twisted and exhilarating read I needed! There is just something about the writing style that makes it very easy to fly through the pages, and the plot itself only increases that pace. The POVs are somehow blurred in points, and at times it takes a second before you realize who is in the spotlight; this would usually highly annoy me, but somehow in The Last Word it only added to the suspense. There are plenty of twists along the way as well, and with (at times) two contrasting POVs telling how the events happened it makes you wonder what is the real version. Again, this is usually something that would bother me, but in this case it somehow worked. Even the characters: none of them are exactly likeable, but since the main focus is on the plot and the life or death situation it's not as important. The Last Word definitely tips its toe in the horror genre though, and warnings are in place for particularly gruesome and graphic scenes as well as animal cruelty. If you think you can stomach those and like your thrillers on the dark and twisted side, I can highly recommend this story.
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Abandonment, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Vomit, Alcoholism, Mass/school shootings, Car accident, Misogyny, Stalking, Death of parent, Gun violence, Infertility, Animal cruelty, Blood, Child death, Bullying, Body horror, Self harm, Suicide, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Confinement, Cursing, Gore, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, and Suicidal thoughts
rachwilken's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Vomit, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Mass/school shootings and Alcoholism
thesonnetsilence's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Grief, Murder, Body horror, Stalking, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Car accident, Death of parent, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Alcoholism, Infertility, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Fatphobia and Mass/school shootings
abernathyreads'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Animal cruelty, and Child death
hue's review against another edition
1.0
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Infertility, Animal cruelty, Suicide, Child death, Misogyny, and Suicidal thoughts
jj_tj's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Suicide, and Child death
Moderate: Gore, Animal cruelty, and Blood
Minor: Vomit and Stalking