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melissa_h's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Death, Mass/school shootings, Body horror, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Medical content, and Murder
wends_nblw'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
I couldn't stand Darby at first, but I found myself warming up to her towards the halfway point before fully loving her character by the end. With the rest of the cast, I couldn't decide if I hated or loved them. There aren't many side characters : aside from Darby, we have five other distinctive characters.
As for the culprit
So many twists and turns, I wouldn't say this book had me on the edge of my seat, but it certainly had me sitting up straight. Every time I thought this book was going to end, that Darby and this little girl, Jay, were going to escape, 'No Exit' would toss that hope aside and shoot me with a nail gun. I would groan and in the words of our villain, say "oh, come on."
Graphic: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Incest, Torture, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Rape, and Vomit
This book uses the n + r slurs both once.comeundun's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Torture, Blood, Death, Murder, Ableism, Death of parent, Gun violence, Body horror, and Confinement
claire_reardon'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? No
2.5
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Cancer, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Blood, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Terminal illness, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racial slurs, Death, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Gun violence, Medical trauma, and Physical abuse
fi_reads_books's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Gore, Death, Gaslighting, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Kidnapping, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Torture, and Racial slurs
Minor: Trafficking, Death of parent, and Vomit
ireadtoescape_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
I will say that part of the premise is very frustrating. The constant bad bad, very bad decisions were exhausting.
Anyway, white men write women characters in a very odd way. I don’t know. Unsettling at times.
The villain was a lot! And I don’t know if I’m happy with how he’s been written as well. Was exhausting at the end of it. And obviously had to be good-looking. 👀 hot white guys can be villains, too. Diversity 🫶🏾
The ableism. Omg. I cannot!! The use of rat-face was so awful on top of that. This author said you all WILL know that I am a dude bro. Ew.
Also the bus driver lady??? Lol!! What do you mean, Mother Theresa!!??? 😭😭😭😭 What in the warped altruism?? I couldn’t believe that when I read it. No ways, my sister??! What a mess.
Ask me how this author found a way to include racism PLUS a racial slur that added absolutely nothing to the plot in a book with only white characters. Pls what the hell! The guy is a child abductor - he’s a terrible person. That’s enough to convince us. It doesn’t need to be substantiated with racism that added nothing to the plot. Urgh. This may be the last book by a white man I ever read because no ways??? 😭 I’m a baby girl who deserves better.
Graphic: Ableism, Blood, Confinement, Kidnapping, Murder, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, and Trafficking
Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, and Pedophilia
meeklovestoread'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? No
3.0
We find out who the perpetrator(s) is/are pretty quickly which to me wasn't a surprise. The person revealed themsleves earlier but the main character just didn't pick up on the dialogue.
Also, the author has a tendecy to utilize plot points only when they're convenient for the story to either move the plot along or to enhance the stakes rather than having the plot points make sense.
For example, we're told they're in a blizzard, but when the characters would go outside there's rarely any mention of them being affected the gushing winds pulling them back or suffering from frost bite or them shivering at all.
Another example is how the abducted child, Jay, was portrayed. She has Addison's disease and is told that extreme stressful situations can indirectly lead to her death. But this element is only utilize when the author wants to raise the stakes because when Darby ultimately finds her way to Jay she is unbelievably calm. And she remains calm in most of the situations the main character encounters. Not once did she shed tears or cry hysterically. I thought this was deliberate and that the author was gonna reveal some big twist that the girl was in on it too or something, but no, it's just poor writing.
Also, I found the use of racial slurs in this book to be so unnecessary. As well as the potential incest/molestation and animal cruelty. Like we get the main perpetrator is a reprehensible psychotic human being, but I think we established that the moment it's revealed that they sex traffick young girls and don't care. All that other stuff wasn't just unnecessary icing an already drenched cake.
Also, the ending felt kinda ambiguous to me, but maybe I just looked too much into it. I'm glad I read it so I can assuage my curiosity so I know to never pick it up again. Don't think I'll ever read anything this author writes. It just wasn't for me.
Graphic: Kidnapping, Torture, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Cancer, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, and Trafficking
Minor: Animal cruelty, Grief, Incest, Medical content, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, and Vomit
weird_but_fucking_beautiful's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Murder, Confinement, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Cancer, Medical content, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, and Vomit
Minor: Grief and Emotional abuse
thebookishlibra_'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
4.25
Graphic: Blood and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Trafficking, Confinement, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Addiction
lilypad537's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Graphic: Torture, Trafficking, Murder, Racial slurs, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Animal death, Pedophilia, Confinement, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Cancer
Minor: Death of parent and Alcoholism