Reviews tagging 'Death'

No Exit by Taylor Adams

163 reviews

sambishop's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? No

4.0

Super gory. It sucked me in because I wanted to read the conclusion, but I don't know if I'd recommend based on the level of gore. It made me cringe at times because I was so uncomfortable. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Rape

mkzach's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Terminal illness, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

scoutvibes's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

bookishgoob's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

3.5

a college girl ends up a rest stop with 4 other strangers during a blizzard. 

The suspense in this book starts immediately with the MC, Darby, realizing she forgot her phone charger, had no signal, and was caught in a blizzard and it doesn’t slow down from there. Having no cell signal in a room full of strangers on a terribly cold night is one thing, but that phone having only about 4% battery is the cherry on top of this anxiety inducing realization. The racial slurs were completely unnecessary. There are better ways to sue that your bad guy is a bad guy than using a racial slur, especially as a white author. I also think that the way the POV’s switched so abruptly was a bit confusing. I’m not a huge fan of men writing thrillers because of the way that their stories have the most awful, stomach churning, and sadistic things happening to their characters. I will say that the constant plot twists were incredibly exhausting. The first couple were so creepy and bamboozling but after the third and fourth it became a mind boggling enigma. That’s something I didn’t enjoy about it. There was so much that happened that I couldn’t fully take in because of the plot twist after plot twist writing Adams displayed in this story. I did enjoy it, I read it in about 4 hours so it was a very quick read. It had me holding my breath and biting my nails from the suspense. all in all I think it deserves a 3.5/5 star rating. 

POSSIBLE TRIGGERS: 

Death of a parent 

cancer 

body horror

blood

ableist slurs 

racial slurs 

attempted suffocation 

confinement 

vomit 

kidnapping 

implied sexual assault 

implied human trafficking 

implied pedophilia 

violence against women 

dark inner monologue about women 

sadism

snow storm

freezing 

gun violence 

amputation

vomit

medical trauma

medical needs not able to be met 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

amandasbookreview's review

challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

4.0

 

“The difference between a hero and a victim? Timing.”

NO EXIT

I have seen Taylor Adams all over Bookstagram and I just never had a moment to pick up one of his books. However, No Exit by Taylor Adams was just adapted into a movie for Hulu, so it was pushed to the top of my TBR. We are introduced to Darby who is rushing home to see her dying mother. The weather has taken a turn for the worst and she finds herself at a rest stop in a snowstorm with four other people. Darby is desperate for a signal on her phone and walks outside to try to contact her sister when she notices some movement in a van. There is a young girl, locked in a cage. This child has been kidnapped and Darby knows she has to do something. There are four people in that rest stop and one of them is the kidnapper. But without service and no way out, how will Darby get this little girl to safety?

What a wild ride! When I say there is no dull moment, I say that without exaggeration. The suspense is nonstop. There are moments when I was physically tense while reading this book. I found out that this author is a screenwriter and it made so much sense. But be prepared. This is not an easy read. Every trigger warning you can think of… is in this book. There is kidnapping, violence, torture, sex trafficking, cancer, death, and probably more that I am missing. But overall, the suspense and tension are palpable.

That brings me to the characters. Darby is a rockstar. She is flawed. She knows she was wrong in her relationship with her mom. I did appreciate how the author went into the complexities of parent/child relationships. But when she saw that little girl, there was nothing that would stop her from helping that little girl. Darby shows so much courage in the face of so much danger. Not many people would do what Darby does in this book. Overall, I enjoyed this read and I can’t wait to watch the movie! 4 out of 5 stars! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Gore, Pedophilia, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

allisonshewfelt's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This is one of the best thrillers I've ever read. No exit really grabs you from the first chapter and does not let go. There was so many twists it was absolutely crazy and I loved every page of it. The synopsis really drew me in and I had no idea that it would go where it went. It was gruesome, unrelenting and very dark and violent. Our heroine, Darby, is one of the most badass main characters out there. She had no idea what she was capable of until she was pushed to her limit and damn was she capable of a lot. I wouldn't have lasted 5 minutes. Jay was also very clever for her age. 

It was very fast paced which I always love in thrillers. I love how Adams stretched the story, like how Darby would almost escape but then be caught again. It keeps you on the edge of your seat. It really just turned into a fight for survival and cat and mouse game. 

This is definitely making my top 10 of this year and I'm terrified of seeing the movie it's gonna be so violent. I expect pure chaos. There's so many things I'm never thinking about the same way like everytime I see door hinges, nail guns and jelly filled donuts I'm gonna internally scream

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Kidnapping, and Grief

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Cursing, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Vomit, Dementia, Trafficking, and Death of parent

alexdicanio's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

3.5

The pacing of this book was incredibly fast. Which I appreciate. Things got going almost immediately. 

I thought the characters were pretty well done. Ashley, was especially interesting. The dialogue and interactions between the characters made sense. The fact that not everything was convenient for the main character I really liked too. The night definitely wasn’t easy on her. 

What I didn’t like was how unbelievable it was for Darby to survive. Realistically, she should have been dead not even half way through the book. Sure, maybe adrenaline could cause her to fight back while being asphyxiated (and that’s a strong maybe), but rolling down a hill? In the freezing cold, with a broken nose?

I digress.

It was a good time. I’d recommend it, especially for people who are just starting to branch out to read thrillers. Be sure to check trigger warnings because this book does get pretty gruesome. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Pedophilia

jeannine6's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Racial slurs, Trafficking, and Death of parent

ladyfromthemixedupdesk's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

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

2.0

Good premise, awful execution. 

College girl goes home to see her dying mother, gets caught in a snowstorm at a rest stop, finds a young girl in a cage in the back of the fan and has to determine how far she is willing to go to save someone else.

Juvenile, lazy writing. If you had told me a teenage boy wrote this, I would have believed you. Repetitive. Cringey, try-hard dialogue.

Unnecessary misogyny, racial slurs and ableism. 

This is not good writing. Maybe it makes a better movie. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

comithy's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Torture, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Domestic abuse