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toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This book is about a bachelorette party gone wrong: murder, mayhem, and spooky shit ensues. I have quite a few complaints about this one but as per usual, I want to start with positives because I like to be generous and also because I did like this book, there were just things I wanted from it that I didn't get. I thought the writing was lovely. Ruth Ware is very obviously great at building suspense, setting the scene for horror, and writing tense scenes between characters. Some of my favorite scenes were scenes where characters were fighting or bitching about one another. I lived for the drama of it all.
My main complaint is this: Reese Witherspoon says on the cover blurb that I'm going to be "really scared." I was not. This book undoubtedly had its moments where I was very invested in figuring out what happened, but there were such long stretches of pages where I felt that things were getting repetitive and if something didn't happen soon, this was going to go into the DNF graveyard. However, a lot of times, the moment I had that thought, something would happen; it just was never scary enough to make me feel anything. I also felt like after a certain point, it was really easy for me to put 2 and 2 together and figure out what the big twist was, which made the whole climax kind of a slog for me.
All in all, I do give this 3 stars because I think it was beautifully written, but perhaps not a favorite story for me specifically.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Blood, Murder, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Mental illness, Grief, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Car accident, and Gun violence
Moderate: Abortion, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol
ellensmith's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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
4.75
This book was impossible to put down and I hungrily devoured it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Abortion, Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Car accident, Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit
nxclx's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
It's not quite a 4 star, I didn't particularly like the 75% mark twist. Other than that it's a 4 star. I understand how it plays into the rest of the story, but that doesn't seem like a good twist to focus in on, personally.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Medical content, Death, Gun violence, Cursing, Car accident, and Abortion
Moderate: Drug use, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Grief
Minor: Pedophilia
xx_coco's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Nora hasn't seen her childhood best friend, Clare, for over ten years. When she receives an invitation to Clare's bachelorette party Nora is beyond confused, she can't imagine a single reason for the sudden invite out of the blue. Despite her reluctance, Nora decides it wouldn't hurt to pay a visit to an old friend before her wedding. The festivities kick off normal enough, but as the weekend devolves into a wild, unpredictable party, Nora feels that something isn't quite right. What could go wrong in a secluded cabin the woods?
Let's start off with the positives: this was a quick read, but that's about it. The structure of the mystery was pretty standard and the set up was one I'm familiar with. Take a group of near strangers, isolate them, and it's the perfect opportunity for something shocking to happen. The plot had promise, but the execution could have been better. I spent a lot of this book wondering when something was going to happen because so many moments read like filler–there were long stretches of stagnant plot before the story gets going. Even when the story gets going it's difficult to get into because the characters are flat and fairly annoying. There isn't a chance to get to know anyone in depth beyond Nora really, and I didn't enjoy my time spent with her inner monologue if I'm being blunt.
I wasn't a fan of the back and forth between the present and the events of the bachelorette party. It did create mystery around the big event that sets the second half of the book in motion, but the whole memory loss trope is hit or miss. Without that one aspect the entire mystery would fall apart.
The main reason this book suffers is the characterization of Nora. She's naive, whiney, and I had a hard time believing she would have accepted the invitation to Clare's bachelorette party once the big reveal happens. The plot relies on a lot of unbelievable circumstances lining up perfectly for the story to unfold the way it does. I couldn't suspend my disbelief that much.
Let's start off with the positives: this was a quick read, but that's about it. The structure of the mystery was pretty standard and the set up was one I'm familiar with. Take a group of near strangers, isolate them, and it's the perfect opportunity for something shocking to happen. The plot had promise, but the execution could have been better. I spent a lot of this book wondering when something was going to happen because so many moments read like filler–there were long stretches of stagnant plot before the story gets going. Even when the story gets going it's difficult to get into because the characters are flat and fairly annoying. There isn't a chance to get to know anyone in depth beyond Nora really, and I didn't enjoy my time spent with her inner monologue if I'm being blunt.
I wasn't a fan of the back and forth between the present and the events of the bachelorette party. It did create mystery around the big event that sets the second half of the book in motion, but the whole memory loss trope is hit or miss. Without that one aspect the entire mystery would fall apart.
The main reason this book suffers is the characterization of Nora. She's naive, whiney, and I had a hard time believing she would have accepted the invitation to Clare's bachelorette party once the big reveal happens. The plot relies on a lot of unbelievable circumstances lining up perfectly for the story to unfold the way it does. I couldn't suspend my disbelief that much.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Suicide, Medical trauma, and Suicidal thoughts
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