Reviews tagging 'Child death'

Penance by Eliza Clark

111 reviews

erikoo's review against another edition

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, and Gore

rallythealli's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

5.0

Holy shit, such an intriguing look into true crime, the effects it can have and how being a teenage girl is awful. Fascinating and horrifying. Check the trigger warnings for sure. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Physical abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Self harm, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Homophobia, Hate crime, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Death, Child death, and Bullying

writeasiread's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Sexism, Murder, and Bullying

Moderate: Lesbophobia, Violence, and Kidnapping

Minor: Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Fatphobia, Classism, Child death, Body shaming, Alcohol, and Ableism

katarinabee's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Pedophilia, Mass/school shootings, Violence, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Death, Murder, Mental illness, and Child death

Moderate: Classism, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Fatphobia, Self harm, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Alcohol, Bullying, and Rape

moa's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mass/school shootings, Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Death, Kidnapping, Body horror, Gore, Physical abuse, Murder, Child death, and Bullying

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Rape

sidekicksam's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective 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

4.25

A girl has been set on fire by three school friends, resulting in her death. Almost ten years after the fact, after the rise of the true crime podcast, a journalist is diving into the story by interviewing relatives and friends of the victim and the perpetrators. The mystery surrounding Joan's death and the obscurity of the case due to the media's preoccupation with the Brexit Referendum at the time of her death makes it an interesting case to investigate. But how much of the truth does he uncover?

I buddy-read this with Vera, and damn, did it make for some interesting discussion! 

An intensely slow burn, this book takes its sweet time uncovering all the details.

Or should I say lack thereof.

The set-up of the book is quite interesting, alternating between podcast transcripts, interviews, and chapters written by the journalist based on stories he heard from his interviewees, piecing together parts of a fragmented history. 

As far as unreliable narrators go, this book is top-notch. It gives you enough to keep you wanting to read more, discover new bits, and see what else happens. And nothing does really. At the end of the book, you're not more in the know than when you read the prologue. And worse: a lot of it seems to be made up.

In terms of creating suspense and intrigue, Eliza Clark does a masterful job. The book is definitely a page-turner, but

the lack of a conclusion or a major twist at the end (apart from the fact that the author has made a lot of the things in the story up), made the book feel not completely done by the end of it.

 

It is an excellent work of criticism on the fanaticism about true crime stories, and how the families of both victims and perpetrators are exploited for the sake of sensational stories. The insensitivity of the journalists and, even worse, the podcasters was portrayed so well. 

But it is also an account of obsessions, internet fandoms, teenage loneliness, social media as a breeding ground for radicalization, and the oppressive feel of living and aging in a small town. 

I loved this, and am very curious to read more by Eliza Clark. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, and Mass/school shootings

abi_lamb19's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Child death

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Rape

sandysmith's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? Yes

3.25

Dark, compelling narrative, which at times was difficult to read. Based on a story of 5 teenagers, 3 of whom torture and kill the 4th girl and the 5th girl falsely accused of being involved. It is also about the unreliable crocked narrator journalist who interviews those involved, researching the Internet, blogs, and fandoms writing about the murder, some of the writing factual, other parts a work of fiction. It was uncomfortable for me to read, which makes the rating very hard, as the book is so well written. It also made me consider the way in which things are reported, so I'm more likely to stick to fiction rather than glorified true crime reads.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Torture, and Bullying

Moderate: Child death, Suicide, Violence, Sexual assault, and Child abuse

e11en's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Toxic friendship, Child death, Gun violence, Bullying, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Drug use, Incest, and Suicide

Minor: Fatphobia, Ableism, and Homophobia

tallhousecookies's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Confinement, Murder, Torture, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Mental illness, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, and Child death

Moderate: Suicide