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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A real page turner once you get past the first couple of chapters. Basically a struggle over ownership of a house owned by Kathy Nicolo a recovering substance abuser, that was seized and sold at auction by the county to Colonel Behrani and Iranian who was once very wealthy in his own country and is going to try to use the house as a first step to restore himself to the wealth and stature his family previously had. The house was wrongly taken from Kathy,so it seems, and the book is about her struggle to get it back and Behrani's fight to keep it. Kathy becomes romantically involved with a sheriff deputy Lester Burdon who is a married man who becomes obsessed with her fight to get her house back. To give you a hint--no one wins.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Blah, depressing with no redeeming factors. This book made me not want to read ANY Oprah book club selections.
challenging
dark
tense
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
An unrelentingly depressing novel. It builds slowly, torturously, like a distant storm taking shape on the horizon. The book is easy to read in the sense that the style is direct and fluid, but watching the pieces fall into place for the not-so-inevitable tragedy is not easy. (Reviewed 2013)
I really didn't enjoy this work. I don't think it's the fault of the author, I just found the girl and the cop disgusting and kept questioning their reasoning and thinking what if? I felt from the start that the story wasn't going to end well and half way through wanted to dnf the book but plugged on.
A genuinely interesting premise--the American Dream, as represented by this humble bungalow--is botched in execution. The plot is hackneyed and melodramatic, and things happen in a spurt without any seeming reason. The writing is okay but not amazing. I'm still wondering how this was a National Book Award finalist.
When you read the summary on the back of the book, it tells you this is a novel with suspense. When you start the book and for while, you wonder where in the world is it. It does finally kick into gear...finally. I'll give the author credit for representing all the characters viewpoints. I didn't like any of them, however. Early on, I knew all of them were headed for diaster. They all continue to make very bad decisions that just snowball.
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Holy Moly! Talk about a slow burn you can't set down!
When I started I was thinking "What's all the hype?" but then I caught myself not setting it down, and seeing my allegiances change as each character took the stage. These three anti-heroes will keep you up at night and make you late for appointments.
When I started I was thinking "What's all the hype?" but then I caught myself not setting it down, and seeing my allegiances change as each character took the stage. These three anti-heroes will keep you up at night and make you late for appointments.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Gun violence