Scan barcode
erjail's review against another edition
Realised I have watched a TV adaption of it.
litwithleigh's review against another edition
4.0
Bookoutlet read #10 (I think?) 3.5 rounded up.
Writing: 4/5 | Plot: 3.5/5 | Ending: 3.5/5
THE PLOT
Stella is on trial for murdering a 35-year-old businessman. Told in three parts, from her father's POV (Adam), Stella's, and her mother's (Urlicka), this novel explores family relationships, friendships, and the consequences of keeping secrets.
MY OPINION
Tbh when I was reading this I was like wow 5 stars, and then I got to the mom's pov and was like ok maybe 4, but then after I reflected on this I was like nah 3.5. I had some questions.
FYI Edvardsson's writing is typical scandi style, so if you don't like that, pass on this one. Evidently, I enjoy this particular writing style (I still can't describe it... kind of monotone but there's a certain rhythm to it).
Anyways. The characters were kinda unlikeable, but this was done by design so c'est la vie. At first I wanted to fight Adam (the father) for being so self-absorbed, but he redeemed himself when he crossed several boundaries trying to help Stella. Then I wanted to fight Amina because she's a jealous snitch. Lastly, I wanted to stiff arm Chris Olsen into another universe for being a MEGA creep preying on young girls because he's a loser.
Now I think this book would've been a strong 4 stars if Amina's POV was included. All my questions were about Amina. Why was Stella so attached to her? Why did she feel so responsible for a friend who clearly lied multiple times out of jealousy? Why did Amina even lie to Stella? Did Amina lie about The Big Event? I needed to understand her perspective because she was at the centre of all Stella's conflicts and seemed like a big sneaky snake to me.
Also the mom's POV was mad repetitive. Either shit yourself because of nerves or get it tf together lmao.
Final thoughts: I read this during my 29-hour power outage and I was hooked the entire time but when I sat back and really thought about it, there were too many questions left for me.
PROS AND CONS
Pros: love that Scandi style writing, interesting reading about a religious MC grappling with the truth, Stella's tete a tete with her dad was insightful, Chris died
Cons: too many unanswered questions re: Amina
Writing: 4/5 | Plot: 3.5/5 | Ending: 3.5/5
THE PLOT
Stella is on trial for murdering a 35-year-old businessman. Told in three parts, from her father's POV (Adam), Stella's, and her mother's (Urlicka), this novel explores family relationships, friendships, and the consequences of keeping secrets.
MY OPINION
Tbh when I was reading this I was like wow 5 stars, and then I got to the mom's pov and was like ok maybe 4, but then after I reflected on this I was like nah 3.5. I had some questions.
FYI Edvardsson's writing is typical scandi style, so if you don't like that, pass on this one. Evidently, I enjoy this particular writing style (I still can't describe it... kind of monotone but there's a certain rhythm to it).
Anyways. The characters were kinda unlikeable, but this was done by design so c'est la vie. At first I wanted to fight Adam (the father) for being so self-absorbed, but he redeemed himself when he crossed several boundaries trying to help Stella. Then I wanted to fight Amina because she's a jealous snitch. Lastly, I wanted to stiff arm Chris Olsen into another universe for being a MEGA creep preying on young girls because he's a loser.
Now I think this book would've been a strong 4 stars if Amina's POV was included. All my questions were about Amina. Why was Stella so attached to her? Why did she feel so responsible for a friend who clearly lied multiple times out of jealousy? Why did Amina even lie to Stella? Did Amina lie about The Big Event? I needed to understand her perspective because she was at the centre of all Stella's conflicts and seemed like a big sneaky snake to me.
Also the mom's POV was mad repetitive. Either shit yourself because of nerves or get it tf together lmao.
Final thoughts: I read this during my 29-hour power outage and I was hooked the entire time but when I sat back and really thought about it, there were too many questions left for me.
PROS AND CONS
Pros: love that Scandi style writing, interesting reading about a religious MC grappling with the truth, Stella's tete a tete with her dad was insightful, Chris died
Cons: too many unanswered questions re: Amina
jfizzle80's review against another edition
4.0
captivating prose that holds reader’s attention until the end
namitakhanna's review against another edition
4.0
Stella is an eighteen-year-old daughter of a pastor and a lawyer who is being accused of murdering her older boyfriend. This story is told from the POV’s of both the parents and Stella where they discover how far one would go to protect their family
A Near Normal Family is slow building psychological thriller filled with courtroom drama. A little slow and repetitive at times the end was suspenseful enough to redeem it for me. Overall 3 ½ stars
I would like to thank Celadon Books & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.
This and more reviews at https://chloesbooksblog.wordpress.com/
A Near Normal Family is slow building psychological thriller filled with courtroom drama. A little slow and repetitive at times the end was suspenseful enough to redeem it for me. Overall 3 ½ stars
I would like to thank Celadon Books & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.
This and more reviews at https://chloesbooksblog.wordpress.com/
lillyvannilly's review against another edition
4.0
“A Nearly Normal Family” follows 18 year old Stella, recently done high school and ready for the real world. What she isn’t ready for is to go to jail for murder. Told in three point of views, “A Nearly Normal Family” will make you question as a reader whether or not Stella is guilty as you put together the evidence and the events that lead up to the murder. This was a 4⭐️ read for me, that had me guessing until the very last sentence.
lisettemarie's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, Murder, Rape, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
deanab's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you Celadon for sending an ARC to me to read and review. This book had me at the first page. I was deeply engrossed throughout the story being told by the father. I enjoyed the daughter’s POV as well but then started to get a bit bored during the third section which was the mother’s POV. The storyline was very good, the characters were somewhat likable however, while I feel the book dragged a bit, there is still so much that is unresolved. Each character had so many secrets and told so many lies; it would be interesting to see what would happen if all of these came to light. All-in-all I enjoyed the book. 3.5 stars
vespurr's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 rounded up to 3. The book was a quick read and easy to follow. Overall I liked the flow and the storytelling, however I found this one to be rather typical and there was nothing overly unique here. I could see the plot resolution coming and it was just nothing new. I felt that it was enjoyable enough to listen to on audio, but I wouldn't read it again and I wouldn't really recommend it. I'd heard nothing but great things about this book and really ended up just feeling a bit let down. It wasn't bad by any means, it just wasn't excellent either.
yumnas's review against another edition
4.0
Ok so I reread this book and I added a star. I'm not sure why I did, but it's done.