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lyfeinpr0gress's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-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? Yes
3.0
urlphantomhive's review against another edition
4.0
READ IN DUTCH
Cora has decided that this is the last day she's going to live. She has planned everything. She'll get an 'accident' while swimming. However, things turn out differently. She stabs a man to death. Why?
I found this to be a very interesting whydonit. The story was very interesting and although I had my own guesses as to why she killed him, which actually turned out to be quite accurate, I never felt a boring moment. I liked the writing as well. I would recommend it!
Cora has decided that this is the last day she's going to live. She has planned everything. She'll get an 'accident' while swimming. However, things turn out differently. She stabs a man to death. Why?
I found this to be a very interesting whydonit. The story was very interesting and although I had my own guesses as to why she killed him, which actually turned out to be quite accurate, I never felt a boring moment. I liked the writing as well. I would recommend it!
readsinfrogpjs's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I loved the show. I think the book was much darker and depressing. I felt the translation made the story a bit harder to read, the flow was just off. It was difficult to differentiate between Cora's thoughts, spoken words, what was lies, the truth ... just a bit muddled. I'm glad I had the show background to help me with the book.
booksandbraids's review
4.0
3.5.
Another book that I liked, but didn’t love. It was very good. I liked trying to piece together what really happened and I really liked the ending. I felt like it went on a little too long, however.
Another book that I liked, but didn’t love. It was very good. I liked trying to piece together what really happened and I really liked the ending. I felt like it went on a little too long, however.
meobrien91's review against another edition
1.0
This book felt like it took an eternity to finish. The heroine(if you want to call her that) is insufferable and lies so much with every breath that you can't tell what's true or not and you just want to smack her and get her to tell the truth-doing that would've saved at least 1/3 of the book.
Cora is given the crappy childhood trope with a mom who is basically the German version of Margaret White and the dad is constantly fixated on having sex with his wife.
Overall, a real waste of time read.
PS:
If you don't want to have to slog through this, I'll spoil the beans on the crappy twist of the book:
Cora kills Frankie Frankenberg while on a public beach with her husband and son. Frankie turns out to be the person who killed her sister Magdalena (who had heart and organ defects) while having sex with her during a basement party while Cora was being raped by his two friends. When Cora fights back, one of the men hits her with an ashtray and fractured her skull. She was then held captive by Frankie and his parents for 6 months while Magdalena's body is dumped in the woods and her death covered up by Cora and Magdalena's family.
Cora is given the crappy childhood trope with a mom who is basically the German version of Margaret White and the dad is constantly fixated on having sex with his wife.
Overall, a real waste of time read.
PS:
If you don't want to have to slog through this, I'll spoil the beans on the crappy twist of the book:
Cora kills Frankie Frankenberg while on a public beach with her husband and son. Frankie turns out to be the person who killed her sister Magdalena (who had heart and organ defects) while having sex with her during a basement party while Cora was being raped by his two friends. When Cora fights back, one of the men hits her with an ashtray and fractured her skull. She was then held captive by Frankie and his parents for 6 months while Magdalena's body is dumped in the woods and her death covered up by Cora and Magdalena's family.
nicolet2018's review
3.0
I was really interested to pick this up when I saw it was an adapted TV series and thrillers are my favourite genre right now. The premise sounded fascinating and dark. As with a translated story, the words phrasing and sentencing was bit odd but not the worst I have seen. The writing was rather confusing because it would switch from Cora to another character to a flashback with no mention of the difference.
Nonetheless, the story was very exciting and I was on my toes. It started off fast, right off the bat I know that Cora has PTSD and she alludes to a horrible experience in her past and that sets her off when her husband is trying to be intimate and on the lido. I suppose lido is a German version of a lake. I thought I had it figured out at first, that she was abused as a child by her father but I was wrong.
Cora has killed a man and is ready to be punished which does not sound normal. But when you learn about her past, as Detective Grovian mentions:
'He found it impossible to to imagine...that any child could have developed normally under such a mother's tutelage'
Page 234
You have context as to how shitty and screwed up her life was. Just reading about Elsbeth's religious fanaticism and how broken her family is, it is any wonder she managed to leave and be a decent person. It seemed odd to me that Chief Grovian was so concerned with Cora despite not knowing her well. He goes to alot of trouble to figure out the truth from the fragments of truth and lies she tells.
I was really confused and shocked as to how Magdelena factored into the cellar memories. The relationship between Cora and her sick but beautiful sister, Magdalena was a roller coaster, sometimes they dislike each other and at other times they rely on each other. There is love but resentment too then there is some really weird components to that love.
Another area that was not clearly explained was the timeline because Cora confuses it alot and Chief Grovian tries to get it right but somehow it is never really articulated.
I do not think I am going to watch the tv series even though this was very suspenseful because things happen in the story that feel very disturbing to me despite the good intentions. I supposed this truly shows sibling love and how trauma can cause a person to compartmentalise things or even remember things differently. The ending is feels quite open and I was surprised the it ended so suddenly but in a way it works.
Nonetheless, the story was very exciting and I was on my toes. It started off fast, right off the bat I know that Cora has PTSD and she alludes to a horrible experience in her past and that sets her off when her husband is trying to be intimate and on the lido. I suppose lido is a German version of a lake. I thought I had it figured out at first, that she was abused as a child by her father but I was wrong.
Cora has killed a man and is ready to be punished which does not sound normal. But when you learn about her past, as Detective Grovian mentions:
'He found it impossible to to imagine...that any child could have developed normally under such a mother's tutelage'
Page 234
You have context as to how shitty and screwed up her life was. Just reading about Elsbeth's religious fanaticism and how broken her family is, it is any wonder she managed to leave and be a decent person. It seemed odd to me that Chief Grovian was so concerned with Cora despite not knowing her well. He goes to alot of trouble to figure out the truth from the fragments of truth and lies she tells.
I was really confused and shocked as to how Magdelena factored into the cellar memories.
Spoiler
It seemed at odds that she loves Cora and yet, she would encourage a young man she doesn't know to inject her own sister with drugs to relax her so Cora won't object to being touched by him.Another area that was not clearly explained was the timeline because Cora confuses it alot and Chief Grovian tries to get it right but somehow it is never really articulated.
I do not think I am going to watch the tv series even though this was very suspenseful because things happen in the story that feel very disturbing to me despite the good intentions. I supposed this truly shows sibling love and how trauma can cause a person to compartmentalise things or even remember things differently. The ending is feels quite open and I was surprised the it ended so suddenly but in a way it works.
chiquita203's review
2.0
I found the writing style very tedious which made it difficult to get through the book. The translation was not very good. Some words had improper usage, and in general it did not have the flow of a native speaker. There were interesting twists and turns, but not worth the bad writing. Also, some details were extraneous. How often did we need to read about her father masturbating? Save your time and energy for a better read.
jcbmathcat's review
4.0
I started this book when I was about halfway through the TV series starring Jessica Biel. While there were similarities between book and TV, there were also some major differences. Spoilers are involved, so if you might read this book, don't finish reading my review.
In the book, Cora's husband dumps her after the murder, which in some ways seems more realistic than the way the TV series played it out. There was almost a "happily ever after" feel to the way Cora and her husband ended in the series.
Magdalena was Cora's sister in the book; Phoebe was the sister in the series. Magdalena was described as quite beautiful, and had it not been for her illness, she would have broken the hearts of many men. She was still manipulative, whether intentionally or not.
The police officer (Grovian) in the book did not have a huge story arc, as Bill Pullman did in the series. I preferred having Cora as the focus in the book. The police officer was involved, but we only saw a few interactions with his wife, and they had issues with their adult daughter.
The men involved in what happened to Cora were quite different in the book, although the cover up by the one man's father was the same. Her sister did go to the party with Cora, and the incident that led to the murder was similar.
The book had a darker, implied ending as far as Cora's future was concerned. I felt it was much more realistic than the TV series. I suppose viewers do tend to prefer a potentially happier ending in a world that is often bleak.
Considering Cora's background, the way her brain handled what happened seemed plausible to me. People lie to avoid facing the truth, especially if their brains have been scrambled by drugs forced on them for months. The damage to Cora started in her childhood, and she still sees death as an escape. The reader is left to wonder if she will use her aunt's store of pills at some point in the future, or if she will try to rebuild a life.
I am glad that I read this book and while some criticized the translation, I had no problem with it.
In the book, Cora's husband dumps her after the murder, which in some ways seems more realistic than the way the TV series played it out. There was almost a "happily ever after" feel to the way Cora and her husband ended in the series.
Magdalena was Cora's sister in the book; Phoebe was the sister in the series. Magdalena was described as quite beautiful, and had it not been for her illness, she would have broken the hearts of many men. She was still manipulative, whether intentionally or not.
The police officer (Grovian) in the book did not have a huge story arc, as Bill Pullman did in the series. I preferred having Cora as the focus in the book. The police officer was involved, but we only saw a few interactions with his wife, and they had issues with their adult daughter.
The men involved in what happened to Cora were quite different in the book, although the cover up by the one man's father was the same. Her sister did go to the party with Cora, and the incident that led to the murder was similar.
The book had a darker, implied ending as far as Cora's future was concerned. I felt it was much more realistic than the TV series. I suppose viewers do tend to prefer a potentially happier ending in a world that is often bleak.
Considering Cora's background, the way her brain handled what happened seemed plausible to me. People lie to avoid facing the truth, especially if their brains have been scrambled by drugs forced on them for months. The damage to Cora started in her childhood, and she still sees death as an escape. The reader is left to wonder if she will use her aunt's store of pills at some point in the future, or if she will try to rebuild a life.
I am glad that I read this book and while some criticized the translation, I had no problem with it.
booksforella's review
4.0
A mystery-thriller revolving around the "why" instead of the "who."
Disturbing, psychological, and a thrilling read. I sped through this like binging a TV show. I wanted to reach through the pages and hold our main character. I felt the plot was clever and original, which is incredibly hard to do.
Disturbing, psychological, and a thrilling read. I sped through this like binging a TV show. I wanted to reach through the pages and hold our main character. I felt the plot was clever and original, which is incredibly hard to do.
moonlit_shelves's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
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? Yes
2.0