Reviews

The True Deceiver by Tove Jansson

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eggandart's review

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adventurous dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

sumlittlebee's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

underthejunipertree's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

The distrust bred between Anna and Katri was unnerving! The eeriness of their interactions where both cannot admit the effect of the other brings about

garbage on the ice, flashing yellow eyes, a dog's madness

. It's uncomfortable to read because of how starkly the story brushes against the ethics of deception (e.g. What lies do you tell yourself to help you sleep at night?). This short story is so unexpectedly powerful, I hurried to finish.

brobee's review

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dark emotional tense

4.0

essayist's review

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mysterious reflective medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes

3.0

ocurtsinger's review

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3.0

Yikes. Books usually don't force their mood into the rest of my life, but Jansson's characters are so powerful that their strange demeanor began to rub off on me. The story is so emotionally charged and yet understated that it's almost uncomfortable to read, but amazing in its power. I almost found myself nervous and suspicious the way that Katri and Anna interact with each other. An amazing book, but glad to be done with it.