Reviews

How to Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie

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liv209's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

goodbooksgreatgoats's review against another edition

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3.0

Being completely honest, I am typically not drawn to this genre of books. I read this as a buddy read with a friend and we had some interesting discussions based on the book's themes/mentions of class, status, and revenge. While those things were great, the ending of the book really pulled me out of it. I was starting to really connect with and root for the main character, flaws and all. To have another person (especially a man when the book has focused on a capable woman) swoop in and solve things was frustrating.

min_franzi_'s review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Content Warnings

lucybradley0's review against another edition

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dark funny 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

3.0

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The comedic take on a dark premise made for an entertaining read. I think Grace is an interesting protagonist, and found myself really psychoanalysing her and her deranged behaviour. The pacing of the book is predominantly good, and the time jumps didn’t remove me from the story as much as I worried they might. However, I do think it can be weak at times. For example, the ending is very lazy, in my opinion, and leads to a feeling of dissatisfaction and confusion at the end of the book. I also found that whilst I appreciated the build-up to a lot of the key points in the book, some of them were painfully (and boringly) drawn out and I wanted to scream ‘HURRY UP!’ on multiple occasions!