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lybrarie's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This is a pretty standard mystery thriller. I enjoyed it, I think it was well-done. I was able to work out some of the twists before they were revealed, and some of them I was not. I think this book is pretty good at making you sympathise with people you might not normally sympathise with, which is good to make you think about different things regarding the situation.
The writing was easy to read, and I do think it felt like it leant a little more towards YA at times, but it was still good. I also wasn't a huge fan of the way autism was treated in this book. I know that mystery/thrillers are going to cover potentially triggering topics, as is their nature, but the ableism in this book was extreme and I don't think it needed to be where it was seen.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and I would give this author another go in the future too.
The writing was easy to read, and I do think it felt like it leant a little more towards YA at times, but it was still good. I also wasn't a huge fan of the way autism was treated in this book. I know that mystery/thrillers are going to cover potentially triggering topics, as is their nature, but the ableism in this book was extreme and I don't think it needed to be where it was seen.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and I would give this author another go in the future too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Bullying, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Mental illness, Murder, Suicide, Blood, Suicide attempt, Body horror, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual assault, Stalking, and Violence
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Physical abuse, Cursing, Alcohol, Dementia, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcoholism, and Confinement
natsbookshelves's review
dark
mysterious
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Self harm, Stalking, Violence, Child abuse, Death, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Bullying
asourceoffiction's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Five names on a list. The first two are dead. The third is yours.
This is a really pacy and brilliantly clever psychological thriller. It goes in completely unexpected directions and I loved that I couldn't guess much of what was to come, where it subverts a number of classic thriller tropes. The writing was good and the way the story was built up through three different perspectives really kept me hooked.
For me, the subject matter was probably past my limit on what is too disturbing. I really struggled to connect with a number of the characters and would frequently second guess my own feelings of sympathy for them, before swinging in the opposite direction. The ending is probably fitting for the nature of the story, but there could really be no satisfying conclusion. Morally it's a very tricky book and I found it incredibly hard to be objective, while also needing to do just that in order to cope with the difficult plot.
This is a really pacy and brilliantly clever psychological thriller. It goes in completely unexpected directions and I loved that I couldn't guess much of what was to come, where it subverts a number of classic thriller tropes. The writing was good and the way the story was built up through three different perspectives really kept me hooked.
For me, the subject matter was probably past my limit on what is too disturbing. I really struggled to connect with a number of the characters and would frequently second guess my own feelings of sympathy for them, before swinging in the opposite direction. The ending is probably fitting for the nature of the story, but there could really be no satisfying conclusion. Morally it's a very tricky book and I found it incredibly hard to be objective, while also needing to do just that in order to cope with the difficult plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Mental illness, Murder, and Torture
Moderate: Child abuse and Rape
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