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littleonepaige's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Racism and Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Rape, and Abortion
Minor: Child abuse and Physical abuse
leahrosiee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Hate crime, Rape, Sexism, Blood, Dementia, and Stalking
Minor: Confinement, Genocide, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Classism
thebookvisitor's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Abortion
lesbegays's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
my library completely at random, not even reading the description. the themes and concepts touched on in here are extremely compelling. i love a good critique of capitalism and exploration of the way race, trauma, and class interact, though (unlike some of the reviews i’ve seen) i actually wish there was MORE and that it went more in depth.
this didn’t work too well for me as a thriller, tbh. somehow i find it both too slow and too fast paced. it almost felt like there were starts and stops in the tension, and i like more of a slow burn, steady increase in tension, with a lot of access to a character’s psyche. while we got a lot of introspection, the narrative voice still felt pretty distant and ellice never came together as a complete character to me. i think this is just a case of a concept that is very suited to my taste executed in a way that isn’t.
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Dementia, Abortion, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Gun violence, Hate crime, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Pregnancy
janjanjukebox's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Genre: Mystery Thriller, African-American Fiction, Contemporary, Suspense, Crime
Featuring: Atlanta, Georgia; Lawyers, Murder, Corruption, Sexism, Racism, Child Abuse, Violence, Stupidity, Secrets, Family Dynamics, Dual Timelines
Rating as a movie: R for adult content
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐
My thoughts: 2% - I have read too many Christian Romances lately as I was not expecting that! I have to get my mind right to enjoy this one.
8% - Meh. Lulled already.
22% - This is unfortunately dull. I'm not quitting but I'm taking a break, 8 chapters down and it's still slow.
25% - That was the best chapter (9) of the book. I wish the best friend was the main character.
58% - 23 chapters down and I'm still just trudging along. This story feels dated. It's not exciting and it is most definitely not on the level of The Firm. If it wasn't for the mention of Get Out and texting, it could have easily been a nineties book. I'll finish it but I'm not impressed, it's written just well enough to keep you going, but not to keep you intrigued.
83% - 😒 I like not. There was a chance for redemption but it went left and I can only take so much stupidity. I hate went they use it to fuel the plot.
This book's first mistake was claiming to be a "fast-paced thriller." I wish publishers would stop doing this disservice to books. Yes, you might get me to read a book because you claim it's a fast-paced thriller or a nail-biting psychological thriller, but if all I get is a suspenseful mystery I'm going to be disappointed, your book is gonna get low reviews and eventually no one's going to read it. If you're just honest people who are looking for those stories will find your book and give it high praise. This story was okay. I didn't like it, but I didn't dislike it overall. Chapter 9 was the best part of this book, at least it had some life. This book was not a true thriller, it was too slow and I didn't feel like the character was in danger, based on her actions neither did she. I think it would have been better as a general fiction book with a mysterious crime. The last quarter of the book was better than the rest of it but by that time I was just accepting that it wasn't gonna get much better. This story had action but in slow motion.
Recommend to others?: Not really. I can see many people enjoying this book but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone in general. Someone looking for something specific, sure.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Blood, and Abortion
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Gun violence, Racism, Sexism, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Medical content, Abortion, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
whatiqreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Moderate: Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, and Police brutality
thedevilswefind's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Child abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Racism
stephbakerbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Ellice is the kind of character that makes questionable decisions but you end up forgiving her for every bad decision she makes because you want her to win at everything she does. I rooted for her from start to finish, I liked the development she got throughout, how as we learn about her past through flashbacks she's learning that she shouldn't be ashamed of her past. This story is more plot-focused than character-focused, so we don't really get development from other characters. I really wanted more of Juice though! He's probably my favorite character and definitely needed some more attention.
The plot kept me reading though—I couldn't put the book down! And I did not guess the ending...but when the reveal happened, everything clicked into place just like you want in a good thriller. I had another nice aha moment when I got that whole elephant/grass metaphor that was happening throughout the book lol.
I did get a little annoyed about 3/4 of the way through the book, when the book dragged a bit before the main finale.
There's good commentary happening here that I think would lead to great discussions—and I love a good discussion book! I also loved that it was set in Atlanta :)
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, and Abortion
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, and Dementia
kerrygetsliterary's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Dementia, Grief, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, and Alcohol