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xnolakola's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
cassiccino's review against another edition
3.0
The last chapter really tied this together so nicely. I enjoyed this book overall!
mbkarapcik's review against another edition
3.0
Children who attend the tony Crofton school in Manhattan and their parents all use the anonymous social media platform, UrbanMyth. That's the place to share secrets and get the heavy load of them off their chests. After UrbanMyth gets hacked, everyone's secrets become public knowledge in No One Needs to Know by Lindsay Cameron.
I was pretty excited to receive this book because I enjoyed Cameron's previous book, Just One Look. The premise of this sounded intriguing and like there could be a lot going on. Although the smooth, engaging writing and incredibly believable descriptions were enjoyable, it wasn't that exciting and the suspension of disbelief had to be stretched pretty far. In fact, the UrbanMyth platform could have been a more central character than it was.
To get to the point where UrbanMyth is hacked, you need to get through the background of the three main characters and their families. You also witness a mysterious incident involving the kids at a dance where allegedly a recruiter from one of the fancy private high schools will be observing the kids for future entrance at the school. This exposition takes until the middle of the book to get to, which seems way too long.
You mostly get a good picture of the one main character. One of the other moms felt very cookie-cutter to me in drawing a picture of a privileged Manhattan mom. She didn't carry much depth. At first, the third mom felt characterized one way and then evolved into a very different character. Some of the dads seemed sparse or, again, somewhat cookie-cutter in their descriptions except for one of them who plays a prominent role in the story. Also, I felt that there could have been more done with the children and their stories.
When you get to the climax, the book is almost over. The pacing seems to be off. Some of the uncovered secrets seem pretty shocking, but some of the twists come out of left field. And I felt the central story with the murder was very implausible.
I expected a lot more from this book since the author's previous book was very well-done. Also, (and this is a question for many of these domestic thriller/suspense novels I read) how are these murders taking place and being hid so well? Some books create a story that you can believe, but this one seemed a little too overt not to be figured out by the police.
Thank you, Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Bantam, for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
I was pretty excited to receive this book because I enjoyed Cameron's previous book, Just One Look. The premise of this sounded intriguing and like there could be a lot going on. Although the smooth, engaging writing and incredibly believable descriptions were enjoyable, it wasn't that exciting and the suspension of disbelief had to be stretched pretty far. In fact, the UrbanMyth platform could have been a more central character than it was.
To get to the point where UrbanMyth is hacked, you need to get through the background of the three main characters and their families. You also witness a mysterious incident involving the kids at a dance where allegedly a recruiter from one of the fancy private high schools will be observing the kids for future entrance at the school. This exposition takes until the middle of the book to get to, which seems way too long.
You mostly get a good picture of the one main character. One of the other moms felt very cookie-cutter to me in drawing a picture of a privileged Manhattan mom. She didn't carry much depth. At first, the third mom felt characterized one way and then evolved into a very different character. Some of the dads seemed sparse or, again, somewhat cookie-cutter in their descriptions except for one of them who plays a prominent role in the story. Also, I felt that there could have been more done with the children and their stories.
When you get to the climax, the book is almost over. The pacing seems to be off. Some of the uncovered secrets seem pretty shocking, but some of the twists come out of left field. And I felt the central story with the murder was very implausible.
I expected a lot more from this book since the author's previous book was very well-done. Also, (and this is a question for many of these domestic thriller/suspense novels I read) how are these murders taking place and being hid so well? Some books create a story that you can believe, but this one seemed a little too overt not to be figured out by the police.
Thank you, Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine, Bantam, for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
mmitch10's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
Did not enjoy this book at all. No likable characters and ending was a disappointment
jordieq's review against another edition
3.0
Quick read. Good story line some parts were just fluff and I didn’t feel it needed to be added. Overall enjoyed.
kayyla4356's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
eventsjaded's review against another edition
2.0
i didn’t really see this book as a thriller, but it was a quick read when i actually got through it. the whole thing that put this story in action was kinda mundane to me. i was like “that’s it?” after the photo was discovered at the kids party.
and there was something about the way when two characters were talking, then there would be a pause for like two pages to describe something else. it felt kinda weird and i would wonder why all this information was necessary. just a huge info dump.
and there was something about the way when two characters were talking, then there would be a pause for like two pages to describe something else. it felt kinda weird and i would wonder why all this information was necessary. just a huge info dump.
ebeubanks8's review against another edition
3.0
Very boring at first but then got better. I def didn’t see the ending coming