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frantically's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- 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
1.0
I'm not autistic, so keep that in mind while reading my review.
This writing style, this style of writing about neurodivergent/autistic people has been so overdone and to me it's nothing less than dehumanising. As other reviewers have pointed out, we're supposed to believe this takes place in the present (which I couldn't believe throughout the whole book) and still, not one character thinks "Hey maybe Molly isn't just quirky & annoying, maybe there's some autistic traits here".
I have friends who have autism, you probably have too and it serves none of us if they keep being portrayed as these quirky people who have no clue how to interact with others and seem to have completely different thought patterns — it just divides us even more.
The writing style distracted me from the whole mystery but honestly it wasn't life-changing either.
This writing style, this style of writing about neurodivergent/autistic people has been so overdone and to me it's nothing less than dehumanising. As other reviewers have pointed out, we're supposed to believe this takes place in the present (which I couldn't believe throughout the whole book) and still, not one character thinks "Hey maybe Molly isn't just quirky & annoying, maybe there's some autistic traits here".
I have friends who have autism, you probably have too and it serves none of us if they keep being portrayed as these quirky people who have no clue how to interact with others and seem to have completely different thought patterns — it just divides us even more.
The writing style distracted me from the whole mystery but honestly it wasn't life-changing either.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Murder, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Racism, Bullying, and Domestic abuse
samcsmith's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Addiction, Blood, Death, Physical abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Murder, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Abandonment, Deportation, Torture, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Terminal illness
natashaleighton_'s review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Bullying, and Violence
Minor: Death, Domestic abuse, and Trafficking
katymat18's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Violence and Drug use
Minor: Cancer
brookesbookstagram's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I absolutely devoured this book within two days, and I can see and understand the hype. I can also see the controversy regarding protagonist Molly, without it explicitly stating, but clearly defining her to be a neurodivergent character.
Mollys portrayal I found beautiful, it resonated strongly with me, and I felt it really drove the narrative of the decisions, choices and understanding she had of the world. Leaning into this was a great experience. With many neurodivergent people in my life, it was great to have a main character, quirks and all, barriers and uncomfortable truths be portrayed in this way.
I enjoyed the who dun-nit elements, although the other characters didn’t have as much substance or depth, I did generally enjoy all the characters and the way they all formed together in this book. Overall this was my favourite read of 2023 so far!
Mollys portrayal I found beautiful, it resonated strongly with me, and I felt it really drove the narrative of the decisions, choices and understanding she had of the world. Leaning into this was a great experience. With many neurodivergent people in my life, it was great to have a main character, quirks and all, barriers and uncomfortable truths be portrayed in this way.
I enjoyed the who dun-nit elements, although the other characters didn’t have as much substance or depth, I did generally enjoy all the characters and the way they all formed together in this book. Overall this was my favourite read of 2023 so far!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Grief, Violence, Drug use, and Death
jessismoore's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
The story was definitely an interesting concept, a maid that cleans your room knows a lot about you but cleans everything up after you so it’s a good crime scene. However, I found aspects of Molly’s personality to just be convenient for the plot. I saw other reviews before starting that described her as a neurotypical person’s view of how a neurodivergent person acts and that made me hesitant to read this but it was for a book club. I made it through the book without a problem and it kept my interest. I did enjoy the story but I still felt like the book justified a lot of Molly’s behavior, especially near the end of the book. I understand the narrator doesn’t necessarily reflect the author but it felt off at times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Death, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Physical abuse, Abandonment, and Alcoholism
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Death of parent, and Grief
thndrkat's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
There were aspects of this book I found enjoyable, but more that I didn't. Prose does a great job at times with the contrast between what we know to be true and what the main character believes to be true, creating some truly cringy moments that I found entertaining. But more often, the story is cringy in a truly unpleasant way, from the unnatural dialog (such as countless instances of "my dear girl..."), to the absurdly two-dimensional characters (portrayed with stereotypes that are simplistic at best, offensive at worst), and the severely unbelievable wrap-up. I don't normally read mysteries, so I don't have a sense of the normal level and types of tropes, but this is not a book I would recommend. However, I picked it for a book club, so I had to finish it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Suicide, Violence, Bullying, and Drug abuse
sea_tea_books's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
3.5
Do two wrongs make a right? Is it ever right to be wrong? "Sometimes, you must do one thing bad to do another thing good. It's not always so clear, so black and white like everyone thinks."
At times this appeared to be an almost charming story. Yet, there were significant plot twists that darkened that charm. I recognize the nuanced decisions the characters are faced with making but I could have done without the promise between Molly and her Gran. That left me most unsettled.
At times this appeared to be an almost charming story. Yet, there were significant plot twists that darkened that charm. I recognize the nuanced decisions the characters are faced with making but I could have done without the promise between Molly and her Gran. That left me most unsettled.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Violence, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Addiction, and Death
Minor: Grief
fiagarrod96's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Abandonment, Death, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Hate crime, Drug abuse, Murder, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Violence, and Panic attacks/disorders
ebscaggs's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Suicide