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benteasm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Suicide, Antisemitism, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Incest, Infidelity, and Panic attacks/disorders
madalina0_0'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
emily_p1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
laurakehl'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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, and Incest
Minor: Homophobia and Rape
pakrat1237's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Suicide, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death and Incest
ettegoom'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The story is a complete train wreck from start to finish. The characters are a bunch of 'poor little rich kids' joined by the narrator, a scholarship student, who manages to join the group, yet remains an outsider whilst still being intimately involved in trying to protect the group.
A friend saw me reading this, and asked if a review that she'd seen entitled "what the hell Richard" was correct. Yes it's correct, but I'm still not entirely sure what the reviewer was referring to, because there are so many what the heck? moments for every character, that is hard to single out any particular moment that could have triggered the reviewer's response
The writing is compelling and I read the book over about three days where I struggled to put it down. I don't know whether I enjoyed it per se, but I most certainly wanted to know what was going to happen next.
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Classism
jellyparfum's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Suicide, Xenophobia, Blood, Antisemitism, and Islamophobia
Minor: Incest, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, and Classism
cynthia_wlms'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Blood, and Grief
Minor: Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Car accident, and Death of parent
georgialee01's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Blood
roaming_enn's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Does such a thing as "the fatal flaw," that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside of literature? It used to think it didn't. Now I think it does. And I think mine is this: a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.
Beauty is terror. Whatever we call beautiful, we quiver before it. And what could be more terrifying and beautiful, to souls like t he Greeks or our own, than to lose control completely? To throw off the chains of being for an instant, to shatter the accident of our mortal selves?
Summary:
This book is about a bunch of Ancient Greek undergraduate students and that time they murdered one of their classmates. The one who dies is revealed in the beginning, and it is the HOW they get there that's the real story. The story is told in first-person through Richard Papen's POV, a newest Greek student that the professor accepts, newest member of the group that had been together for longer. He is writing just under a decade after the events of the book.
Thoughts:
I love how academic it was, and it feels like a book written by an academic (which it was) for other academics. The author doesn't hold your hand, assuming you're smart enough to follow the story with what she gives you. There was at least one scene that I thought was entirely unnecessary for the Islamophobia it spewed, and I'm still not sure why it was included. The ending was a little disappointing because I wanted things to be a particular way but they ended up not. I wish it had been more than just a handful of years later when the story is told, rather than Richard still being a young man. But in either case, a lot of people seem to hate this book. I loved it. I don't love the characters, but I found them, and the story, REALLY compelling. And for me, that makes up for not loving the characters.
Be sure to check all the content warnings. I tried to include as many as I could think of in this review.
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Islamophobia
Minor: Cursing, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Vomit, and Antisemitism