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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
this book was a pretty slow burn, I enjoyed it once I was halfway through but found the writing style a little too descriptive and unnecessary.
I really enjoyed this! It was dark and sinister without being needlessly so. Everything felt true to the characters as you read and learn about each. That being said, there were a few scenes that made me a bit squimish! I picked this up because I love reading books set in Edinburgh, and in that respect it did not disappoint. Edinburgh felt like its own character, and I could map out the story in my head based on the descriptions, which is always fun.
dark
tense
medium-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
The universal experience of a homoerotic female friendship that ends horribly. We've all been there.
I wish the author had leaned more into the unreliable narrator element of the novel. It definitely would have made the tension more enjoyable and the ending more surprising.
I wish the author had leaned more into the unreliable narrator element of the novel. It definitely would have made the tension more enjoyable and the ending more surprising.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Mean Girls but dark(er).
Solidly enjoyable with some good characterisation. I wish the plot had been tightened, some threads were dropped without being picked back up, and I felt mid about the final “twist”. But overall this wasn’t too bad! :)
Solidly enjoyable with some good characterisation. I wish the plot had been tightened, some threads were dropped without being picked back up, and I felt mid about the final “twist”. But overall this wasn’t too bad! :)
dark academia is truly such a treat, and I really enjoyed the Edinburgh atmosphere for this book. It took me a while to get into it, but after I did, I was hooked. There is something about stories with toxic friendships and morally grey characters that always draws me in, and this book has both. I would highly recommend this to anyone who loves dark, suspenseful stories!
I received an ARC from the publisher on NetGalley. Thank you for allowing me to read this one early! Great debut novel :)
I received an ARC from the publisher on NetGalley. Thank you for allowing me to read this one early! Great debut novel :)
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The title and short description were far more intriguing than the book ended up being unfortunately. Something that was well done were the characters but other than that this really fell flat for me.
It wasn’t intriguing enough, there was so real suspense, the book started out so slow and we didn’t really get any plot until page 120. the twists at the end weren’t really surprising and I don’t understand who a story like this (and the whole setting and idea really wasn’t bad) can be this boring?
I ended up skimming many pages and don’t think I’ve missed out on anything, which tells me that this really wasn’t it.
Also, reason I picked this up was the dark academia trope and that it’s set in Edinburgh (I live here lol) but besides the characters being students, there was nothing academic about this sadly.
It wasn’t intriguing enough, there was so real suspense, the book started out so slow and we didn’t really get any plot until page 120. the twists at the end weren’t really surprising and I don’t understand who a story like this (and the whole setting and idea really wasn’t bad) can be this boring?
I ended up skimming many pages and don’t think I’ve missed out on anything, which tells me that this really wasn’t it.
Also, reason I picked this up was the dark academia trope and that it’s set in Edinburgh (I live here lol) but besides the characters being students, there was nothing academic about this sadly.
The cover for this is absolutely beautiful and it drew me in, but unfortunately the story fell flat for me. I ended up DNFing this at 77% because I didn't care where the story was going or what was going on with the characters. I will give the author props for writing such a dark debut, but the main character felt like a classic "I'm an awkward and ugly weirdo, but everyone loves me for no reason" YA trope. I would absolutely check out what this author writes in the future, even if it is similar to this. I'm trying hard to DNF books I'm not enjoying this year, and unfortunately this is one of those books for me.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine, Bantam, and NetGalley for providing me with an eBook copy to review.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group, Ballantine, Bantam, and NetGalley for providing me with an eBook copy to review.