Reviews

Heartsick by Chelsea Cain

czoltak's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

"When he woke up? It took us a long time to convince him that he was out of that basement.” She paused. "Sometimes I wonder if we ever did."

3.5⭐️

I have mixed feelings about this one. I really enjoyed the premise and the characters. The idea of a female serial killer, a tortured detective, and a naïve journalist all being interlocked was fascinating from the start. Finding out what happened between Gretchen and Archie those 10 days, the banter between Susan and Archie, and watching current day parallel the past were all my favorite aspects. In fact, the side humor between the characters helped balance out some of the brutal and horrific natural of the overall story. My issues were towards the end of the book. I thought the current day killer paled considerably in comparison to the past storyline with Gretchen, to the point where it was almost unsatisfying in its simplicity. I also didn’t love the direction Gretchen and Archie’s dynamic started to become as it felt romanticized which was unnecessary for a bond that is already rooted in a disturbing and complex nature. Overall, this was a very dark book that felt similar to an episode of Criminal Minds. I am throughly surprised that despite its age, I still relatively enjoyed the story and was hooked throughout. I haven’t decided if I’ll continue on in the series yet.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Drug abuse, Gore, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, and Murder

bookishnicole's review

5.0

Re-listen: I know I loved these books the first time I listened to them, but I never finished the series. I'm excited to go back and learn how Archie and Gretchen's story ends.

chelseyrothwell's review

3.0

I really liked this one, I just found that it had like too much information. Too many details on things that really didn’t matter in my opinion. I loved the relationship between Gretchen and Archie it was so messed up. I haven’t decided if I want to continue the series.

trudilibrarian's review

3.0

While not a fan of the police procedural, the premise of this one intrigued me, and with a rave recommendation from a friend I decided to give it a try. If this is your genre, this is one of the best books you'll read -- it's shocking, gruesome, gripping. The characters are well fleshed-out and the narrative momentum zings along. I would much rather experience this story as a movie and I'm sure it's being optioned as I write this (or will be very soon). One of my favourite films is Seven starring Morgan Freeman, a police procedural featuring a serial killer like no other. While I love the film, I'd have no desire to read the novel (if it had been adapted from one). Rather than read on in the series, I think I will wait for the movies, for I am certain they are coming. Heartsick is great source material and Cain a remarkably vivid writer. She made me squirm and wince; that's good writing.

becka6131's review against another edition

5.0

This book is AMAZING. I am going to send Chelsea Cain a picture of me trying to swallow my Kindle while reading this book because I was losing it. Thank God there are like five more.

troll_for_initiative's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

bxermom's review

4.0

OMG! This book was fan-freaking-tastic! Chelsea Cain is a wonderful writer as she takes you into the mind of the killer and the victim. Awesome!

vela_the_great's review against another edition

5.0

Wow ... Gretchen ...lillac ...I ultimately fell in love with her... She is just rocking..

kblincoln's review

4.0

This is one of those books where you feel fascinated and sickened at the same time because you can't wait for the parts where detective Archie Sheridan is being tortured by serial killer Gretchen.

Yeah, one of those.

Like watching Hannibal on TV. But instead of emo Hugh Dancy, we get a middle-aged vicodin-popping world-weary PTSD guy and in this book, another POV character who is a young reporter assigned to follow Archie so a repeat of the media scandal when Gretchen was arrested won't happen.

This book is a fine thriller. There's a tickle of well-plotted threads coming together at the end in a way I didn't see coming, and there's some delicious angst/emotional trauma to wallow in, and there's that train wreck of a hero, Archie, to wonder at.

While I never got deeply emotionally invested, it was compelling enough that I would consider reading on to find out more about Gretchen and Archie (although I have to recover a bit first, my voyeuristic bits are a bit singed).

djohan's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75