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adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
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:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder
Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
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
Loved the third book in this series. I think the plot twists and character growth left me satisfied at the end. I love Pip and Ravi and their story and think everyone should read this book and experience it too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder
Moderate: Sexual assault, Stalking
Gory/descriptive messages about dead bodies
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
No, not Holly Jackson writing a literal guide on how to get away with murder?! 🙈
An excellent closing to an excellent series. Despite the few times I almost threw this 3rd installment across the room, I thoroughly enjoyed it... might've gotten a bit distraught over our Pip and her actions, but I'll forgive her in a day or two. 😅
An excellent closing to an excellent series. Despite the few times I almost threw this 3rd installment across the room, I thoroughly enjoyed it... might've gotten a bit distraught over our Pip and her actions, but I'll forgive her in a day or two. 😅
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Rape, Stalking, Car accident
dark
mysterious
tense
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
I've had several days to digest AGAD now and I'm still lost for words.
Ending a trilogy satisfactorily, especially such a well-received trilogy, is tough for many authors - and for some simply impossible. Often a trilogy will conclude and I'll be left wishing we'd just had the initial book as a standalone. This is different. Jackson wrote a book that soared above expectations and arguably became the best book of the series. I can't tell you how much I adored reading AGAD, from working through the clues with Pip to really feeling her pain, her trauma, her emotions - it was transformative. I can't think of any real criticism that I have with this title and I want to recommend it to everyone!
What really stood out to me was how Jackson handles trauma in her narrative, crucially that relating to SA and gendered violence. She writes with empathy, not only for her characters, but for her audience and she tells her story without inflicting unnecessarily triggering content on both. The words and acts of the book feel excruciatingly real and yet it is not handled in such a way as to be confusing or vague. Jackson proves that stories about trauma do not have to be retraumatising to consume.
Stepping away from the heavier topic for a moment, I loved the narrative beats of this book and they caught me totally off-guard! The tonal shift that occurred halfway through the book with Jason's murder and the way they shape the remaining plot was incredible. I'm so thankful that it played out the way that it did, because I needed it. This is a revenge book. This is a survival book. This is a "I see you, and I'm giving us the ending we always wanted for us" book. The ethical questions that Jackson has grappled with in this series are both important and timely. What do you do when the justice system fails you? What do you do when the police don't believe you? Is there a punishment that is too high for murderers and rapists? Ultimately, I think Pip did the morally right thing. She prevented two dangerous men from ever harming another innocent person and she, in my mind at least, acted in self defense. It was her or them.
Lastly, I'm a sucker for a HEA and I usually feel like a story is ruined for me if I don't explicitly get it. AGAD's ending left me with complicated emotions at first. I couldn't understand why Pip broke up with Ravi and spent all those months isolating herself from her loved ones... but that's PTSD. That's survivor's guilt, and depression, and anxiety and everything else that has compounded to make Pip the person she was. She did her best to protect everyone around her, whilst simultaneously neglecting herself and her own needs. I have no doubt that the road ahead for her will be hard, but I also know that she'll heal and she'll find her way back to those relationships. Trauma changes who we are as people, but it doesn't erase us. Pip will return changed, but alive. I think many of us can relate to that.
Ending a trilogy satisfactorily, especially such a well-received trilogy, is tough for many authors - and for some simply impossible. Often a trilogy will conclude and I'll be left wishing we'd just had the initial book as a standalone. This is different. Jackson wrote a book that soared above expectations and arguably became the best book of the series. I can't tell you how much I adored reading AGAD, from working through the clues with Pip to really feeling her pain, her trauma, her emotions - it was transformative. I can't think of any real criticism that I have with this title and I want to recommend it to everyone!
What really stood out to me was how Jackson handles trauma in her narrative, crucially that relating to SA and gendered violence. She writes with empathy, not only for her characters, but for her audience and she tells her story without inflicting unnecessarily triggering content on both. The words and acts of the book feel excruciatingly real and yet it is not handled in such a way as to be confusing or vague. Jackson proves that stories about trauma do not have to be retraumatising to consume.
Stepping away from the heavier topic for a moment, I loved the narrative beats of this book and they caught me totally off-guard! The tonal shift that occurred halfway through the book with Jason's murder and the way they shape the remaining plot was incredible. I'm so thankful that it played out the way that it did, because I needed it. This is a revenge book. This is a survival book. This is a "I see you, and I'm giving us the ending we always wanted for us" book. The ethical questions that Jackson has grappled with in this series are both important and timely. What do you do when the justice system fails you? What do you do when the police don't believe you? Is there a punishment that is too high for murderers and rapists? Ultimately, I think Pip did the morally right thing. She prevented two dangerous men from ever harming another innocent person and she, in my mind at least, acted in self defense. It was her or them.
Lastly, I'm a sucker for a HEA and I usually feel like a story is ruined for me if I don't explicitly get it. AGAD's ending left me with complicated emotions at first. I couldn't understand why Pip broke up with Ravi and spent all those months isolating herself from her loved ones... but that's PTSD. That's survivor's guilt, and depression, and anxiety and everything else that has compounded to make Pip the person she was. She did her best to protect everyone around her, whilst simultaneously neglecting herself and her own needs. I have no doubt that the road ahead for her will be hard, but I also know that she'll heal and she'll find her way back to those relationships. Trauma changes who we are as people, but it doesn't erase us. Pip will return changed, but alive. I think many of us can relate to that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
warning: the second half of this book WILL destroy you. unless you're a psychopath or something idk.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Rape
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I loved all of the twists in this book. It was a great ending to the trilogy and ties up a lot of loose ends. I like how it shows Pip struggling mentally with her past cases and seems realistic in that sense. It also shows how broken the justice system can be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Torture, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder
dark
funny
informative
mysterious
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The entire series is for sure 5 stars. I had to keep taking moments of appreciation for the plot and how well it was strung together.
What a brilliant ending. Jackson is seriously a genius, how a person created such an intricate plot with so many twists, turns and connections is beyond me. It’s such a fascinating and thrilling read. I consumed this book in one sitting because WOW.
For this novel, I loved Pip’s darkness and the entire plot. The middle to the end wigged me out but I saw it’s necessity. Personally,the ending was great but fuck me TWO YEARS, I wished we had more adorable Ravi and Pip content. They’re amazing. I wish we got to see an ending but I like that I can believe all is well in the end
Another thing I liked about what this novel slightly hints at is the justice system and the issue of victim-blaming. The quote “They always got away with it. Him. Max Hastings. Above the law because the law was wrong. A legion of dead girls and dead-eyed girls left behind them” sums it up quite nicely.
This books dives into heavy stuff and definitely isn’t for the faint of heart. But the read (and the series) are truely exceptional and it really does come “full circle”
What a brilliant ending. Jackson is seriously a genius, how a person created such an intricate plot with so many twists, turns and connections is beyond me. It’s such a fascinating and thrilling read. I consumed this book in one sitting because WOW.
For this novel, I loved Pip’s darkness and the entire plot. The middle to the end wigged me out but I saw it’s necessity. Personally,
Another thing I liked about what this novel slightly hints at is the justice system and the issue of victim-blaming. The quote “They always got away with it. Him. Max Hastings. Above the law because the law was wrong. A legion of dead girls and dead-eyed girls left behind them” sums it up quite nicely.
This books dives into heavy stuff and definitely isn’t for the faint of heart. But the read (and the series) are truely exceptional and it really does come “full circle”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Misogyny, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Cursing