Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

56 reviews

lyshbish's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

I loved how unique and self-aware the protagonist's voice was in this novel! It made for a mystery unlike any I've ever read. I thought the twist had good layers to it, but honestly, the book went on too long after the "big reveal" for my taste. I really liked how important family was is this book and how it defines what it means to bw a family. Probably wouldn't reread this one, but I would most likely read a sequel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Addiction, Death, Grief, Infertility, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Suicide, and Child death

Minor: Torture

heather_harrison's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

 "I've never heard of someone witnessing a murder and having to wait for a McMuffin"

This is a book where the narrator is telling you a murder mystery while also writing a book about how to write a murder mystery - and it gives the murder mystery a nice spin. 

The Cunninghams are spending a weekend at a ski resort as a family reunion. But it's sure to be an interesting reunion as our protagonist Ernie hasn't seen his big brother since he testified to have him put in jail. They all have a pretty colourful past and the further you delve into the mystery the more you start to learn about those skeletons in closest. 

This is almost like a combination of Knives Out and Underbelly. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Child death, Murder, and Death of parent

Minor: Violence, Grief, Suicide, Gun violence, and Drug abuse

brookey8888's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed this!! I just loved the way it was told. It was so engaging and funny. The mystery was honestly whatever, but one part did make me gasp because I didn’t see it coming. I can see how this might not be for everyone, but I enjoyed my time reading this. The audiobook is really good as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Child death, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Torture, Violence, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Vomit, Murder, and Grief

passionatereader78's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

This was a fun mystery! The author's notes gave me mixed feelings. I like the Murder mystery. The family secrets reveal was great. I enjoyed the serial killer aspect and in the end everything was tied up with a pretty bow. Enjoyable whodunit!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death of parent, and Death

Moderate: Kidnapping, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, and Infertility

Minor: Child death and Grief

saramoser's review against another edition

dark funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

A new take on golden age thrillers, classic whodunnit murder mysteries, and an ode to the “10 commandments of detective fiction” by Ronald Knox. This was a fun, witty read that kept me on my toes, never expecting what the next twist might be, and definitely unable to guess the ending. 

Listened on audiobook, the narrator was easy to understand and fun to listen to.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Kidnapping, Drug use, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Blood, Child death, Drug abuse, Infertility, Medical content, Addiction, Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Violence

questingnotcoasting's review

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

This was very entertaining. The narrator breaks the fourth wall and it's kind of a deconstruction of all the classic mystery tropes. I found it really clever, especially having read a lot of Agatha Christie. The mystery itself was intriguing and I found the resolution satisfying but I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much without the unusual narrative structure. There's a sequel coming out later this year and I'm quite interested to see how Stevenson will approach it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child death, Kidnapping, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, and Suicide

Moderate: Drug abuse, Addiction, Grief, and Infidelity

random_reader's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, Child death, Death, Violence, Murder, Suicide, Death of parent, and Grief

Minor: Vomit, Drug abuse, Infertility, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Alcohol, Cursing, Addiction, and Infidelity

mnek's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, and Violence

Minor: Mental illness, Vomit, Drug abuse, Addiction, Grief, Infertility, and Suicide

nightingale25's review

challenging dark funny informative mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Suicide, Murder, Child abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Addiction, Drug abuse, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Medical content, Grief, Child death, Mental illness, and Torture

cartridgepink's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Great book. I was having so much fun I stopped trying to work out the mystery and just enjoyed reading instead. (I did work it out anyway but that's not the point.) Funny, layered without being overly convoluted, great characters, and a satisfying mystery to boot.

Last year I went to a Melb Writers Festival event where Ben was a speaker. I hadn't read the book but was a fan of him + his brother's musical comedy. Panel goes well, Ben cracks jokes all the way through, then they open it up to Q&A and an elderly lady in the front row says, "Are you actually a comedian?" Honestly as brutal as some of the murders in the book. Gotta respect it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Vomit, Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Blood, Body horror, Suicide, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Blood, Car accident, Medical content, and Infertility

Minor: Pregnancy and Emotional abuse