Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing

18 reviews

bootsmom3's review against another edition

dark slow-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Murder

Moderate: Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, and Gun violence

readingisforhotgirls's review

dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.25

omg this was very tense and very compelling right from the get go. at the start, i began to realise how much potential it had for a layered storyline and lots of plot twists, and my expectations were somewhat met? i found myself getting bored throughout the middle. but holy shit, it has a super twisted and crazy ending, making it more enjoyable overall. the actual murders aren’t really the main focus of the book, which is what i was expecting. it isn’t very gruesome or gory compared to other thriller/mystery/crime books. also a certain niche in books i love is where the protagonist is unnamed, it adds a whole new element of interest for some reason! i’d say this book is well thought out enough, but it could’ve gone even deeper on a psychological level and had a more tightly woven plotline with more believability.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, and Torture

Moderate: Infidelity, Violence, and Mental illness

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Stalking

katelynprice's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

I loved this book! The first-person POV was too perfect, and I love that we never know the narrator's true name. I get that some of the details are a bit of a stretch, but I was able to suspend my disbelief and enjoy the ride. I'm super excited to read more from this author. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Vomit

brittneyw9's review

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Mental illness, Murder, Self harm, Suicide, and Torture

aleesquer's review

adventurous tense 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

3.75

Man: I love my wife so much she's so cool and sexy and I would murder people to see her smile
Anyone: so you would be honest to her about like. Basic things then?
Man: no ❤

Pros:

• the characters actually have to deal with being parents, rather than just having kids be in the background
• the relationship between Unnamed Man and Millicent is unexpected and really interesting
• less gore than I expected (this could also be a con, I guess, it depends on the reader)

Cons:

• miscommunication is way too common for it not to be annoying
  Bro, you and your wife kill people together. Would it hurt you to be honest about your credit card payments??
• I didn't actually like the ending? Yes, M is a bad person, obviously, but she clearly wanted the whole "2.5 kids picket fence" thing. Why would she mess that up on purpose? I get her throwing Unnamed Man under the bus to save her skin, but poisoning her kid?
• Unnamed Man cheating seems stupid when 1- it is almost certain she would find out, which he knows, and 2- he's head over heels in love with his wife (which is actually one of the things I enjoyed most about the book)
• Not enough info on Holly, imo

All in all, an enjoyable read! The dynamic between the two main characters was really interesting, and I'm excited to see what Samantha Downing writes in the future. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Stalking, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Dementia, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Alcohol

riella_reads's review against another edition

dark informative mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Violence, Mental illness, and Child abuse

sophieduncan's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Torture, Mental illness, and Forced institutionalization

kristenm's review

dark tense slow-paced

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

1.75

Aside from the disturbing story (which is not edgy), this book has pacing issues and generally too many plot holes. Also why doesn't the main character have a name? It's frustrating. He and Millicent are bland suburban parents and this book reads much the same. The sub-plots are uninteresting and the twist was mishandled and given no real attention or weight. Honestly a huge pass. Women don't exist just to be murdered.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture

Moderate: Misogyny and Mental illness