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ldruckreier's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Confinement, and Torture
cinderellasbookshelf's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
3.5
An unnamed narrator, who sometimes goes by “Tobias,” and his wife, Millicent, have led a fairly normal life in their well-to-do neighborhood raising their two children, Rory and Jenna. The only excitement they feed off of each other however, is that they kill people. And this isn’t the first time they have done this.
The single POV narration gave me Joe Goldberg/You vibes. It was eerie how he thought and processed things so calmly, along with some occasional frustrations when it’s related to his children’s growing pains. Even the way he and Millicent would plot or talk about the murders was unsettling. It kind of reminded me of the two characters from Alfred Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt who would casually talk about how they would kill each other, except Millicent and Tobias’s actual plans felt more disturbing. You can feel the violent undertones even though most of the action happens off page and is only referenced in news reports.
Compared to other thrillers, this is less action heavy and is more focused on Tobias’s life than the actual murders. The suspense is beneath the surface where the underlying tension that brews from domesticity and its mundanity brings up a magnitude of questions: who is your spouse, what are they doing when you’re not together, who are your children, are they the way they are because of you? And the bigger question, how did I get here?
I’m kind of torn between if I liked the book overall or not. I liked the concept and how it’s different from most thrillers, but I also wanted it to have more punch because after a while there is only so much about a person’s daily home life you can take. It was a page turner though.
Minor: Child abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Stalking, and Suicide
nickoliver's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Kidnapping, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Stalking, and Fatphobia
Moderate: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture
Minor: Alcohol, Car accident, Gun violence, and Sexual content
moonwaterotter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
All said, I did mostly enjoy it. I had an actually wtf moment halfway through the book and it was the biggest highlight for me.
And now here’s a list of my thoughts that is FULL of spoilers.
I immediately knew that Millicent was the “evil sister” growing up and waiting for the main character to realize that was absolutely agonizing.
I literally said “what the f-uck” out loud whenever they announced that Trista killed herself. Like at this point, I thought maybe she had helped Owen in the past (and maybe she did honestly who knows) but that’s not what I was expecting.
I also figured out Millicent was poisoning Jenna almost immediately. I thought the book was going to climax with Millicent saying she had kidnapped and killed all of the women because she was an Owen fan-girl and that she and Owen were going to murder Jenna together or something.
I thought Kekona was going to be the third victim and the cops were going to catch him at her house or something. I also thought the descriptions of Kekona were a bit strange and didn’t really sit right with me. (As well as the description of Trista’s sister at the funeral.)
I think it’s pretty fucked that the main character never tells Andy that he KNOWS WHY his wife killed herself.
The ending is cheeky but I wish they both died, not just Millicent.
Graphic: Suicide, Kidnapping, Cursing, Physical abuse, Violence, Murder, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Stalking, Torture, Car accident, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
nirellis's review against another edition
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Toxic relationship and Violence
oliverreeds's review
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Alcohol, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Infidelity, Torture, and Violence
dannybrown59's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Kidnapping, and Torture
mysterymom40's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Kidnapping and Torture
Minor: Infidelity and Suicide
klaine_shipper63's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Stalking, Torture, and Murder
Moderate: Death, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Child abuse
Minor: Car accident, Death of parent, Dementia, and Blood
word_wandering's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Murder and Kidnapping
Minor: Torture, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Gun violence