Reviews

Stags by M.A. Bennett

bookishbarnowl's review against another edition

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4.0

Now I know what BoJo, Rees-Mogg and their Tory mates got up to in their youth. Huntin', shootin' and fishin'. It sure would explain a lot.

I enjoyed the plot of this YA novel. I do think the writing could have been better in places. I found the mention of films to be a lazy storytelling device that took me out of the story. It happened too much and I would have preferred a description of what was going on. Nonetheless, it was a fun read.

jochristina's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes

3.75

cosybookcorner's review against another edition

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4.0

3.75 maybe? I need to think about this and then decide on my rating!

janaybrazier's review against another edition

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3.0

This is more of a 3.5 than a 3. I read the whole book in one day, mostly because I was sunbathing in the garden and read almost 200 pages while I tanned. I liked the idea this book and there were a lot of twists and turns that were surprising and interesting. It works well as a thriller but nothing particularly thrilling happens until around the halfway mark. The opening spends a lot of time setting up the situation and the people before getting into the twists of the story.

hannadekoning2001's review against another edition

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4.0

4.5 stars

This book was so good!
It started of really strongly (and the Dutch translation was very well done) and I was immediately extremely intrigued. The whole 'creepy school' setting definitely spoke to me.
During their stay at Longcross, the story went a little downhill for me, but then the action came back almost immediately.
And the ending (aahhhh) I won't say anything else because I wouldn't want to spoil you.

GO READ IT! (It's amazing)

cathbennett's review against another edition

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medium-paced

4.25

emmanovella's review against another edition

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3.0

2.75. I have thoughts

EDIT: SUN 14 JAN. I've been horrific at updating with blog links to full reviews or indeed adding a review if I haven't posted one on my blog but I'm just laughing at "I have thoughts"

FULL REVIEW ON BLOG: https://www.emmanovella.co.uk/blog/review-stags-by-ma-bennett

alongreader's review against another edition

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4.0

This is an excellent novel, with strong, believable protagonists and creepy, confusing antagonists - by 'confusing' I mean you're never quite sure if they're really bad, up until about thirty pages from the end. I swung back and forth several times between 'they're definitely evil' and 'it's a misunderstanding'.

However, as several people have noticed, it doesn't end so much as stop. I don't know if there's a sequel or series planned, but this was not a good ending for the book, leaving me with a very flat feeling after such a good read. It's a shame, but I would certainly lock up a second one to find out what happens, so maybe it was a very clever move by the author!

Not my top book of the year, but very near the top.

ashnicter's review against another edition

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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

2.25