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Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death
Moderate: Death
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Grief, Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Stalking
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death
Mariana is our protagonist, a group therapist that I found to be unreliable but empathetic as narrator, a winning combination in the genre. I personally appreciated her healthy dose of suspicion and was intrigued by the way she interacted with others through a therapist's lens, interpreting behaviors and motivations. Did I doubt every person she interacted with, including her? YES of course I did. So naturally, I was partially correct at the end while also being wildly not correct, which I enjoyed immensely. I appreciate the author for his sleight of hand and the way he manages what I notice as a reader to lead me astray.
The last 10% of the book was a wild ride. At first, I was irritated at where I thought the big reveal was headed and started to adjust my expectations for the finale and the book as a whole (thrillers more than any other genre hinge on the ending for me in terms of how I feel towards it). Luckily, I was being tricked ~again~ and a quick shift left me surprised and much more satisfied.
I was impressed by the range of the audiobook narrator with sinister interludes from the serial killer's perspective from a different voice actor. I liked the way this obscured his identity by separating the main performance from the way his writings were read, i.e. I wasn't able to match voices to guess who he is.
Finally, I loved the unexpected The Silent Patient tie-in, a brief easter egg that was clever and enjoyable while remaining subtle enough to not detract from the reading experience if you aren't familiar with the author's other book.
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Violence, Blood, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder
Moderate: Self harm, Stalking
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Murder
Moderate: Self harm, Sexual violence, Grief, Stalking, Abandonment
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Blood, Suicide attempt
Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Mental illness, Death of parent
Some of the "origin stories" were a bit harrowing, and it's not easy going in that respect, however, as we are trying to understand the motives of a serial killer it makes sense contextually. These messed up childhoods absolutely might create a serial killer.
Kept me guessing right to the end and was actually quite gripping.
Found this to be a slow start but really picked up in the third act and personally I could have done with a bit more pace, potentially this is an audio-book issue rather than a book issue. I liked it overall but I don't think I would go back to it.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Murder
Minor: Self harm, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent