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3.96 AVERAGE
3.96 AVERAGE
dark
tense
medium-paced
Great book but if you are squeamish, be prepared. I listened to the audio version which was well done but brought a certain reality to the very graphic scenes of violence. I literally gagged multiple times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder
This was far darker than I expected 😳 I did enjoy it but it felt like you knew all the answers from the beginning and there were very few other possibilities. It was also far too long, could have wrapped this up in 350 pages
dark
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Rape, Suicide, Torture, Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Gun violence, Vomit
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I feel as though Ms Slaughter wrote this with an eye to selling the film rights. The plot would work for a movie or TV mini-series. However, the more thorough treatment of a novel gives too much time for the audience to see the transparency of and inconsistencies in the plot.
The entire plot becomes bleeding obvious in Chapter 5. The only question is why the heroine, Claire, can't see it. She
From Chapter 6 on, I skimmed to see if the plot really was that obvious. It was. The only twist I didn't guess was that
I was glad I was skimming, because there was far too much gruesome description. Some reviewers have labelled it torture porn and I think they have a point. Nasty.
Maybe the author wanted to highlight the existence of such monsters preying on young women, but IMO she went way over the top.
The entire plot becomes bleeding obvious in Chapter 5. The only question is why the heroine, Claire, can't see it. She
Spoiler
finds large numbers of 'snuff porn' videos on her husband's computer, which she takes to the local detective. He hurriedly dismisses the idea that one of the victims is a missing teenager who's currently in the news (strange, since Claire didn't say she was), is very quick to declare the videos are fake although they clearly are not--and then grills her anxiously about whether she has really handed it all in. Obviously, both he and the husband are part of a larger "snuff porn" ring. It's also easy to predict that Claire and Lydia will reconcile and end up investigating the ring together (why else would we get chapters in Lydia's POV?)From Chapter 6 on, I skimmed to see if the plot really was that obvious. It was. The only twist I didn't guess was that
Spoiler
the husband was still alive. This beggared belief because the opening scene shows him dying in Claire's arms, so you think she'd have noticed he wasn't actually dead.I was glad I was skimming, because there was far too much gruesome description. Some reviewers have labelled it torture porn and I think they have a point. Nasty.
Maybe the author wanted to highlight the existence of such monsters preying on young women, but IMO she went way over the top.
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Blood, Murder