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Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Miscarriage, Kidnapping
Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Abandonment
It’s a very sad story which leaves you wondering how anyone will find out the truth. I found empathy for Ellie, she really didn’t deserve what happened to her. I wish the tutor wasn’t so callous, but I understood the reasoning behind her shitty behavior. There are many women in this world who are exactly like the tutor, so she was the most believable character for me. As was Ellie. She was just a child, with her whole life ahead of her, as so many real children are. I feel for these two characters the most, as I felt like I spent the most time with them.
With that being said, Floyd could have been written better. It felt like shit was just happening to him and he was just accepting it. The only time he really stood up for himself was when he
I wish we had spent more time with Laurel finding out what a shit mom she’d been and making amends with her children, even Ellie. I hated the tutor explaining things to the reader. We’ve established she’s an unreliable narrator, so there could have been a second pov for certain events. I also wish we spent more time with the sister and how she started dating her boyfriend. That would’ve been a nice plot point instead of breezing past it:
The ending, I felt, was rushed. We don’t spend too long on everyone’s emotions or sitting with them as they learn the truth of what happened to their family member.
Overall, the book was an emotional letdown. I was expecting more emotionally from the characters given the nature of the story.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Confinement, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Pregnancy
Minor: Animal death, Miscarriage
Graphic: Child abuse, Kidnapping
Moderate: Child death, Sexual assault
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Pregnancy, Abandonment
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Stalking
Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy
Minor: Medical content
This book was incredibly traumatic to read as a mother and as a woman. Starting with the Noelle's perspective where she explains meeting Floyd. She was clearly falling in love with him and this man found her attractive 'enough' but not really. At first it was clear he only wanted sex even though she was a Virgin at an old age. Any intelligent man could see she was interested in more. I am not at all sympathizing with her but his actions led her to do some crazy things just to "keep" him so to speak.
Next there of course is the kidnapping of ellie. A bright young girl who just wanted to pass her exams and graduate with her boyfriend at the time. She was kidnapped and for a long time didn't even know why. Then suddenly this teenager was pregnant, forced to have the baby with no medication in a filthy basement where she eventually passed away dreaming of her mother. As a mom these are some of my deepest fears, not to mention that she was so close to home and never found. If you have read this far into my reveiw and still want to read this book, you have been warned.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy