Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell

50 reviews

laurxndx's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Murder, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence

maekay's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I found this book really underwhelming and the ending really disappointing. I felt like the plot

had so much unnecessary abuse, of both the children and the women/disabled father

and the ending

was super rushed and tied everything up in neat bow, despite the fact two of the children committed willful murder and the other two apparently conveniently forgot about the baby

. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence

iamfullybooked_'s review against another edition

mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

When Libby turns 25 she discovers that she has inherited a mansion that sits along the River Thames. The house belonged to her birth parents who were found dead, in what looked like a suicide pact, when she was just 10 months old. Libby now has a whole bunch of family secrets & lies to uncover and two siblings to find who have been deemed ‘missing’ since their parents were found 24 years before! 

This book was brilliant! It’s the first Lisa Jewell I have read but I loved it so I’m going to have to pick up some others! I could not put this down it was so gripping! There were so many twists and turns that just when I thought I had figured something out the story took a whole new path!! Definitely recommend if you love a thriller!!!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder

Minor: Suicide and Domestic abuse

eve_leclercracine's review against another edition

mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

This was my third Lisa Jewell book, and although I didn’t enjoy it as much as the first one I read by her, I did enjoy it a world over the last one I read.
Once again, the multiple narrators/points of view is always interesting and keeps us guessing and the short chapters are always nice and keep us reading.
I just found the plot to be a bit out there and near the end it got extra convoluted for no particular reason.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Murder and Domestic abuse

alexxm13's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

this book is a rollercoaster with all these characters and sometimes difficult to remember as so much is happening and goes back and forth between characters to timeline and can be confusing, also david who is 40 having the ding dong with two 14 year olds and making them pregnant disgusts me and this is why i hate men also with henry and phin i was cheering on with their relationship but then it turned out henry is obsessive and a creep with phin and just wanting to kill him as phin impregnated henry’s sister lucy and to give birth to libby. i feel bad for libby as she was just a baby in which all 4 children/teens abandoned to cover up the murder henry did to his parents and david by drugging them. what seemed like a cult/suicide mission turned out to be a murder by a 16 year old and help of other teens in the house after being trapped for 2 years. i thought it was a good story and twists and turns but the structure of it was too confusing for my to keep hold of.

lisa jewel another jem of a book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, and Violence

asourceoffiction's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This is a brilliant story with such an engaging mystery at its heart. From the outset we're introduced to three very separate storylines whose connection becomes clearer, but with an awful lot of twists and turns. It is a little confusing, with a lot of characters, but done in the right way that my curiosity was piqued. Small mysteries are slowly unraveled but questions remain, and there are a few gasp-out-loud moments as we learn more about the strange house in Cheyne Walk and its inhabitants. 

During the last few chapters I was frequently surprised; I was constantly second-guessing or changing my theories right through the conclusion (which left me just intrigued enough to crave the next installment). I think I read this at the perfect speed to immerse myself in the characters but without getting too confused or overwhelmed by the sheer amount of plot! But I loved it, and I can't wait for the sequel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Death, Physical abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Suicide

hannahgough's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Gore, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Rape, Murder, and Pedophilia

sadhbhdunne's review against another edition

dark hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Torture, and Toxic relationship

utelylivin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

This one wasn't really a "thrilling" to me, but I liked how the story jumped between the perspectives of multiple narrators. It kept me interested to keep going. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Suicide, Rape, Pedophilia, Miscarriage, Emotional abuse, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Blood, Cancer, and Child death

mollreads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, and Sexual assault

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Suicide