Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Hidden Pictures: A Novel by Jason Rekulak

87 reviews

k_a_t_y's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Blood, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Drug abuse, Addiction, Death of parent, Drug use, Death, and Murder

Minor: Infertility

imanin10's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Drug use, Addiction, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Murder, Gun violence, and Kidnapping

wytnie's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

5.0

I really liked this book and didn't see one specific part of the ending coming! having the pictures that Teddy drew was a super nice touch and I would definitely read more from this author!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Car accident, Child death, Grief, Infertility, Kidnapping, Death, Stalking, Addiction, Gaslighting, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Mental illness, and Murder

niclantsov's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.75

 This book devoid of logic

The first 70%ish of this book was actually intriguing, I was so pumped on how the story goes, but everything went downhill from that. The ending feels rushed and devoid of logic. I'm disappointed, I actually looking forward liking this book, because it got me hooked on the first hundred pages. This book was also interactive with the illustrations from the character's drawing, and it was very graphic 100% gave me the fright!

There was one scene from this book that was so preposterous and it was my last straw, like you couldn't even justify it: the character thought a baby powder was a heroin, that was my 13th reasons why.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, Death, Blood, and Drug use

Moderate: Trafficking and Transphobia

kathywoo10's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Drug abuse, Addiction, Drug use, and Murder

Moderate: Stalking, Infertility, Classism, Blood, Deadnaming, Dementia, Kidnapping, Racism, and Transphobia

savreads28's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Stalking, Drug use, Alcohol, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Confinement, Blood, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Racism, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Violence, Dementia, Torture, Car accident, and Drug abuse

leechspit's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Just like Teddy, this story is made with a wild imagination steering us through all kinds of twists. I could not put this book down. The beginning of the book is a great set up. We meet Mallory, a recovering addict who needs a fresh start in life. With the help of her Wonder sponsor, she becomes the new live in nanny for a sweet child, Teddy, who has a weird habit of drawing these grotesque pictures. I will say, the first part of the story got in my head to the point where I needed to read something different because I got a little jumpy. Then right when you think everything is going to be predictable, the story takes a sharp left. I was stunned. I went from being incredibly scared to incredibly sad, and maybe a little angry. An absolute thriller I couldn't put down. Incredible art to compliment the complex mystery, every horror and thriller fan should read this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use

Minor: Blood and Violence

This book could use a TW for implied transphobia

markedwithanm's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Addiction, Car accident, Drug use, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Murder

jennabeck13's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)

Genre: Thriller

About 370 pages

Mallory Quinn is a recovering addict who has spent the past two years desperately trying to turn her life around. So when she gets the chance to be a live-in nanny for a picture-perfect family in a quaint New Jersey suburb, she is determined to excel in the position. She gets along great with Teddy, the young boy in the family, and the job seems to be going well. Until one day, she notices some of Teddy’s drawings are a bit disturbing. They show what looks to be a murder… Combining the drawings with a story she heard from a crazy neighbor, Mallory begins to wonder if the house is haunted and if a ghost is using Teddy to communicate its story. She’s not sure how to approach this with the parents as she worries they will think it’s related to her prior drug use, so she sets out independently to figure out what is going on.

WOW. THIS BOOK IS INSANE. I’ve had this on my shelf for a few months but was so nervous to read it because of all the good things I’d heard and was afraid it wouldn’t live up to my expectations, but holy cow, it exceeded them. I won’t go into details for fear of spoiling. But this book was chilling, twisted, and engaging from beginning to end. Rekulak did a terrific job at character development and creating a super eerie setting. I also loved the inclusion of the drawings throughout, so this is definitely one that I recommend picking up a physical copy.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Violence, Abandonment, Blood, Gun violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Trafficking, Child abuse, Death, and Medical content

caityg22's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Murder, and Gun violence

Moderate: Death, Drug use, Kidnapping, Blood, and Gaslighting