Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M. Matlin

6 reviews

lucyford's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Once the book picked up after the first hundred pages or so, it was excellent. I really could not have predicted all the turns it took, specifically at the end of the book, but it all fit together and everything was explained logically. It feels very original, and I honestly loved the twist at the end

(the carbon monoxide poisoning

). I will say the first part of the book was dull at parts, but I did like how it picked up pretty incrementally, and the end made it worth it. I am however still a bit confused about

the neighborhood in general and how they acted towards the main character (idk whether to call her Sarah or Lizzy at this point) unless it’s clear that it was also just hallucinations, and also what left Reaper all bloodied on the brink of death

. Anyway, solid horror book and great story!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Addiction, Murder, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Violence, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Body horror, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Vomit, and Grief

Minor: Gaslighting, Police brutality, Bullying, Fatphobia, Abandonment, Body shaming, Cursing, and Stalking

walenchao's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, and Stalking

Minor: Vomit

louiepotterbook's review

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

2.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Death, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Mental illness, and Murder

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Gaslighting

Minor: Infidelity and Death of parent

maregred's review

dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Murder, and Death

Moderate: Vomit, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Gaslighting, and Suicide

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Grief, and Death of parent

theinstabookworm's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

THE GOOD: This cover is STUNNING. 😍 I also didn't see the twist at the beginning of part two coming, and that was where the story really picked up for me.

THE BAD: It took a while for me to get into the story because there is a marriage in trouble trope that caused awkward tension between the characters from the jump. The author writes Australian phrases and slang in the book, but there is no glossary, so if you aren't Australian, you'll have to Google the words and phrases you don't understand. Also, why is animal poisoning becoming a thing in thrillers?! I hate it. It took me four days to read this because there was too much build-up in part one. There were also many plot holes throughout the book. I didn't love the big reveal and feel like things were tied up a bit too neatly at the end. I wanted it to be a bit more sinister. 

Favourite quote: "Don't be afraid of the truth. Be afraid of believing your lies."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Death of parent, Suicide, Vomit, Eating disorder, Drug abuse, and Animal cruelty

sohma4uesugi's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

2.5

Unsettling 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Violence, Alcoholism, Death, Alcohol, and Death of parent