You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
2.73 AVERAGE
2.73 AVERAGE
The Vaccaro School for young girls stands surrounded by encroaching ice in the Patagonian region of Argentina. For Mavi, a young woman on the run from the military government who captured her mother, the school is a chance to start anew anonymously. However, the school is rumoured to be cursed by the Zapuche people whose lands it was built on. Soon enough Mavi, witnesses disturbing paranormal phenomena and the students and the staff start acting strangely and wasting away under her very eyes.
I really enjoyed the gothic atmosphere and there were some truly scary supernatural scenes in there. However, I feel like the depiction of the Zapuche/Mapuche contained harmful stereotypes. Like most readers, I wasn’t a fan of the big plot twist at the end. However, I have to compliment the author on her originality—I would have never seen THAT coming in a million years! ⭐⭐⭐
I really enjoyed the gothic atmosphere and there were some truly scary supernatural scenes in there. However, I feel like the depiction of the Zapuche/Mapuche contained harmful stereotypes. Like most readers, I wasn’t a fan of the big plot twist at the end. However, I have to compliment the author on her originality—I would have never seen THAT coming in a million years! ⭐⭐⭐
I found this to be very middle of the road. There wasn't much that stood out, and I didn't love the whole twist ending.
This book was super good. I was like sucked into the story when I thought that Angel had died and I was like woah creepy and ya know was following that storyline. Then when there was that major plot twist I was even more sucked in and I just could not stop listening to the book. Also this was an audiobook!
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This will be a tricky review without spoiling too much. It is told in two points of view. One is Mavi, a young Argentinian woman who is hiding from the government due to her mother’s political actions. She accepts a job at a super creepy boarding school out in the middle of nowhere. The second point of view is an Other, named Angel, who is hiding from his past as well. It reads like a gothic novel for the first part and then towards the end there is a big twist. I was confused for a lot of the book, trying to figure out what the crap was happening with time line and setting. The writing is beautiful. It has the creepy ghost factor going for it as well as possessions and other weird things. There are lots of big swears, some gross violence and the twist really shows the disgusting underbelly of humanity including those who would harm children. 16 and up.
I have never read a book so confusing that wasn’t a text book.
Also, I skipped to the end to see what the twist and I have never been more upset about an ending.
Also, I skipped to the end to see what the twist and I have never been more upset about an ending.
NB: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review.
I originally picked this up because it was being billed as a creepy gothic thriller "simmering in Patagonian myth", which is normally right up my alley, bookwise. I love thillers, love creepy gothic tales, love absolutely anything based on mythology. I was envisioning a creepy haunted house and deliciously slow-building suspense leading up to a (purportedly) shocking twist at the climax, and I don't know anything about Patagonian mythology, so I was hoping for a bit of an education to boot. The Tenth Girl just did not deliver on any of these points.
WARNING: Spoilers to follow!
For me, part of what makes a really excellent thriller or gothic novel is the slow build-up of tension and dread over the course of the narrative, but every time I really started to get into the feel of doom and despair, the narrator would switch and it just totally threw me out of the mood. While Mavi has no clue what is going on, which should have lent really well to the ratcheting up of tension of the course of the novel, it's obvious that Angel does, but is all sly allusions and vague references, and just as I would really get into Mavi's feelings of urgency and dread and paranoia, the narrative would then switch to Angel's POV only to break the tension, and then tiresomely retread half the information I'd just gotten from Mavi's POV. This style of storytelling seriously detracted from the overall mood I was hoping for from this title, and I would have put this book on my DNF list if I hadn't had to finish it to write this review.
I'll admit the "twist you'll never see coming" I actually did not see coming, but only because it was Completely Ridiculous. It turns out that Mavi is actually an NPC in a full-immersion VR game created by Angel's mother before she died. Angel manages to free her and the other characters from the game by helping them download themselves into the bodies of the other players, a fact which totally squicked me out. I was even more bothered by the fact that I was apparently suppose to feel happy that Angel had managed to create a new family for himself by this method (they all show up on his doorstep at the end of the book). Taking away other peoples' agency is Not Okay, whatever your tragic backstory.
I originally picked this up because it was being billed as a creepy gothic thriller "simmering in Patagonian myth", which is normally right up my alley, bookwise. I love thillers, love creepy gothic tales, love absolutely anything based on mythology. I was envisioning a creepy haunted house and deliciously slow-building suspense leading up to a (purportedly) shocking twist at the climax, and I don't know anything about Patagonian mythology, so I was hoping for a bit of an education to boot. The Tenth Girl just did not deliver on any of these points.
WARNING: Spoilers to follow!
For me, part of what makes a really excellent thriller or gothic novel is the slow build-up of tension and dread over the course of the narrative, but every time I really started to get into the feel of doom and despair, the narrator would switch and it just totally threw me out of the mood. While Mavi has no clue what is going on, which should have lent really well to the ratcheting up of tension of the course of the novel, it's obvious that Angel does, but is all sly allusions and vague references, and just as I would really get into Mavi's feelings of urgency and dread and paranoia, the narrative would then switch to Angel's POV only to break the tension, and then tiresomely retread half the information I'd just gotten from Mavi's POV. This style of storytelling seriously detracted from the overall mood I was hoping for from this title, and I would have put this book on my DNF list if I hadn't had to finish it to write this review.
I'll admit the "twist you'll never see coming" I actually did not see coming, but only because it was Completely Ridiculous. It turns out that Mavi is actually an NPC in a full-immersion VR game created by Angel's mother before she died. Angel manages to free her and the other characters from the game by helping them download themselves into the bodies of the other players, a fact which totally squicked me out. I was even more bothered by the fact that I was apparently suppose to feel happy that Angel had managed to create a new family for himself by this method (they all show up on his doorstep at the end of the book). Taking away other peoples' agency is Not Okay, whatever your tragic backstory.
DNF on p. 34
I’m confused about what’s going on and bored while reading. It sounded interesting but not for me.
I’m confused about what’s going on and bored while reading. It sounded interesting but not for me.
Very reminiscent of one of my favorite books when I was young called “Heir Apparent.” I won’t say what tv series it also reminds me of, but I suspect it got some criticism for the similarities. I really look forward to more releases from this author.