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hannahschaef's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Moderate: Fatphobia
Minor: Xenophobia
andloveistoolong's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Blood, Death, Suicide, Alcohol, Misogyny, Chronic illness, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Violence
Minor: Dementia, Pregnancy, Rape, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia
rieviolet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Each chapter switches between quite a lot of point of views (to be honest, maybe too many). This certainly helps to keep the narration interesting and varied but, at the same time, it does not allow to explore the characters in depth and it can become a bit confusing to keep track of everyone and every storyline.
I think that the book relies a bit too much on the characters' "quirky" traits and, even though this makes the narration funny enough, it can come across as somehow overdone.
I'm not really sure about the mystery part of the story, it did make sense
(sort of) but at the same time it felt a bit convoluted, maybe too much twists and turns towards the very end of the story?
All in all, a nice and quick read but I don't think I'll continue with the series.
Graphic: Murder and Suicide
Moderate: Dementia, Trafficking, Death, Terminal illness, Sexism, Violence, Fatphobia, Blood, Grief, and Gun violence
Minor: Police brutality, Xenophobia, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail
prism_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.25
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Misogyny, Grief, Suicide, Murder, and Dementia
Minor: Xenophobia
imreads's review against another edition
- 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? No
2.25
I enjoyed the main cast of characters, Ibrahim and Donna, being one of my favourites.
My only main criticisms with the book is
However, I enjoyed the groups friendship and the unlikely friendships along the way.
Graphic: Suicide and Death
Moderate: Alcohol, Grief, Misogyny, Xenophobia, and Dementia
Minor: Racism
There is numerous xenophobic statements by one character and misogynistic statements. I wouldn't recommend this book if you can't handle topics of s*icide, misogyny, xenophobia/racism and death.therobinjoyce's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.25
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Dementia, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, and Xenophobia
lkbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Dementia, Murder, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Chronic illness, Death, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Alcohol, Fatphobia, Sexism, Body shaming, Misogyny, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Miscarriage and Animal death
happylilfaerie's review against another edition
4.5
The parts that dealt with death and grief tugged on your heartstrings, and were perfectly balanced with the lighthearted and comedic bits. The plot was great and there were so many twists, it kept me engaged as I came up with theories and was constantly happily surprised with the reveals and the way the plot progressed.
The worldbuilding was wonderful, Osman painted such a vivid picture of the retirement village and the lives of the residents there, it felt so cozy and lovely.
I have been so frustrated with many (both classic and modern) mystery books that are constantly recommended (coughAgathaChristiecough...) that are filled with racism, sexism and all kinds of bigotry that makes the story un-ejoyable. I DNF'd 3 books in a row before hesitantly starting this one, thinking I should give up on this genre all together - in my opinion it did the bare minimum (no being bigoted is apparently very difficult) but I suppose compared to its colleagues it deserves a small applause.
The interview with the author at the end of the audio version of the book had the refer to himself as "left wing", he talked about class struggles and how that impacted his writing, that made me like the book a lot more as it meant parts and themes that I liked were a conscious effort and not a coincidence. I like the way he handled it all whilst still ensuring the book stays a fun light read.
Moderate: Dementia, Grief, Death, and Suicide
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Racism, and Xenophobia
grtwrrn's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Terminal illness
Minor: Xenophobia