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glutenfreemaggie's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Death, Stalking, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Cursing, Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic relationship, and Violence
mfrisk's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Murder, Death, Violence, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Alcoholism, Car accident, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Body horror, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Self harm, Blood, and Grief
Minor: Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and Suicide
trycerabel's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Grief, Incest, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Murder, Stalking, Blood, Body horror, Death, and Physical abuse
iamnita's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.25
Graphic: Stalking, Violence, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Pedophilia and Drug abuse
sdevine's review against another edition
- 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
1.0
The ending was dumb, the characters were dumb and hollow and felt so ridiculously unrealistic (and maybe that’s because I’m an American and maybe things are just different in an English university settings but I highly doubt that and it felt like these people were crossing so many boundaries), the fact that this book was split into parts where nothing that deserving it’s own section of a book actually happened was dumb, the side plot with a character from the beginning of the book didn’t make any sense and didn’t contribute to the overall story in any way (it wasn’t even a good red herring) and therefore I’m saying that was dumb, the motive was dumb, the epilogue was dumb, the way Michaelides just casually sprinkled in some trauma (pedophilia, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse) and then a rather large trauma bomb at the end to provide fodder for a motive that still didn’t seem believable without further explanation was dumb, all the women were stupid and the men were “creepy” and “unsettling” which again, was dumb. I did not like this book.
I liked that it was short. That’s about all I can say at this point. Don’t read it, instead read literally any other 300 page book.
Minor: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Pedophilia
jessiebertram's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Blood, Mental illness, Murder, Alcohol, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Body horror, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Child death, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
thenovelbookshelf'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Group psychotherapist, Mariana, is pulled back into Cambridge University, where her neice Zoe is studying, and where, she herself and late husband met.
When one student dies, Mariana is quick to see connections that the police can't. To protect and help Zoe, she agrees to stay and ask questions, after all, asking never harmed anyone, right?
The dazzling Professor Fosca tops Mariana's list. His alibi's should rule him out after the second tragic student death, but both were in the Professor's secret study group and links him even more to the deaths.
Alex Michaelides draws you back into the world of psychotherapy, using Greek myths to disguise what's lurking in the shadows and culminates in a twist.
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Child abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Drug use, Grief, Abandonment, Animal death, Stalking, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Death, Mental illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
allisonwonderlandreads's review
- 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
Mariana is our protagonist, a group therapist that I found to be unreliable but empathetic as narrator, a winning combination in the genre. I personally appreciated her healthy dose of suspicion and was intrigued by the way she interacted with others through a therapist's lens, interpreting behaviors and motivations. Did I doubt every person she interacted with, including her? YES of course I did. So naturally, I was partially correct at the end while also being wildly not correct, which I enjoyed immensely. I appreciate the author for his sleight of hand and the way he manages what I notice as a reader to lead me astray.
The last 10% of the book was a wild ride. At first, I was irritated at where I thought the big reveal was headed and started to adjust my expectations for the finale and the book as a whole (thrillers more than any other genre hinge on the ending for me in terms of how I feel towards it). Luckily, I was being tricked ~again~ and a quick shift left me surprised and much more satisfied.
I was impressed by the range of the audiobook narrator with sinister interludes from the serial killer's perspective from a different voice actor. I liked the way this obscured his identity by separating the main performance from the way his writings were read, i.e. I wasn't able to match voices to guess who he is.
Finally, I loved the unexpected The Silent Patient tie-in, a brief easter egg that was clever and enjoyable while remaining subtle enough to not detract from the reading experience if you aren't familiar with the author's other book.
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Self harm, Stalking, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Minor: Death of parent, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Infertility, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
kylajaynebooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Violence, and Toxic relationship
alomie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Some of the "origin stories" were a bit harrowing, and it's not easy going in that respect, however, as we are trying to understand the motives of a serial killer it makes sense contextually. These messed up childhoods absolutely might create a serial killer.
Kept me guessing right to the end and was actually quite gripping.
Found this to be a slow start but really picked up in the third act and personally I could have done with a bit more pace, potentially this is an audio-book issue rather than a book issue. I liked it overall but I don't think I would go back to it.
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Mental illness, and Injury/Injury detail
Warning Re the Dog