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hollywobble's review
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
syringaflower's review against another edition
2.0
2,5*, It's a little confusing at times.
This is what happens when you have a great premise, and a terrible execution.
A good 70% of this novel is descriptions of different kind of alcohol and drugs being taken, and the occasional change of place. And, I mean that quite literally. It's like reading the same scene over and over, just with the characters getting more and more ... odd.
Odd is the word. Because neither of them seem to make any sense. Or have much depth.
I mourn for what this book could have been. Violet could have been so much more. Carrie could have been anything but a drunkard. Literally anything. Please.
At some point in the book I was rooting for Violet to just start offing them all. But she didn't. Pity. Little V here deserved better. A better book, that is.
After some reconsidering and time to overthink the plot, I am taking off yet another star. +1 star for the premise of Violet and her character, and +1 for the writing style. I can see this author has a great voice.
This is what happens when you have a great premise, and a terrible execution.
A good 70% of this novel is descriptions of different kind of alcohol and drugs being taken, and the occasional change of place. And, I mean that quite literally. It's like reading the same scene over and over, just with the characters getting more and more ... odd.
Odd is the word. Because neither of them seem to make any sense. Or have much depth.
I mourn for what this book could have been. Violet could have been so much more. Carrie could have been anything but a drunkard. Literally anything. Please.
At some point in the book I was rooting for Violet to just start offing them all. But she didn't. Pity. Little V here deserved better. A better book, that is.
After some reconsidering and time to overthink the plot, I am taking off yet another star. +1 star for the premise of Violet and her character, and +1 for the writing style. I can see this author has a great voice.
debtat2's review against another edition
4.0
An unsettling psychological journey that goes to prove every parent right – Never talk to strangers!
Carrie and Violet, two very different women, each traveling alone, both for very different reasons, both with one thing in common. Neither wants to remain alone as they board the Trans-Siberian Express.
Thrown together by chance, traveling forward on their journey together by choice, the story follows the pair of women as they venture on to the train as they continue on the journey Carrie had all planned for her and her best friend.
Told from alternative perspectives of Carrie and Violet and emails between Carrie and her friend who missed out on the trip of a life time due to a broken leg, this is a slow paced read, but one packed with a profound, subtle rise in tension page by page as secrets are revealed, their true characters come to light as the two strangers get closer and each women’s own agenda reveals its self.
You may think that you know where this story is heading but as things start to turn form drunken revelry to dangerously toxic the craftsmanship of the writing and the ingenuity of the plot will have you hurtling through the pages as fast as the Trans-Siberian Express hurtles the women across the country.
If you are a fan of psychological and nerve tingling intrigue reads you are in for a real treat with this one!
Carrie and Violet, two very different women, each traveling alone, both for very different reasons, both with one thing in common. Neither wants to remain alone as they board the Trans-Siberian Express.
Thrown together by chance, traveling forward on their journey together by choice, the story follows the pair of women as they venture on to the train as they continue on the journey Carrie had all planned for her and her best friend.
Told from alternative perspectives of Carrie and Violet and emails between Carrie and her friend who missed out on the trip of a life time due to a broken leg, this is a slow paced read, but one packed with a profound, subtle rise in tension page by page as secrets are revealed, their true characters come to light as the two strangers get closer and each women’s own agenda reveals its self.
You may think that you know where this story is heading but as things start to turn form drunken revelry to dangerously toxic the craftsmanship of the writing and the ingenuity of the plot will have you hurtling through the pages as fast as the Trans-Siberian Express hurtles the women across the country.
If you are a fan of psychological and nerve tingling intrigue reads you are in for a real treat with this one!
heybadcat's review against another edition
4.0
Liked it, bur I could have gone without the last 30 pages
calturner's review against another edition
5.0
As someone who has loved all of SJI Holliday’s previous books I had high hopes for this one - and oh wow, it did not disappoint! A superb psychological thriller that captures your imagination from the very first page, Violet is the story of two young women who meet by chance and decide to go travelling together.
Told from the point of view of the title character, Violet it is a fast paced and tense thriller with plenty of twists and turns along the way. You’re not sure who to trust from the very beginning, with the tension increasing with every page as you race through the book, never quite knowing what to expect next.
A cautionary tale of being careful of who you trust when travelling alone - and maybe not joining forces with a random stranger and putting your life in their hands!
A chilling and intriguing read, with a denouement I did not see coming! Highly recommended.
Thank you to TBC and the author for my copy of this fabulous book. I’m now also part of the blog tour for Violet, so look out for my full and expanded review which will be posted on my blog in November.
Told from the point of view of the title character, Violet it is a fast paced and tense thriller with plenty of twists and turns along the way. You’re not sure who to trust from the very beginning, with the tension increasing with every page as you race through the book, never quite knowing what to expect next.
A cautionary tale of being careful of who you trust when travelling alone - and maybe not joining forces with a random stranger and putting your life in their hands!
A chilling and intriguing read, with a denouement I did not see coming! Highly recommended.
Thank you to TBC and the author for my copy of this fabulous book. I’m now also part of the blog tour for Violet, so look out for my full and expanded review which will be posted on my blog in November.
livres_de_bloss's review against another edition
4.0
There’s quite a lot packed into such a small book. This was tense, creepy, and gave me such a creeping sense of dread.
nickymaund's review against another edition
5.0
This is one hell of a twisted, disturbed, dark and gripping ride as you’re following Violet and her new friend Carrie on their trip across the Trans-Siberian Express. There were so many twists and turns in this book you literally ignore all the horrible things going on inside Violet’s mind (and the things she does) so you can find out what happens next. Interspersed with Violet’s viewpoint you’re also shown emails sent from Carrie to her best friend and family back home, showing you glimpses that all is not seen with Carrie. Loved it!
zimb0's review against another edition
4.0
This novel is a very slow burn. But it picks up in the second half and builds to a fantastic conclusion.
This has to be adapted into a film.
This has to be adapted into a film.
kellyvandamme's review against another edition
5.0
If you look at it purely as entertainment, Violet is oodles of fun: it’s super entertaining, it’s suspenseful, it has some fun little twists that managed to simultaneously fool me and make a fool out of me, because there I was, convinced I was soooo clever, seeing things coming, while actually I was following a red herring and things turned out quite differently.
On a deeper level though, Violet is dark and disturbing and I got a little uncomfortable reading it because of the plausibility of it all. It scared me a little, even without a bathtub ghost! Violet puts the psychological in psychological thriller by presenting us with a main character that has more than one screw loose but manages to hide that fact masterfully and succeeds in fooling everyone around her, including the reader and sometimes even herself. She’s a human chameleon and no one sees through it. I went from being convinced that she’s just a poor albeit a little manipulative girl down on her luck to fearing that she had actual sociopathic tendencies. And that’s just Violet. Then there’s Carrie. What exactly is she trying to drown in buckets of booze?
Layer by layer is peeled away until we end up somewhere completely different from where we started out and I am in complete awe of Susi Holliday’s writing, contained, understated, clever. I was fascinated and afraid in equal measure, both feelings amplified by the filmic quality of the novel. Between the setting on the train on the one hand and the rather desolate accommodations on the other, and the flashbacks to memories temporarily lost in drug and alcohol induced stupors, this would make a brilliant film! As it is, the vivid, yet never overly descriptive, imagery allowed this whole story to play out before my mind’s eye without any effort from me.
When a story rings true the way Violet does, it’s usually a combination of great imagination and personal experience. Therefore, it came as no surprise that the author has been on the Trans-Siberian Express herself and made a train journey not unlike Violet and Carrie’s (but with less drama and toxicity, I’d assume). If you’d like to know more, check out Susi’s blog where she’s been sharing photos of the trip she took in 2006. I’ve never been to these parts of the world and I’ve been having fun with Susi’s photos, comparing reality to the images I had in mind while reading, and it’s testament to Susi’s writing skills that my mental pictures closely resemble her photos.
Violet is a gorgeous book, inside and out. Whether you’re a fan of psychological thrillers, you love reading about backpacking adventures gone wrong, or you’re just looking for your next great read, I highly recommend you pick up Violet!
On a deeper level though, Violet is dark and disturbing and I got a little uncomfortable reading it because of the plausibility of it all. It scared me a little, even without a bathtub ghost! Violet puts the psychological in psychological thriller by presenting us with a main character that has more than one screw loose but manages to hide that fact masterfully and succeeds in fooling everyone around her, including the reader and sometimes even herself. She’s a human chameleon and no one sees through it. I went from being convinced that she’s just a poor albeit a little manipulative girl down on her luck to fearing that she had actual sociopathic tendencies. And that’s just Violet. Then there’s Carrie. What exactly is she trying to drown in buckets of booze?
Layer by layer is peeled away until we end up somewhere completely different from where we started out and I am in complete awe of Susi Holliday’s writing, contained, understated, clever. I was fascinated and afraid in equal measure, both feelings amplified by the filmic quality of the novel. Between the setting on the train on the one hand and the rather desolate accommodations on the other, and the flashbacks to memories temporarily lost in drug and alcohol induced stupors, this would make a brilliant film! As it is, the vivid, yet never overly descriptive, imagery allowed this whole story to play out before my mind’s eye without any effort from me.
When a story rings true the way Violet does, it’s usually a combination of great imagination and personal experience. Therefore, it came as no surprise that the author has been on the Trans-Siberian Express herself and made a train journey not unlike Violet and Carrie’s (but with less drama and toxicity, I’d assume). If you’d like to know more, check out Susi’s blog where she’s been sharing photos of the trip she took in 2006. I’ve never been to these parts of the world and I’ve been having fun with Susi’s photos, comparing reality to the images I had in mind while reading, and it’s testament to Susi’s writing skills that my mental pictures closely resemble her photos.
Violet is a gorgeous book, inside and out. Whether you’re a fan of psychological thrillers, you love reading about backpacking adventures gone wrong, or you’re just looking for your next great read, I highly recommend you pick up Violet!
maisie_x's review against another edition
4.0
About a girl called Violet travelling solo after splitting up with her boyfriend. She meets a girl called Carrie in Beijing and they agree to travel onwards together. They both have troubled lives which we learn more about. However Violet turns out to be not who she says she is and develops an obsession with Carrie which nearly causes her death. It’s a great read and really keeps you guessing (and makes you want to travel!) Loved how the ending was so shocking and I definitely didn’t see it coming.