Reviews with content warning for Child death - Hidden Pictures

I really liked this book and didn't see one specific part of the ending coming! having the pictures that Teddy drew was a super nice touch and I would definitely read more from this author!

Content Warnings

cnannery19's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

jtlarowe's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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ladypuercoloco's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I got into this one way more than I expected to - not sure why I chose it/how I came by it until I realized it fulfilled a Kindle Challenge requirement for a Goodreads pick. I read horror/mysteries/thrillers all the time and honestly the blurb sounded a bit familiar to me, but as I got into the book I realized this one really stands out from other nanny horror books I've read. The supernatural aspects are really well done

"Anya" being the mother was mind-blowing! I liked the red herring of the mid-century murder plot that wasn't a murder...So many twists and turns came as surprises but even though I marked this spoiler and I seriously doubt anyone cares to read my reviews just in case I won't give more away.

. Having known a few addicts in various stages of use/recovery I really liked the future that was laid out for Mallory and the amount of work she was willing to put in. This one was a pleasant early January surprise that will be hopefully setting the pace for the year - I LOVE being surprised by plot twists I really don't see coming!

Content Warnings

xabbeylongx's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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? Yes

5.0

Spoilers Ahead:

This book is definitely one of my favourites. I was not expecting the ending, and I don’t think I’ve ever read a book like it before. 5 stars for definite, and would totally recommend it for anyone who likes mystery, thriller or horror books.

We follow Mallory as she’s fresh out of rehab and trying to reinvent herself. She was TW addicted to Oxytocin and Heroin, after being prescribed them as a result of her being in a car accident. She survived, but her sister didn’t, and she couldn’t bear the hurt and the guilt she felt - as she hadn’t been looking at the road and that’s what caused the collision - so she took the drugs to numb the pain. Her sponsor, Russel, gives her the opportunity to babysit for a child, and said it would be a really good experience for her. The family is said to have worked a lot with recovering addicts, so would know exactly how to treat her.

She goes for the interview, and Caroline - who is the mother - treats her with so much respect, more than she’s ever got, and she almost cries. Teddy - the little boy - is quiet, but loves drawing. It takes a while for him to warm up to her, but by the end of the interview and the tour, it’s clear he loves her. Ted - the father - isn’t quite so fond. He doesn’t want a drug addict near his child, and gives her a grilling, and then they send her home because they need to have a discussion about it. When Mallory calls Russel later, saying she thinks she hasn’t got the job, he tells her she has indeed, and that they love her already.

She moves into the Maxwell’s house, into a cottage that’s at the end of the garden. They give her very strict rules which she has to follow, and she’s very happy to accept. She’s going to look after Teddy whilst Caroline and Ted are at work, but still live on-site afterwards.

Immediately things are a bit weird. She is hearing things walking outside her cottage, footsteps. There’s a tapping on her windows that she tries to ignore, telling herself it’s the trees, but she knows deep down it isn’t. When Teddy goes for ‘quiet time’ (time for both Teddy and Mallory to spend alone and do things themselves) she can hear him talking to someone. He has an imaginary friend called Anya, and he knows she isn’t real, but he talks to her like she’s actually conversing with him. Mallory is concerned, especially when Teddy starts drawing some pictures that look incredibly suspicious, and really good, like he’s being possessed by someone who is drawing for them to see.

She brings it up to Caroline and Ted, who starts to get a little annoyed at the fact that she’s saying that their son is being possessed by his imaginary friends. He draws photos for Mallory only, and tells her not to show his parents, but she does because they’re so alarming, and he isn’t allowed to draw or talk about Anya again.

Their neighbour, Mitzi, is a psychic but also a user of TW drugs, so although Mallory is forbidden from taking to her, she asks for her help in using an ouija board. When the board spells out letters that are just a jumble, they thinks it’s a bust, and Mitzi tells her to not bother her again.

Adrian, who cuts the grass, becomes fast friends with Mallory, even though she lies to him about her past. He’s a bit put off when he finds out, but he gets used to it, and the eventually try to figure out the paranormal mystery together.

After falling asleep and being taken over by Anya, she draws all over the walls and then is fired. She’s allowed to stay on the premises, but when her sponsor comes to collect her, she must leave.

Mitzy is then found dead, and Mallory is so worried about it. They find out the letters from the ouija board are actually a different language, and that all the pictures make a story - Anya’s story, to be exact - and they find out that Caroline and Ted aren’t who they say they are.

The man in one of the photos that Teddy drew is actually Ted, and he’s burying Anya, who is actually Teddy’s mum. However, Teddy isn’t really his name; he’s actually biologically born a girl, called Flora. Anya was painting in the forest and was neglecting Flora, who ran off into the forest, and Caroline was going to give her back, but then got into an altercation with Anya, and she ended up having a seizure and eventually passed. Ted hid the body, and then they moved away, changed Flora to Teddy, and pretended as if Flora was their own.

Upon finding this out, Mallory finds out that they’re in danger, and Caroline ties her up. Ted tries to help her out, as he’s always had feelings for her, and he thinks she returns the favour (he’s delusional) and she doesn’t know how to get out, so lans to double-cross him. Caroline returns, and he tries to overpower her, and he ends up getting shot, but that gives her enough time to fetch Teddy, and run away.

Teddy is in shock, so it’s hard to get him to run, and they end up climbing up a tree, but Caroline finds them. Luckily, the police turn up not long after, but Teddy gets down and starts to attack Caroline, after Anya has taken over his body one last time. Mallory knows it is to protect her, so she takes the fall for Teddy. Caroline and Ted both end up dead, but mallory gets let off for self-defence. In the end, her and Adrian get together, Teddy becomes Flora and she is returned to her father, and although Mallory tries to stay in contact, she knows it would be more helpful for Flora if she would move on from it.

I loved this book so much; it’s nothing like I have ever read before. I think it’s extremely hard to find a horror book that’s up to my expectations, I don’t know why, it’s just super hard. However, this book exceeded all expectations, and then went beyond them as well. The descriptions of the characters, the setting, just the plot itself, everything was so beautifully written and everything I could ever want in a book.

I was quite a big fan of Mallory. A big, big fan of her. I love the authenticity of her, she’s not trying to be someone she’s not, she’s trying to better herself and prove herself, and be the best version of herself, and I love that. I love that she has flaws, and I love that she learns that she shouldn’t be embarrassed about her past, but that it makes her who she is.

Honestly, I would be less surprised if I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet than I was when I finished this book. I was completely flabbergasted but the end, but not in a way that makes it seem unbelievable, if that makes sense? Like this kind of plot, had it been written any other way, could have been extremely unrealistic and unreadable. It was bordering that way anyway, but I think it’s such an interesting concept that it kept me gripped.

I had a suspicious feeling that it would actually be Adrian. I was so convinced it would be him. I was trying to figure out where he would fit in. I did also suspect the Maxwells, but it wasn’t as big as it was for Adrian; I was almost certain!

I must admit, no matter how good this book is, there are a few things that do confuse me. The experiment that she undergoes that ‘never happened’…. What was that about? I don’t know if it was explained, like maybe it was a memory of the hospital after the crash, or maybe it was, indeed, just a falsified memory from the TW drugs, but I think it needs to be made clearer. That’s quite an interesting storyline, so maybe there might be another book that explains that, but I hope - for Mallory’s sake - that is not the case. I just think it would have been a really cool storyline to explore. Especially as we’re introduced to it from the start, so that’s the thing that people will mostly remember from the book.

Also, there were a few moments where something was explained about Adrian, and I thought they’d actually known each other for a while. I don’t know what gave me that impression, I just think they reacted to seeing each other like they would if someone had seen someone they used to go to school with, and I was a bit confused for a little part of it. Other than that, I would highly recommend this book to absolutely anyone who would listen!

Content Warnings

c100's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense 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

3.75

Content Warnings

kwashington's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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