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daybreakreads's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
This is what I get for skimming reviews before reading…I was under the impression when I started the audiobook that the narrator is the killer because someone had used “serial killer” and “autobiography” in a review (it’s hard for me to keep names straight when I begin an audiobook, so I kept waiting for the big revelation that never was.)
No. The story is told from a fictionalized version of the author’s childhood, but in a way that feels like a true crime novel. The author is an innocent observer and bystander in his hometown during a summer where a (fictional) serial killer is attacking women in the night.
I must say, confusion aside, I enjoyed this. It has mixed reviews, but the storytelling was so compelling it was difficult to put down. I also appreciated that it wasn’t overly or unnecessarily graphic. The worst it gets is a brief description of some injuries (but as far as the SA stuff goes, it literally just said, “the body had been SA-ed” and nothing more). I was worried that it would be grotesque (I had to DNF “The Chestnut Man” by Soren Sveistrup and Stephen King’s “The Outsiders” for unnecessarily graphic descriptions of corpses) but thankfully that was not the case.
Eventually the killer is caught decades later, and the author includes the “interview” he has with him. Apparently the physical book has staged photos that were included — I think that would’ve added to the experience.
I’m tempted to reread it now that I know where my confusion was, but I rather enjoyed it regardless.
No. The story is told from a fictionalized version of the author’s childhood, but in a way that feels like a true crime novel. The author is an innocent observer and bystander in his hometown during a summer where a (fictional) serial killer is attacking women in the night.
I must say, confusion aside, I enjoyed this. It has mixed reviews, but the storytelling was so compelling it was difficult to put down. I also appreciated that it wasn’t overly or unnecessarily graphic. The worst it gets is a brief description of some injuries (but as far as the SA stuff goes, it literally just said, “the body had been SA-ed” and nothing more). I was worried that it would be grotesque (I had to DNF “The Chestnut Man” by Soren Sveistrup and Stephen King’s “The Outsiders” for unnecessarily graphic descriptions of corpses) but thankfully that was not the case.
Eventually the killer is caught decades later, and the author includes the “interview” he has with him. Apparently the physical book has staged photos that were included — I think that would’ve added to the experience.
I’m tempted to reread it now that I know where my confusion was, but I rather enjoyed it regardless.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Suicide
caffeinated_library's review against another edition
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Animal death, Sexual harassment, Death, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Death of parent
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