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3.23 AVERAGE
3.23 AVERAGE
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
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
mysterious
medium-paced
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A modern day homage to Murder on the Orient Express. Well, kinda.
A writer orchestrates a real life train trip where her main character along with her family in friends are throw into a twisty plot.
It's a slow burn, character driven mystery told from multiple points of view and multiple timelines. I am always up for a little Ms. Christie.
Extremely slow burns are not my favorite type of book so it took me a while to really get invested in this one. It is quite layered and complex but there is a payout at the end.
If slow burn mysteries with unlikable characters are up your alley, you need to check this one out.
A writer orchestrates a real life train trip where her main character along with her family in friends are throw into a twisty plot.
It's a slow burn, character driven mystery told from multiple points of view and multiple timelines. I am always up for a little Ms. Christie.
Extremely slow burns are not my favorite type of book so it took me a while to really get invested in this one. It is quite layered and complex but there is a payout at the end.
If slow burn mysteries with unlikable characters are up your alley, you need to check this one out.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If your main focus when reading is setting and plot, you’ll like this. If you main focus is figuring out twists or enjoying characters inner monologue, that is the book weak spots.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content
I just couldn’t get into it. Rushed pace of introducing characters, who were immediately unlikeable. I didn’t pick it up for three days; that was the sign.
dark
tense
slow-paced
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
Unfortunately, this book dragged for me, and that took away the allure of the plot and overall story. And I felt the ending kind of came out of left field - you think the story wraps up, and then you get a few more random chapters that were a little scandalous, but just not needed. I appreciated the author's note at the end, and how she developed Ansel's character using her own father's experiences - as someone who is very close with their own father, I thought that was a very touching and beautiful tribute as to the trials and tribulations he went through as he was growing up. But outside of that, I remember just feeling like this book was a chore to pick up. I've stated this some of my other 2 star reviews, but I just don't DNF - however, if I did, this would have been a contender for doing so. In addition to the unnecessarily long storyline, one of the characters were likable, so not being able to root for anyone also put a damper on the reading experience. Speaking of the characters, there were way too many for what this plot was trying to accomplish. One pro - the way the author describes the setting(s) was done well. It seemed well researched, or maybe she pulled from experience - either way, it worked.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Abortion