Scan barcode
the_sunken_library's review against another edition
3.0
A story about myth and mental health.
I found this readable and compelling, all except for the bit where she manages to get a job using a false identity yet travel out of the country (travel her new employer had booked for her!!) and get paid using her actual identity. Too dumb for me. I also feel the horror aspects could have been pushed much further but did find The Sad Lady descriptions unsettling. The reveal at the end was a bit flat sadly. Lots of build up and information dumping with very little pay off. And the final part of the story - nah mate, don't believe that would happen.
Starting to wonder why I gave it 3 stars now
I found this readable and compelling, all except for the bit where she manages to get a job using a false identity yet travel out of the country (travel her new employer had booked for her!!) and get paid using her actual identity. Too dumb for me. I also feel the horror aspects could have been pushed much further but did find The Sad Lady descriptions unsettling. The reveal at the end was a bit flat sadly. Lots of build up and information dumping with very little pay off. And the final part of the story - nah mate, don't believe that would happen.
Starting to wonder why I gave it 3 stars now
jessicas_bookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
3.75
justinkhchen's review against another edition
2.0
2 stars
Wasted potential. The Nesting has intriguing elements, notably the inclusion of Nordic folklore, and an underlying message of Nature retaliating against human's undoing; unfortunately these are weighed down by a silly domestic melodrama disguising itself as a dark Gothic thriller.
I'm baffled by thriller's obsession with incompetent female protagonist; do readers actually find this exploitation appealing? It was excruciating suffering through Lexi's constant 'my mind is drawing a blank,' 'I shouldn't have said that,' 'words come out of my mouth before I can stop them,'— can we for once have a heroine who is actually capable of being a functional human? The rest of the cast doesn't fare much better, comes across as a bunch of self-loathing, entitled middle class with unconvincing intent and motivation.
I was drawn to The Nesting mainly for its architecture subplot, which turned out to be unintentionally laughable. The book makes constant claims its architect character is designing an 'environmentally friendly' dream house, but the design is literally drilling into a cliff and suspending a house on the edge — a millionaire's fancy cottage, perhaps, preserving the environment it is not, no matter how many solar panels that author claims is slapped on top. C.J. Cooke mentioned in her Acknowledgments she had architect fact-checked her novel; while I believe the construction details might be realistic, the misunderstanding of sustainable architecture and the 'Architecture (with capital A) has to look cool' approach completely contradicts the book's avocation for environmental preservation.
The Nesting has good intention, but very amateurishly assembled, with many subplots simply existing to add pages counts, and an unearned happy ending with all the characters mentally unscathed from the ordeal. No need to rush to this one unless you have absolutely nothing to read.
**Winterween 2021 Prompts: Winter Setting / Blue Cover**
Wasted potential. The Nesting has intriguing elements, notably the inclusion of Nordic folklore, and an underlying message of Nature retaliating against human's undoing; unfortunately these are weighed down by a silly domestic melodrama disguising itself as a dark Gothic thriller.
I'm baffled by thriller's obsession with incompetent female protagonist; do readers actually find this exploitation appealing? It was excruciating suffering through Lexi's constant 'my mind is drawing a blank,' 'I shouldn't have said that,' 'words come out of my mouth before I can stop them,'— can we for once have a heroine who is actually capable of being a functional human? The rest of the cast doesn't fare much better, comes across as a bunch of self-loathing, entitled middle class with unconvincing intent and motivation.
I was drawn to The Nesting mainly for its architecture subplot, which turned out to be unintentionally laughable. The book makes constant claims its architect character is designing an 'environmentally friendly' dream house, but the design is literally drilling into a cliff and suspending a house on the edge — a millionaire's fancy cottage, perhaps, preserving the environment it is not, no matter how many solar panels that author claims is slapped on top. C.J. Cooke mentioned in her Acknowledgments she had architect fact-checked her novel; while I believe the construction details might be realistic, the misunderstanding of sustainable architecture and the 'Architecture (with capital A) has to look cool' approach completely contradicts the book's avocation for environmental preservation.
The Nesting has good intention, but very amateurishly assembled, with many subplots simply existing to add pages counts, and an unearned happy ending with all the characters mentally unscathed from the ordeal. No need to rush to this one unless you have absolutely nothing to read.
**Winterween 2021 Prompts: Winter Setting / Blue Cover**
clioreads_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
hiitsmecassie's review against another edition
4.0
ultimately 3.5 i liked the mystery of the story and i really do enjoy the authors books but i felt the ending was very lackluster and too much happened in the last 30 or so pages
yodamom's review against another edition
A wonderful dark nordic tale, filled with twists and turns.
Creepy forest, creepy river, creepy history, creepy location, creepy dark things lurking, muddy footprints, grabby things, lies, bad omens, dark tales and several mysteries. Yes, it was creepy, dark, and twisted. The setting was amazing, perfect for the tale, Norway’s deep forested Fjords. The children were read Nordic tales, which only added to the creepy level and made me question if it was supernatural or not. The scenery was so intriguing I looked up several places the author wrote about I had to see more of them.
This was my first read from this author. I really liked it, loved the pacing the two time lines and the ending was a shocker. I look forward to reading more from her in the future.
I was gifted a copy of this book for an honest review
Creepy forest, creepy river, creepy history, creepy location, creepy dark things lurking, muddy footprints, grabby things, lies, bad omens, dark tales and several mysteries. Yes, it was creepy, dark, and twisted. The setting was amazing, perfect for the tale, Norway’s deep forested Fjords. The children were read Nordic tales, which only added to the creepy level and made me question if it was supernatural or not. The scenery was so intriguing I looked up several places the author wrote about I had to see more of them.
This was my first read from this author. I really liked it, loved the pacing the two time lines and the ending was a shocker. I look forward to reading more from her in the future.
I was gifted a copy of this book for an honest review
mehsi's review against another edition
5.0
My second book by the writer, it took me a bit longer because some of the characters were just so punchable (I mean I just wish Sophie was a bit more honest, Tom was just such a conflicting character and I am still not sure if I like him, Derry and Clive, LORD, Maren wasn't the easiest). But you know, that also made the book good in a way. If that makes sense. I love that the book is set in Norway and that we are going back and forth. Slowly piecing bit by bit until we get the truth. And in the mean time we get ghosts, elks saying hi and mysteriously disappearing, red herrings, and there is plenty of spooky things happening, I mean, that Sad Lady and her never ending black eyes? Fuck that, I barely slept thanks to that visual. XD I loved how everything came together in the end though I am still scratching my head on that last epic part with x and Sophie. How did they go so far and end up there?
The two kids were adorable.
On to her third book and hopefully I can get her Arctic book soon as well!
The two kids were adorable.
On to her third book and hopefully I can get her Arctic book soon as well!
sarah684's review against another edition
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
charleslim's review against another edition
2.0
Plot holes after plot holes! First of all, how did Lexi pull off one of the most bogus employment scams ever? Didn’t she need some sort of ID verification before being offered a job? Besides, nothing happened in this book except for the last 20 pages or so. Even then, it wasn’t shocking, let alone a twist. How this was even pitched as a thriller baffles me! If it weren’t for the vivid atmospheric elements and folklore, it would have been a one-star read.