Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - The Next Girl

Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

lifeofchrstnlvly's review

dark mysterious sad tense slow-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

2.0

This book is a straightforward procedural thriller.

It took me some time to finish it due to a lack of compelling tension. Although the stakes were high with a life on the line, the plot revealed the victim's situation while the protagonist, DI Gina Harte, was still trying to solve the case. As a result, I, the reader, was merely waiting for the protagonist to catch up with what I already knew. The question was not 'what will happen?' but 'when and how will the villain be caught?' This aspect dulled the suspense and made me less inclined to pick up the book.

However, DI Gina Harte, the protagonist, was a well-developed character. Even though her personal backstory didn't profoundly affect me, I could understand her because her character was thoroughly explored.

I'm undecided about continuing with the series. I might consider reading the second book in the future, but if it follows the same format, I may not pursue the entire series.

Also, to be honest, Harte was a bit.. dumb for a DI. She actually didn't solve the case in this book. All the pieces just fell into place: she didn't find the victim, someone else did. She didn't take down the perpetrator. Someone else did.

Content Warnings

sianynicole's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Enjoyable gritty read. Good mix of character and plot focus. Multiple points of view but not so many as to be boring, and they progressed the story well. Kept me guessing as to who the suspect was. I enjoyed Gina and will look into reading some more of the series. Also, poor Brooke!

Content Warnings

sarahaupt's review

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

tinasparane's review

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

3.7 stars.

The average Goodreads rating is 3.90 based on 15,653 ratings.

This book was incredibly disturbing; it made me feel physically ill and sick to my stomach. I acquired it for free on StuddYourKindle day, following a TikTok recommendation. However, I was unprepared for the criminal-thriller theme.

Despite the book having a happy ending, I can't shake the feeling that there wouldn't be anything happy if we were to follow the characters further. I'm left pondering the psychiatric diagnosis of one particular side character.

Content Warnings

jesstwidle's review

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

randiwhaley's review

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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? No

5.0

The book is so captivating from the start!

Content Warnings

shinararose's review

Go to review page

challenging dark mysterious 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? Yes

3.0

I fully admit this book took me a minute to get in to. There are a couple of reasons my first read of 2024 only gets 3 stars :( I had forgotten it was set in England so the slang was hard to read as a Canadian girly. The title doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. Was Debbie the next girl? Or is it referring to Florence/isobel? The quote made more sense once you read the flash back. I wish we could’ve seen more of Jeff’s reaction to drowning Debbie but I liked how the fisherman saved her.

I also really liked Gina’s character development. The author showed a lot of honesty in how she was just trying to make it through the day. Hannah though deserves a bit of a smack. Like I get you idolized him but how can you not see your mother’s feelings about it? Bit selfish of her. I hope they repair things in the next book.

Not sure how I feel about the interoffice “situationship” but I think they have a great group of characters to follow through the novels. Curious to continue the series and see if they explore the others in more detail

Content Warnings

elliphant's review

Go to review page

dark sad tense slow-paced

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

2.75

The theme and storytelling were at times really dark and disturbing.

The pace, writing, and dialogue were a bit awkward and, at worst, repetitive and cringey.

I don’t know what the descriptions meant with “heart-stopping twist” cause there certainly wasn’t any.

Content Warnings