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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
This is confronting and loud. I loved it and will always remember the way it made me feel.
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Wow, this had moments of sheer brilliance. Such an interesting narrative surrounding hurt people hurting people. Trigger warning for sexual assault, but if you can stomach it, it’s quite powerful.
Wasn’t sure how to rate this but I’m going with my gut and giving it to stars. I know so many people that love this book and consider it a favorite read but for me not so much. There are numerous moments in this book that are extremely powerful that really resonated with me as a woman. My main issue with this book was the format. I felt that I could not fully grasp the complete storyline. I feel as though I missed quite a bit because I was having trouble with it. I do think that this is definitely a me thing and that if it interests you you should definitely read it. in the story, we are following the victims of a male rapist, and all of the horrific and traumatic things that happened to them. It is definitely a book that talks about the society, norms, and how we handle rape victims and it’s very eye-opening. However, I think that as a woman it wasn’t as shocking to me, as perhaps, a man if he had read the book.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I could not stop reading this! It was so beautifully written, very poetic. I also love a book that’s written through multiple mediums, like emails, articles, text messages, journal entries, etc. This was a beautiful and powerful story. My only problem with it was that the ending was so abrupt.
Unlike any book I have ever read. Very deep, very abstract. Definitely makes you think. Trigger Warning: sexual assault (graphic at times). You will either love it or hate it.
The audiobook is a masterpiece.
The audiobook is a masterpiece.
No offense. But this wasn't good at all. I feel like the way it's written makes the book so confusing and hard to follow. Perhaps it worked in some areas of the book (i.e. when it comes to these men's feelings and inner thoughts after they're assaulted) but the whole book being written like one long drawn out poem just didn't work for me.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
OVERALL RATING: 7.3/10 -> 3.75 stars on StoryGraph.
Characters: 6
It’s easy to sympathize with the survivors, but I couldn’t confidently claim that I got them fully because the stories jump from one story to another a little too prematurely. The hasty narrative changes also omit many details of them trying to settle into their “new lives”, which would have made me invest in them more.
It’s also a shame that I didn’t care for or find the predator fascinating at all, which is a huge minus, especially with her role of being the backbone.
Setting/Theme: 9
The book spotlights many prevalent social issues, such as the fetishizing of violent crime, the public scrutiny and unfair treatment of survivors, how male victims are more inclined to hide because of more societal pressure, how factors like race and sexual identity affect public perception of the survivors, etc. Even though the book doesn’t provide a concrete statement to fight back against any of these issues, I still appreciate the author’s way of featuring and handling them throughout.
Writing Style: 9
I love her experimentation with various presenting styles, which makes the stories feel poetic and vulnerable at times. Although there are still some misses, I’d say she nails the best way to bring this story concept and all of its meat to life.
Plot: 6
Similar to my main critique of the characters, the scattering of plot points robs this story of any momentum/progress.
Additionally, I understand and totally respect the decision to end with an accurate reflection of most of these cases in real life . However, I believe that there exists an option where she didn’t have to force everything to solve itself for the sake of a happy ending while providing the story some much-needed closure.
Logic: 7
The most obvious elephant in the room is how the FBI or whatever fails to get hold of at least some breadcrumbs of a clue to who the predator is. For more than a decade . Sounds impractical to me.
Also, I didn’t spend this much time on the book just to take pure randomness as the predator’s motivation to hurt these men. Like, not even a pattern in why she chose them instead of other men .
Intrigue/Enjoyment: 7
Despite the heavy themes and the lack of cohesion, this book is surprisingly such a light breeze to get through. However, the downside is that it doesn’t leave as strong of an impact as I anticipated.
Dnf 22%
The writing isn't bad, nor is the storytelling but the subject matter is not my cup. I felt absolutely awful and just couldn't continue.
The writing isn't bad, nor is the storytelling but the subject matter is not my cup. I felt absolutely awful and just couldn't continue.