Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Stone Cold Fox by Rachel Koller Croft

8 reviews

amanda_reads13's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Bea is a femme fatale who targets rich men just like her mother taught her. She's on track marry Colin, a man from a very rich and influential family. She's so close to achieving everything she wants, but Colin's best friend Gale could ruin everything.

This book immediately hooked me. It is so dramatic, over the top, and chaotic. There a few good twists in this book, some that I saw coming, but a few that caught me by surprise. 

You shouldn't like Bea, she's not a good person. Yet, I found myself rooting for her throughout the book. She's literally telling you all the horrible things she has done in the past and what she plans to do in the future, but you want her to succeed. I like the way that it jumped between Bea's present and her past. I think seeing what she went through in her childhood and her messed up relationship with her mother, made me more empathetic towards her and helped me to understand the person she became.

She truly wanted to be different from her mother, but she knew no other way to do that than to scam and manipulate her way to the top.

The ending was a let down for me,

I was really hoping for some kind of showdown between her and her mother, but it was pretty lackluster. I get that the author is trying to put us in the headspace of Bea, on edge never knowing when her mother will strike in the future. But the ending is unsatisfactory for the reader. I wonder if it's being left open-ended for a sequel? A book from her sisters point of view about hunting down the mother could be interesting.

I really enjoyed the audio version of this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Toxic relationship

faduma's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Alcohol, Physical abuse, and Child abuse

Minor: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

hbrown00's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Classism, Toxic relationship, Stalking, and Body shaming

Minor: Pregnancy, Murder, Death, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment

ciwanski's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

The writing in this book was air tight. I felt like the plausibility of circumstances fell a little bit in the last chunk of the book, but crazy, manic women always need deniable plausibility, right?

Definitely a book with morally grey characters, and killer dialogue. 

A favorite line of mine from the book goes, “The afternoon tea was in full swing with canapés and caviar and cunty behavior.” Like so true bestie.

Fans of Gone Girl and other “good for her” media should definitely pick this book up. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pregnancy, Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Eating disorder, Pedophilia, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, Alcohol, Drug use, Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Classism

arireadsitall's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I love a con woman/unreliable narrator with a dark past!!! Bea is so unlikeable but I found myself wanted her to succeed and also terrified of “mother”! A solid cat and mouse kind of thriller!! And a perfect thriller for people that don’t like scary but do like shady!!

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Content Warnings

Minor: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, and Murder

sarahsbookstacks's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Death, Violence, and Abandonment

syellico's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Classism, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Body shaming, and Murder

katiemack's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love reading about cold, calculating women who successfully manipulate men. Rachel Koller Craft establishes a strong opening to Bea's story, as Bea has already clawed her way into a wealthy family's graces by way of dating the oblivious Collin. The narrative zips along quickly, and it's easy to cheer for Bea and her ambitions, but some of the threads and the payoff feel too easily attainable or don't get resolved well. (The ending feels particularly elusive.) Regardless, it's a fun way to pass the time, especially for those looking for something like The Talented Mr. Ripley. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment and Child abuse

Minor: Sexual assault