Reviews with content warning for Blood - Things We Do in the Dark

Not usually a fan of thrillers but this one was pretty well written for the most part. It has very likable, modern characters without feeling like a parody. Whenever it touches tricky subjects it does it with a lot of tact and nuance, but not in-your-face, which I enjoyed a lot. The ending felt a bit rushed and in retrospect some of the plot lines were unnecessary, but aside from that I can totally recommend it.

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oceanwriter's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

4.5

Though I wouldn't personally call this much of a thriller, Things We Do in the Dark did not disappoint.

When her well-known husband is found dead, Paris Peralta is the obvious suspect. Though she knows she's innocent, she's less worried about the murder charge itself than she is about having her face in the media. This isn't the first time she's been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

With an alternating timeline and POV, we also meet Drew, a true crime podcaster who inevitably comes across Paris' story. We don’t hear as much from his side, but it brings the story together as it alternates from past to present. However, I don't think the book necessarily needed his storyline, either. We don't learn too much about him.

What I enjoyed most were the backstories even though the topics were heavy. Paris and Ruby in particular were well-fleshed out. Where the active thrill is lacking, the characters make up for it. That's not to say there's no element of suspense, only that where a lot of what's being told is in the past tense, we know on some level how things end. The characters made it for me. I enjoyed it a lot.

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sawyernarro's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

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rachelreadsrelentlessly's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

This was really well written, but I did not expect this to be nearly as dark as it was.

I don't feel like the blurb gave any indication of all the child abuse and I was not prepared. It was handled well, in my opinion, but I was not expecting it.

I also felt like the whole setup was just a way to write this tragic backstory and the opening mystery didn't actually impact the story that much.

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hannahga's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

I quite enjoyed the process of reading this book. Chapters were a nice length, it was suspenseful, I cared about the outcome, I thought the characters were interesting, it was a nice length, and it was fairly unique despite having many familiar to the genre elements. It was not groundbreaking and I felt that pretty much all of the twists / secrets coming to light weren't especially shocking. But that's completely fine by me because I still cared about the secrets and fully bought in to the ride I was on. Because it was done well!

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bookswithabbey1's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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martachbc's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.25

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savvyrosereads's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Paris Peralta wakes up covered in blood next to her husband’s dead body, but her arrest threatens to reveal the secrets she has spent years trying to hide.

I read this as part of Love Struck Thrills Book Club and found it to be enjoyable overall. It wasn’t particularly “thrilling” (shoutout to Britni (@bitty_gets_litty on Insta) for characterizing it as a “crime drama” which I think is the best descriptor) but I was generally entertained for the entire book and that does go a long way. The characters were well-written and I thought the writing style was pretty engaging—I’ll definitely be checking out other Hillier novels.

That said, the plot was ultimately pretty predictable and I felt a bit “meh” about this one as a whole—I didn’t actively dislike it, but I wouldn’t quite say I actively liked it, either. Still, if you want a quick (and pretty dark) mystery read, this is probably worth a shot!

Recommended if you like: nonlinear stories with lots of flashbacks; slow burn mysteries; detailed character portraits

CW: Child abuse, including sexual abuse; murder/blood/gore; some discussion of depression/suicide/substance abuse; fire/fire injury.

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