Reviews with content warning for Toxic friendship - Death in the Spires

Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

Death in the Spires by KJ Charles

23 reviews

bear_ridge_tarot's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

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

3.5

It’s 1905. A decade after the unsolved murder of Oxford student Toby Feynsham. The newspapers called the friends the Seven Wonders, but for Jermey Kite it was more than just the lost of his best friend. It was the end of his whole life. So when a mysterious anonymous letter lands on his boss’s desk, Jem sets out to discover what actually happened that night. The pursuit might be more than he can handle when Toby’s killer escalated their attempts to silence Jem. Is it worth it, or is this a secret better kept buried?

As Jem digs into the murder mystery, it becomes clear that only one of the Seven Wonders had any opportunity to commit the crime. Each of them are broken and changed, longing for things that they’ll never have now. And yet, only one was so filled with jealous rage that they killed their friend. The story is told in a series of interlocking flashbacks and present day events that lend the overall story a feel of nostalgia. It’s not quite a dark academia, since the school is just part of the setting, but it is a good read for anyone who likes the genre.

Content Warnings

knittingtipsy's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

A nice twisty mystery. An unsolved murder, a group of friends 10 years later, secrets uncovered. Very atmospheric—great setting at Oxford.

Content Warnings

purrson's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-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

Absolutely loved it. Fantastic main character—stubborn, brave, compassionate—and I appreciated the disability/chronic pain representation. I would have loved some spice to the second-chance romance subplot, but it’s truly a perfect book, and handles turn of the (20th) century queerness (in relationships, as seen by society, its potential weaponization) well. I’m not surprised Charles does murder mystery so well. Just a top-notch read. Kept me guessing and rereading. And it is dark, but not terribly so—there is a lot of love and compassion the main character feels for his friends that uplifts the plot.

Content Warnings

purrson's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-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

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renee_85's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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

4.0

Content Warnings

afternoon_sunshowers's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.25

KJ Charles’ romances always have a lot of plot, and this flipped that to be a mystery with a romance subplot.

The historic setting was fascinating - I know nearly nothing about Oxford and she made it feel both understandable and absolutely foreign. Jem’s dogged pursuit of the truth if only to relieve his being stuck in life was well done, and the multiple timelines were handled well.

The answers to the mystery were well revealed and a satisfying conclusion. I don’t often read mysteries but picked this up because I like KJC’s romances and I’m glad I did, would read more mysteries from her.

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tostita's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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

4.25

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violentlyagitated's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

The only gripe I have about this is that some parts throughout (mostly the first half) felt repetitive just by virtue of Jem having to repeat himself a lot, since he‘s telling the same stories and theories to his old friends one at a time.

What I liked most was the fact that it ended on a hopeful note. Mysteries can so easily feel bleak.

Content Warnings

xandry's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

4.0

Content Warnings

aglassofchardonnay's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

Content Warnings

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