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shostakofish's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book does a fantastic job avoiding those pitfalls. It takes a nuanced look at a killer and the women in his life including those he kills. Every single one is shown as a full human, with their first person perspectives allowing for depth and introspection. Each character is biased in their own realistic ways but the book as a whole takes a determinately neutral stance on the issues it brings up, allowing the reader to form their own opinions on things like male violence, the prison system and death penalty, mental health support, and media for murder.
Graphic: Racism, Sexism, Death, Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Stalking, and Murder
geminireader's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Animal death, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Death, Sexism, Violence, Abandonment, and Misogyny
imogenlj's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Alcoholism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Grief, Murder, Child death, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, Self harm, Drug abuse, Car accident, Death of parent, Racism, and Sexual assault
juliesleseecke's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Blood, Sexual content, Misogyny, Gore, Animal cruelty, Death, Grief, Racism, Sexual assault, Violence, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexism, Vomit, Animal death, Body horror, Murder, Child abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Sexual harassment
saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
A gripping story that dives into the psyche of a killer and the women he impacted. It tackles questions around topics such as law enforcement and the death penalty with complexity. It’s a tragedy that constantly has the reader questioning the inevitability of it all and how should justice actually work.
The character work is the standout. Everyone has such strong motives and richness to them so that the themes aren’t abstract, they’re palpable problems the cast grapples with. A mother who had to destroy her family to save herself, a sister who knows something is wrong, and a police officer trying to create justice in an inherently broken, unjust system.
The choice to tell the killer’s chapters from second person was fascinating. By putting the reader in his shoes, it emphasizes the fact that humans are the ones who commit atrocities, not monsters. This does an exceptional job of making him complex and real while not downplaying any of his horrendous actions. It also makes the questions around justice that much more relevant.
Both empathetic and terrifying, Notes on an Execution surely had me making odd faces as I listened to the ending in public. No one aware that I was listening to something so mind bending.
Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Grief, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Sexism, Police brutality, Hate crime, and Racism
haileyeh's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Confinement, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Death, Murder, Stalking, Violence, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Animal cruelty, Medical trauma, and Grief
Moderate: Medical content, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Car accident, Child death, Racism, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content
Minor: Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Vomit, Alcoholism, Islamophobia, and Alcohol
aggie2010's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Stalking, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Murder
maikepdf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Emotional abuse, Death, Misogyny, Animal death, Alcoholism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, and Murder
Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Child abuse, Death of parent, Drug use, Sexual violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Terminal illness, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Drug abuse, Grief, Rape, Violence, Stalking, Alcoholism, and Emotional abuse
hbic's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Child death, and Murder
Moderate: Sexism
kenziemick's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Child abuse