Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - The Thirteenth Tale

“I have always been a reader; I have read at every stage of my life, and there has never been a time when reading was not my greatest joy. And yet I cannot pretend that the reading I have done in my adult years matches in its impact on my soul the reading I did as a child. I still believe in stories. I still forget myself when I am in the middle of a good book. Yet it is not the same. Books are, for me, it must be said, the most important thing; what I cannot forget is that there was a time when they were at once more banal and more essential than that. When I was a child, books were everything. And so there is in me, always, a nostalgic yearning for the lost pleasure of books. It is not a yearning that one ever expects to be fulfilled.”

I too, as Margaret, tend to prefer books to people. Probably it is because of this childhood bond. I definitely got caught up in this book. I didn’t like the narrator, actually, I’m not sure if I liked any of the characters. But they were so well written that you could understand them, or at least attempt to see what made them a certain way. I know that in part this story worked for me because of the gothic-English manor-Brontë vibe.

Was the ending a big surprise? Not really, and I’m glad that it didn’t go into horror paranormal direction.

It felt like a book written by someone who loves stories and who loves books. It really worked for me, brought back a lot of nostalgia. Perhaps on another time, I would focus more on the shortcomings, but right now it just felt right. 4.5⭐️

“We all have our sorrows, and although the exact delineaments, weight and dimensions of grief are different for everyone, the color of grief is common to us all.”

Content Warnings

valentinavl's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

Content Warnings

amlombardo13's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

angeldevoursliterature's review against another edition

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dark hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

3.75

Content Warnings

francesturpin's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

phantomgecko's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? No

5.0

I put off reading this for a long time because the cover is not very good. It doesn't evoke the right tone or genre. Which is too bad. I enjoyed the book tremendously.

In the middle I had my doubts. Was this really going anywhere? Why are these side characters being introduced? But it really comes together in a great way. Would recommend.

The air of mystery came to somewhat of an anticlimax for me once Ms. Winter's actual identity was revealed, and the nature of the "ghost." But, but, but the story of the fire reeled me back in. Possibly the best part being the question of the rescued twin's identity. Answering that question would have been a disappointment.

I would have been fine if the book had ended with Ms. Winter's death, tbh. The few chapters afterwards did answer questions and wrap up loose ends, but it wasn't necessary for me. The emotional weight of it all was exquisite. I love ambiguous endings and the feeling of non-closure.

Content Warnings

permanme's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

5.0

Content Warnings

karenmsecrest's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

A gothic tale with many twists and turns and ultimately a satisfying ending. I just finished this afternoon, and might need to think about it before writing a full review.

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