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A review by davemusson85
Take Your Turn, Teddy by Haley Newlin
adventurous
dark
tense
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? Yes
3.75
First of all, I’m in awe of the unflinching honest of the author about her own mental health struggles in this book’s introduction, and then of the wild ambition shown in this work. To go half a book following the tale of young Teddy - that goes from domestic discomfort into a haunted house and other spooky supernatural stuff - before then jumping to a police procedural for another chunk of this and *then* bringing it all together in a satisfying and effective way is hugely impressive.
My favourite parts of this were those with Teddy and his new friend. Haley has a real talent for writing passages that get under your skin and leave you deeply unsettled, as well creating super compelling characters. Oh, and she’s also great at writing stomach-turning descriptions of gore and bodily remains!
For me, the police part wasn’t quite as effective - at least not until it started to tie back to the first part, but I still enjoyed myself the whole time. I also found the barrage of Beatles songs somewhat overwhelming, but that’s mainly because I can’t stand the Beatles 😂
Overall, this is a fab story and an impressive piece of work and I’m definitely keen to read more by this author. If you’re after something spooky and something to get really lost in over a few days, this is a great option.
My favourite parts of this were those with Teddy and his new friend. Haley has a real talent for writing passages that get under your skin and leave you deeply unsettled, as well creating super compelling characters. Oh, and she’s also great at writing stomach-turning descriptions of gore and bodily remains!
For me, the police part wasn’t quite as effective - at least not until it started to tie back to the first part, but I still enjoyed myself the whole time. I also found the barrage of Beatles songs somewhat overwhelming, but that’s mainly because I can’t stand the Beatles 😂
Overall, this is a fab story and an impressive piece of work and I’m definitely keen to read more by this author. If you’re after something spooky and something to get really lost in over a few days, this is a great option.