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A review by bookishgoob
Ten by Gretchen McNeil
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
10 teens are lured to an island house under the guise of a weekend of partying. Things start to go horribly wrong as one by one, they end up dead. Who is in the house with them? or is one of them the killer?
Ten had a really slow start in my opinion, it took me a minute to get into it but when it picked up, it didn’t stop. A mixture of And then there were none and the ring, this YA thriller had me questioning everyone at all times. I thought I had it figured out but this surprised me!
I had a bit of a problem with the way the mental illness was portrayed. As someone with Bipolar Disorder, the way that Minnie was described as being clingy and moody made me really upset. There is so much that goes into Bipolar disorder that it can’t be boiled down to that. It villainized Minnie in such an uncomfortable way, which is why i rated it lower than i would have if the MI was handled differently.
I really liked the descriptions of everything, it made me feel like I was truly watching a horror/slasher movie. It was such a dark and fast paced read that i didn’t even realize some of the time that i was reading. The plot twists, the clues, the friends to lovers subplot, all of it was handled so great and interestingly. Again, if Minnie’s character was handled better, I would have rated it higher. I do recommend it, especially if you need something to get you out of a reading slump or you want to just have a quick and easy read.
Ten had a really slow start in my opinion, it took me a minute to get into it but when it picked up, it didn’t stop. A mixture of And then there were none and the ring, this YA thriller had me questioning everyone at all times. I thought I had it figured out but this surprised me!
I had a bit of a problem with the way the mental illness was portrayed. As someone with Bipolar Disorder, the way that Minnie was described as being clingy and moody made me really upset. There is so much that goes into Bipolar disorder that it can’t be boiled down to that. It villainized Minnie in such an uncomfortable way, which is why i rated it lower than i would have if the MI was handled differently.
I really liked the descriptions of everything, it made me feel like I was truly watching a horror/slasher movie. It was such a dark and fast paced read that i didn’t even realize some of the time that i was reading. The plot twists, the clues, the friends to lovers subplot, all of it was handled so great and interestingly. Again, if Minnie’s character was handled better, I would have rated it higher. I do recommend it, especially if you need something to get you out of a reading slump or you want to just have a quick and easy read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, Confinement, Gaslighting, Gore, Mental illness, Murder, Blood, Cursing, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Suicide
Minor: Racism