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A review by lydiavsbooks
Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
I really enjoyed this one, it's a fun mystery horror that follows a trope I love: a female main character who gets a new job as a live-in nanny, when creepy shit starts going down. This combined with spooky drawings that acted as clues to piece together the mystery was a real win for me.
Our main character was a fun one to follow. At times she made some questionable decisions and was slightly frustrating to follow, but overall I found her really likeable and enjoyed hearing her backstory.
The setting was great: we love a secluded, supposedly haunted, cottage by woodland. I would have liked the horror elements to be a little more scary, but that's just a personal preference that would've made me love it even more. The mystery element was really fun, it was super engaging and quick to read and at times felt more like a thriller with its reveals.
If I'm being really picky, I wasn't a huge fan of the sentence 'I'm not surprised to learn that Caroline carries a weapon for self-defense. She's mentioned that many of her patients at the VA hospital have mental health issues'. And if I'm being really really picky, the phrase 'cognitive dissonance' was used in completely in the wrong context, but that's just me being pedantic.
Our main character was a fun one to follow. At times she made some questionable decisions and was slightly frustrating to follow, but overall I found her really likeable and enjoyed hearing her backstory.
The setting was great: we love a secluded, supposedly haunted, cottage by woodland. I would have liked the horror elements to be a little more scary, but that's just a personal preference that would've made me love it even more. The mystery element was really fun, it was super engaging and quick to read and at times felt more like a thriller with its reveals.
If I'm being really picky, I wasn't a huge fan of the sentence 'I'm not surprised to learn that Caroline carries a weapon for self-defense. She's mentioned that many of her patients at the VA hospital have mental health issues'. And if I'm being really really picky, the phrase 'cognitive dissonance' was used in completely in the wrong context, but that's just me being pedantic.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Addiction, Drug use, and Gaslighting