maggieaduol's reviews
80 reviews

The Push by Ashley Audrain

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-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

5.0

They say history repeats itself, right? Does nature or nurture play a larger role in childhood development? The Push captures the complexity of mother- daughter relationships  with sociopathic tendencies thrown in, generational trauma and loss. 

Well thought out, carefully crafted, vividly realised and gripping, this is a clever concept novel that manipulates exploits the fears and insecurities almost every mother has, however happy her own childhood. It shows how the memories of childhood, forgotten or buried, return at the moment of one's own maternal crisis.

What makes this novel outstanding is Audrain's nuanced understanding of how women's voices are discounted , how a thousand little slights can cuddle a solid marriage and - in defiance of maternal taboos- how mothers really feel sometimes towards difficult children.

The Push in the sum of its parts speaks to the burdens we all carry, whether we are mothers or simply children of women who did the best they could.

A very sad story that is hard to read and not uplifting at all but one that will stick with me for a long time.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

The Stalker by Sarah Alderson

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I was hooked right from the start. You could think that having only two characters at play during most of the novel could turn a bit tedious, but not at all! The island is incredible, atmospheric and it contributes in creating a climate of unease that keeps building throughout the story until the big reveal. And what a reveal! 

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 

Valentine by Tom Savage

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

An amazing book with a great twist that I thoroughly enjoyed. The novel is well thought out, well written and the characters are well developed. Far much better than the 2001 movie which had little in common with this book.

How I wish there can be a remake of the movie based entirely on this book. I think it could make a wonderful Netflix movie.

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

The Guest House by Abbie Frost

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

3.5

This was good! I did not predict the twists and turns and it was dark and creepy. So much happened and it was fast paced but I felt it dragged on a bit with the endless descriptions of the guest house hence the three star rating. 

⭐⭐⭐/5

Evidence of the Affair by Taylor Jenkins Reid

emotional reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No

5.0

This was so good. Totally engaging!!!

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

"Secrets are only secrets for the people who don't know them yet". They can morph into lies when shared, and like caterpillars turning into butterflies, beautiful lies can fly far, far away".

Ten years of marriage
Ten years of secrets
An anniversary they'll never forget 
Letters, lies and sneaky subtle misdirection 
This book stole my weekend and the blurb really doesn't do it justice.
Brilliant.

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

challenging dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Originally written in 1948 this is a story that is dark, horrific and terrifying. This story evokes many thoughts and feelings and shows that there is value in tradition but beware of blind faith.

The Wife Stalker by Liv Constantine

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

WHOA!!! 😯. A creative and enthralling novel with all kinds of crazy!! The chapters were short and snappy which I like and it held my attention and kept me wanting to read more BUT I feel like there were no smooth transitions and all of a sudden I was confused that I thought I missed something and that I needed to re-read some chapters to figure out what I missed; the ending gave me answers though.

3.5 /5 ⭐⭐⭐

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

You suppose you are the 
trouble
But you are the cure
You suppose that you are
the lock on the door
But you are the key that
opens it
Rumi

 Just when I discovered the
meaning of life, they changed it
George Carlin

A Fantastic read. My first Liane Moriarty read and I have thoroughly enjoyed it.

A fast paced, interesting, well-written, character driven novel. I fully enjoyed it and I can't wait to watch the streaming adaptation on Hulu!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Cat Person by Elinor Carucci, Kristen Roupenian

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Wow. Clever, dark, funny, interesting and very realistic.

A fantastic short story about Margot, a college sophomore, and Robert, a man in his 30s, takes place via witty, bantering texts, but on their single ill fated date, each is revealed to have entirely misunderstood the other.

This is a very thought provoking story which is well worth reading especially if you like to mull a story over afterwards!

I totally get why this story created a lot of discussion and went viral.

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5