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whimsyread's Reviews (54)
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Literature, England, Cute Dogs, Sex, Murder, Ghosts, and Witches?! This book went in directions I did not anticipate, in all the best ways. I had just come off a string of DNF books—you know the kind, after having read a particularly brilliant book and then struggling to find anything that compares. I am happy to report that this book broke my dry spell, and was everything I didn’t know I needed. Brilliant and not too fluffy, the story progresses at a medium-fast pace. Told through multiple viewpoints, you get a different perspective on the story as a whole, throughout. I’m going to try another from this author next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Stalking
Minor: Animal cruelty
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read The Maid by Nita Prose and the ending was so f*cking cathartic and powerful, as an autistic woman, to hear the main character’s recognition of how she knows she has been taken advantage of and is historically misunderstood and dismissed as an autistic person. It was healing to see her change and grow. It made me feel seen and also reminded me that I deserve respect and love. Overall this was a good read and I plan to read the next in the series. Molly the Maid, where will you go next? :)
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Death of parent
Moderate: Rape, Kidnapping
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this book in about two days because I wanted to see what happened. It does a good job of keeping you on your toes and interested. I enjoyed the writing and dialogue. There was strong character development. I enjoyed that the book jumped between past and present timeline to give perspective and background. That being said, I feel the ending was rather abrupt compared to the pace of the rest of the book. The chapters toward the end when the husband is grieving are very choppy and disjointed, which I believe was the author’s way of showing how dissociated and depressed he was. I was most disappointed by the way the book ended. Call me a romantic but I wanted some form of resolution to this sad ending. Ending with the antagonist stalking the daughter made me angry lol. I will say, I thought it was a nice twist of fate that the author wrote in the car accident and the fire to have been connected and that Oscar and Julie were perhaps destined to play out this tragedy as the Fates had irreversibly woven the strands of Oscar and Julie’s lives together in that night. The abrupt ending made me immediately want to read the next book, which appears to only be available in Dutch. If it releases in English I am unsure if I will read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence
I predicted who done it in the first two chapters. I googled to confirm my suspicion and after reading the summary of the plot, didn’t feel the need to continue reading.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
informative
reflective
slow-paced
This gives a great view of attachment styles and how to be aware of your needs and your partner’s needs based on attachment theory. This was the first book I have read that discussed attachment theory, and I feel it did a great job introducing scientific and psychological/biological explanations and evidence.
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this book in two days—a proper reading marathon. It’s a page-turner that I could not put down. Woke up excited to read again. I did not expect the resolution to unfold how it did—the author did a good job with originality and tying up loose ends.
There is quite vivid descriptions of gorey/gruesome injury. I really felt as if I was on Hemlock Island.
There is quite vivid descriptions of gorey/gruesome injury. I really felt as if I was on Hemlock Island.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Death, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Pandemic/Epidemic