Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

Final Girls by Riley Sager

11 reviews

bookswithlauren's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

haileyhardcover's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Who doesn’t love a good ole slasher serial killer mystery? I know I do! 

This is my second Riley Sager book and I’m officially counting myself as a fan. Though I think I was more gripped and surprised by The Only One Left, Final Girls was a really fun read and was a much more visual experience for me! The story jumps back and forth between the event that made the main character, Quincy, a “Final Girl” to begin with and present day. In the chapters detailing what occurred at Pine Cottage, it almost felt like I was watching a slasher movie; the images were so clear in my head. Really compelling writing, with just enough detail to build the image in your mind without overdoing it and getting overly descriptive. If Sager wrote a book that was just entirely a slasher story, I’m certain I would absolutely devour it! (Has he? Clearly I need to check out the descriptions of all of his books now!)

I will say, I figured out the mystery to this one pretty early on, but I still really enjoyed the story leading up to finding out I was correct! I think Sager does a really fantastic job of planning his stories and finding ways to subtly work in clues for those of us who like to race to solve the mystery. His are books that, if you were to read them a second time, I think you would spend most of the time smacking your own forehead and exclaiming “How did I miss that?!” 

I’m looking forward to more Riley Sager in the future. Final Girls is an easy 5 stars!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Rape, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Gaslighting

snoopyfanclub's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Forced institutionalization

cerealceec's review against another edition

dark tense fast-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

2.5

ehhhh. found the whole thing extremely bland and uninspired. characters are flat and just feel like puppets used for the plot. quick, fairly gripping read but no real substance.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Gun violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Pedophilia and Sexual assault

violetbentbackwards1036's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

i would’ve given the a five star rating if it hadn’t been for the painfully slow beginning and the unbelievably perfect ending. i think it was just how mundane the first half of the book was, but when the plot actually picked up, everything happened so fast. the ending was also just really perfect. everything, and i mean everything, gets resolved. i also found it really weird how after quincy gets her memory back, we don’t get anything else about her mourning her friends? you’d think after having to relive watching her friends be slaughtered in front of her, there’d at least be something about her accepting what happened to everyone. i just found it kinda disappointing how quickly quincy moves on from everyone’s deaths, how there’s nothing else about the friend group. i wish we got to see more of the friend group, more about rodney, amy and betz. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Gore, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

gretchenplz's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

One day I will write a thesis about the laziness of Riley Sager’s writing and his chronic need to write FMCs that are depressingly bland, stupid, and one-note. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape

Minor: Addiction, Pedophilia, and Vomit

ripxreads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Gaslighting

Minor: Forced institutionalization and Stalking

seawarrior's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

While definitely a page turner, Final Girls was somewhat of a letdown for me. It probably doesn't help that I read Home Before Dark recently before this, where Sager's writing is much stronger in my opinion.

The main merit of this book is how easily it held my interest. I checked it out from the library planning to read it over several days, and ended up finishing it in a matter of hours. Unfortunately I felt that the twists in the plot were somewhat predictable, and I don't say that lightly, as I actively try not to predict the answer to mysteries as I'm reading them. This led to an anticlimatic end in my experience, made all the more unsatisfying by my mild investment in the characters. As much as I wanted to love these stubborn, surviving women, they felt a little too much like flat, paperdoll people to spark my investment or pathos. 

Though I have more harsh notes on this book than positive ones, I don't feel that it's altogether terrible and I don't regret reading it. The writing isn't excellent, but it's entertaining nonetheless and I would still recommend it to others looking for an engaging thriller to read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Suicide attempt and Sexual harassment

Minor: Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Terminal illness, and Police brutality

bastieboi's review

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I sussed everyone, and I was still wrong. what the heck

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Grief, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Infidelity, Forced institutionalization, and Vomit

Minor: Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

davidrb's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

1.0

Christ.

No spoilers, but this is a tedious mess. For a thriller (and make no mistake: this is a thriller and not a horror), the pace is unbearably slow. The characters are beyond flat and contrived. The writing style gives absolutely nothing. Most damningly, the author takes a very dismissive approach towards more "traditional" trauma victims (i.e. survivors of rape and assault) in favor of his prototypical final girl, which is both uncomfortable to read and doesn't at all serve the story, considering it's a narrative about how trauma shapes people. Ostensibly.

Horror satire can still be suspenseful and scary (think Scream), but this forgoes any meaningful commentary in favor of cheap twists, and, in fact, has very little to say about the genre at all. I only gave it 1 star because I gave The Maidens 1 star, and I wouldn't say I hated it more. (I'm really striking out with thrillers lately.)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol