Reviews with content warning for Grief - The Dark Way Down

This book was kindly provided by the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Savannah believes that the “accident” involving her younger sister, Piper Sullivan, was her fault. She did something horrible, and now Piper is in a coma. When she discovers a weird note in her sister’s locker inviting her to a meeting of the Survival Club on the same day and at the same place where the accident occurred, she realizes she wasn’t alone—someone knows something, and maybe it wasn’t Savannah’s fault.
I decided to read this book based on the synopsis on NetGalley, but unfortunately, it took me some time to start reading it.
When I finished the book, all I could think about was, “This was crazy.”
I’m the type of person who is used to reading this genre, and I usually search for some type of realistic investigation, but I can forgive that if it’s really creative.
It was an easy read, but unfortunately, the final plot felt too rushed, and the resolution left me disappointed. I was trying to figure out the ending and was expecting something more “grandiose.”
The relationship between the sisters was complicated, partly due to their parents showing favoritism toward Piper, and partly because of Savannah's own terrible decisions, which focused only on herself and ultimately hurt Piper.
I will not be a snob about the book, it was a good reading to pass the time, it can be disappointing if you go to it with too much expectations, so just enjoy the ride.

Content Warnings

avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.25

After Savannah's sister Piper falls from Suicide Point, she is racked with guilt. But did she jump as the police officers say or was she pushed? As Savannah starts to find clues that lead away from her sister jumping, she ends up following the Wilderness Club on a trip as all arrows point towards one of the members as being at fault.
The narrator was terrible, overly dramatic, and just hard to tolerate. I think she made the already unlikable narrator, Savannah, even harder to stand. Both Savannah and Piper were extremely self-centered and mean to each other and at times, to others. To be honest none of the characters were very likable.
I didn't end up caring much about what had or hadn't happened to Piper and usually, I'd feel bad for someone obviously going through something but the way the book was written, it was hard.
The suspects were pretty obvious, and I was suspicious of everyone on the trip. But some were more obvious than others and the author made a very obvious choice for who the culprit was. Though at least she chose the way everything went down to not be as obvious.
Overall, a subpar book with unlikable characters who were hard to care about. I'm glad the book was short since I didn't waste much time on it and can move on to a better book now.

Extra ratings: Fluff - NA Heartfelt- 4/5 Helpful-NA Horror-0/5 Inspiration- NA Love aka Romance- 2/5 Mystery-4/5 Predictability- 4.5/5 Spice-0/5 Suspense- 1/5 Tear 2.5/5 Thrill- 3/5 Humor-0/5

Content Warnings

kitkatkatdog's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Twist and turns never stop, down to the last chapters. I thought the pacing might be too fast but it really worked out. Thought I wouldn’t enjoy the amount of twists and turns, but I feel like it added to the pressure and stress. It also felt really realistic in what a teenager could do to solve a crime. Make a lot of guesses and get a lot wrong, but keep pursuing it and the help along the way changes her for the better. Enjoyed more than I expected.

Content Warnings

rayneyisreading's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

2.0

Content Warnings

anniereads221's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

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bookishgoob's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

wow! what an incredible ride this was! feeling the confusion the mc felt was so interesting and fun. having savannah be such an unreliable narrator added so much to the atmosphere! not knowing who we could trust the entire time made this a nail biting, muscle tensing read!

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