Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - The Roanoke Girls

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel

17 reviews

sarahweyand's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

1.25

I thought THE LOVE HYPOTHESIS was going to be my low-rated book on the month, but look at me exceed expectations. Maybe part of the reason here is on me, but I thought this book was a YA mystery when it was in fact a very adult thriller that centers heavily around the first listed trigger warning here. The book's synopsis in no way alludes to this being the crux of the story, reader be warned. So....not the most fun surprise.

I can understand and appreciate some dark, disturbing literature when done right. I read a lot of horror and I like a lot of horror. But in this context I cannot stand for the girl-on-girl hate and women blaming this book is full of. Every woman is alluded to being or just flat-out described as a slut, a mean girl, trailer trash, or some other nasty moniker that is not equally ascribed to the male characters. And given what this book is about at it's core, that's really fucking disgusting.

Unfortunately, I think this means I'm done with Amy Engel as an author, but maybe that's for the best. Please don't read this book. If you need something dark and depraved, read PRETTY GIRLS or something. And if you're a contrarian and this means you really have to read it now, please read the content warnings so you know what you're getting into. I'm not messing around.

Content Warnings

useyourgoodeye's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

The themes of the book were difficult but I decided to trudge through because I had to know the outcome.

Content Warnings

playswithstring's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Content Warnings

antidietleah's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

cannibaldear's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This book grew on me like a rot (complimentary)

Content Warnings

damnitdelayna's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional sad slow-paced

4.0

Book Dynamics✨
Non linear timeline
One POV (mostly)
Dark AF
Slow Paced

JFC this was exactly what I thought it would be and I still wasn’t prepared.

A great portrayal of grooming and how someone can get so easily trapped in the unthinkable.

I liked how it wove together past and present for Lane but also the story of each Roanoke Girl. The family tree at the beginning of the book was very helpful in remembering who belonged to who once things started to unfold.

Overall: grab if you want a slow burn make your stomach churn family drama - I don’t even know if family drama is the right term here though 🫠

Favorite Character: Cooper

Content Warnings