Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - The Girls

I love the way Lisa Jewell writes a book and gets the reader hooked on the book from the very 1st page to the last page. I loved all the characters in this book even the bad characters. I loved how the story line was told in different parts so you got a clear picture of what happens in the book all the way though. The ending could of been done a bit better but that’s the only part that let me down really. Xx

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pippamillerxoxo_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious 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? No

4.0

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hkburke2's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-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

2.75

I loved the map and the setting - very atmospheric and cozy. I did not like the way the characters were described (a child could see another child's green eyes from across a backyard/garden?), and it seemed like big issues were not handled through to completion.

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dalmavatai's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.75

Unsurprisingly, I really enjoyed my fourth Lisa Jewell and she's absolutely become a go-to mystery/thriller writer for me! The characters and their relationships are well developed and interesting to read about, and you feel for each one of these characters in the Garden. I liked the past mystery interwoven with the present one, and enjoyed that we get multiple POVs, mostly from Adele and Clare but also from Pip and Grace, and we also get to see the letters Pip writes to their dad which were really sweet and heartfelt.

I do wish the pacing had been done a bit differently, there was a LOT of setup, much of which was needed, but maybe it could've been shortened just a tad bit so that we could've gotten more at the end. I liked the resolution though, and especially enjoyed the way that we kept going back and forth between the past and the present towards the end which created a really frantic atmosphere where you just wanted to get to the truth.

It was a bit slow paced, especially in the first half, which is why I didn't enjoy it as much as I could've but honestly this book made me really excited to get to more of Lisa Jewell's backlist!

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