Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

The Club by Ellery Lloyd

24 reviews

bibliotherapybliss's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I find myself on a lifelong quest for a thriller that can grip my interest the way Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" did when I first delved into it. Naturally, my hopes were set high when I picked up "The Club," but, unfortunately, it fell short of the mark.

At first glance, the concept behind the story was promising. The backdrop of Island Home, an ultra-luxurious resort exclusively frequented by the rich and famous, piqued my interest. As a fan of reality television and someone with a certain fascination for exclusive clubs like SoHo House, I was drawn to the idea of a resort so revered that people would resort to shady measures just to gain admission.

However, as the plot unfolded, it became evident that "The Club" wouldn't provide the deep dive into the world of the rich and famous that I had anticipated. The constant switching of points of view made it nearly impossible to keep up with each character's storyline, and the lack of endearing qualities in the characters left me unfazed by their fates. I found it hard to care whether they lived or died, and their slow attrition didn't stir much emotion.

In truth, I really wanted to love this book. While I did enjoy it enough to see it through to the end, I struggled through some of the convoluted details and ultimately felt that it couldn't fully satisfy my craving for a Christie-esque masterpiece.

As for the story itself, while brimming with characters, the true central character is Island Home. As the newest and most exclusive addition to the Home Group portfolio, it stands as the epitome of luxury and exclusivity. Home Group, a fictional counterpart to SoHo House, offers membership to only the wealthiest and most famous individuals, allowing them to escape the prying eyes of the public and indulge in whatever their hearts desire.

The narrative centers around the kickoff weekend of Island Home, where secrets and lies run rampant even before the rich and famous arrive. Throughout the book, the chapters oscillate between different characters on the island, each exploring the setting and encountering their own obstacles along the way.

While "The Club" offered a promising premise, it ultimately couldn't deliver the immersive thriller experience I had hoped for. It's a decent read but doesn't quite reach the heights of classic mysteries like those by Agatha Christie. My quest for the next gripping masterpiece continues.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Death, Murder, and Pregnancy

klr0's review against another edition

mysterious

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

1.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Dementia, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Car accident, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Drug use, and Grief

dori39's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Sexual assault, and Car accident

Minor: Pregnancy

finsleft's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Murder, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Car accident, Pregnancy, and Adult/minor relationship

dev921's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Abandonment, Abortion, Body shaming, Grief, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Drug use, Murder, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Infidelity, Pregnancy, and Sexism

what_heather_loves's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

"Then, as she was approaching and her heel caught a little on the edge of the Persian rug, her hand shooting out to steady herself, Ned looked up. And she saw the way he registered her stumble, an accident that might have happened to anyone. The quick glance up at her. The cruel flicker of a sneer. And it hit her that it did not matter, that an end had always been inevitable, that she could have been younger, older, quieter, louder, said too much to the press, said not enough to the press, and there would always have been a reason to get rid of her eventually. And in that moment she realised there was really only one thing left for her to do."

A psychological thriller with a number of locked room mysteries (set on an island) that only become apparent as the plot progresses. Chapters, from the perspectives of four of the main characters (all Home Group staff) are interspersed with a Vanity Fair article written after the slowly-revealed, blackmail, dramas and tragedies. The exclusive and luxury club's members are wealthy and influential and increasingly dislikeable celebrities. Chapters are short and many finish with a cliffhanger or dramatic reveal. It's fast-paced and compelling, becomes clear the situation and characters are a powder-keg where despicable people have devastating secrets and others are seeking revenge. By the end there have been deaths and revenges achieved! I throughly enjoyed reading this tense and escapist novel, which I read for this month's #TastingNotesBookClub from @the_book_taster

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Car accident

Moderate: Violence, Murder, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Addiction and Suicidal thoughts

chyde's review against another edition

slow-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

2.0

It had a lot of promise but I kept waiting for it to start.... then I got bored.... then it finished.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content, Infidelity, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Murder, Alcoholism, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child abuse

savheath's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Classism, Adult/minor relationship, Abortion, Death, Murder, Toxic relationship, Grief, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Car accident, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Infidelity

cady_sass's review against another edition

challenging 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

3.25

A perfectly fine way to spend an evening but the book, in its entirely, is utterly forgettable. There are some interesting storylines in there, but I literally just put the book down and I’d have trouble explaining any of them. Or match the character names to their subplot. SO many characters. SO many rich white people. Meh. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Death, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Blood, Dementia, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Sexism, Sexual assault, Classism, Drug use, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, and Sexual content

wrestleacademic'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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Pedophilia, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Drug use, Drug abuse, and Pregnancy