korikam's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic, disturbing, and incredibly frightening at times. Recommended to friends who enjoy bone chilling mysteries.
chelsearaak's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
4.0
ozgelda's review against another edition
3.0
It wasn't utterly shocking or as much thrilling/disturbing to someone who listens to true crime on a daily basis nd knows way too many plot twists, but it stands for what it promises to offer nd it gets sad by the end. The dad's letters r the only thing that made me sob nd moved me, but other than that it was quiet predictable nd had way too many unnecessary details.
ottiedottie's review against another edition
2.0
1.5?
Believe it or not, during the first third of the book, where it seemed like it was setting up the typical thriller of the Gillian Flynn variety, I was actually leaning towards give it four stars. It was a little generic and pulpy, sure, and the typical white suburban characters didn't exactly jump off the page, but I was here for some low brow, fast paced stuff that I didn't have to think too much about and hopefully be delightfully spooked in the process. And yes, I had sort of heard of the content warnings in other reviews but usually, even for content like this I can get over my squeamishness if I'm aware of what's coming. So while I was aware that there would be violence, rape, etc. and prepared myself for it mentally, I did not expect for it to be like this.
I usually don't mind too much if stories use gore, violence etc. to embellish their horror/ story/ intrigue etc. But the problem here was that there was nothing to embellish. The content itself was the violence. And extremely gratuitous violence at that. There was simply nothing more to the story than that. Initially, it really wasn't that excessive and I was okay with it because it establishes incentive for the case to be solved and all that jazz so I invested way too much time into reading the book. However it then devolves to paragraphs and paragraphs and pages and page of really detailed violence and rape. I imagine, the author just sat to think of what horrible things people could do to "pretty girls" and just wrote that with a plot that's not even paper thin stringing these things together. It felt like the book itself was salivating over the torture and violence, relishing in describing it, much like that underdeveloped villain. I don't enjoy reading that much gratuitous violence against women, especially when there's no retribution or catharsis or anything at all that thematically tries to tie it up.
I also find it so rich how the book tried to drop "feminist" nuggets and quotes about there are double standards for men and women when it comes to the same qualities and how pretty girls are punished just for existing and all that but revels in completely and systemically stripping all the women in the book of dignity and life.
And while the book holds an adult rating because of this violence, when you strip that away, it has the most juvenile plotting and character writing you could imagine. Paul is an evil maniacal hand rubbing villain who also managed to lead a double life and violently kill a fuckton of people and fool his wife over eighteen years because he's that intelligent and that much of psychopath. No further explanation for his motives required. No need to actually write him like a human being or build intrigue by saying why we shouldn't consider him a suspect in the first place. I've seen Scooby Doo villains with more thought out motives and backgrounds and backstories. He's just evil for the sake of being evil. There is no "his version of canon and morality" where he justifies the things he does. He's not even written to be a good manipulator. Nothing!
I also found Claire's writing hilariously bad. Again and again, every single character goes on about how she was such a precocious and silent child/ person who always observes and drinks in her surroundings without saying anything or being too obtrusive. But where do we ever see evidence of that? She isn't that observant of her husband of 18 years whom she did not suspect for a second. She has poor judgement and observation when it comes to trying to figure out which of the investigators/ FBI etc. were on her side. So... what was the point of that? Is she just head empty all the time? I guess she does only barely have a personality otherwise.
As for the plot, man, I can only suspend disbelief so much. By the end, the cheap twists and vain attempt to heighten the scale and stakes reminded me of the clumsy way Agatha Christie tried to do the same in a few of her books such as The Sign of the Four.
This book has 2 things going for it.
The writing, while nothing to write home about, is quick, snappy, fast paced and makes you want to keep thumbing through the pages without putting it down.
The relationship between the estranged sisters was really touching and was the only relationship I felt had heart in the book. It tugged at my heartstrings a little. The passages of the letter Sam writes to his daughter Julia are also sweet but because of the book's heavy "All Men Are Trash" agenda I was in constant fear that that fellow would also turn out to be a sick psychopath like literally every male character in this book.
I hope to god I don't get nightmares from this book. It wasn't even worth getting nightmares for.
Believe it or not, during the first third of the book, where it seemed like it was setting up the typical thriller of the Gillian Flynn variety, I was actually leaning towards give it four stars. It was a little generic and pulpy, sure, and the typical white suburban characters didn't exactly jump off the page, but I was here for some low brow, fast paced stuff that I didn't have to think too much about and hopefully be delightfully spooked in the process. And yes, I had sort of heard of the content warnings in other reviews but usually, even for content like this I can get over my squeamishness if I'm aware of what's coming. So while I was aware that there would be violence, rape, etc. and prepared myself for it mentally, I did not expect for it to be like this.
I usually don't mind too much if stories use gore, violence etc. to embellish their horror/ story/ intrigue etc. But the problem here was that there was nothing to embellish. The content itself was the violence. And extremely gratuitous violence at that. There was simply nothing more to the story than that. Initially, it really wasn't that excessive and I was okay with it because it establishes incentive for the case to be solved and all that jazz so I invested way too much time into reading the book. However it then devolves to paragraphs and paragraphs and pages and page of really detailed violence and rape. I imagine, the author just sat to think of what horrible things people could do to "pretty girls" and just wrote that with a plot that's not even paper thin stringing these things together. It felt like the book itself was salivating over the torture and violence, relishing in describing it, much like that underdeveloped villain. I don't enjoy reading that much gratuitous violence against women, especially when there's no retribution or catharsis or anything at all that thematically tries to tie it up.
I also find it so rich how the book tried to drop "feminist" nuggets and quotes about there are double standards for men and women when it comes to the same qualities and how pretty girls are punished just for existing and all that but revels in completely and systemically stripping all the women in the book of dignity and life.
And while the book holds an adult rating because of this violence, when you strip that away, it has the most juvenile plotting and character writing you could imagine. Paul is an evil maniacal hand rubbing villain who also managed to lead a double life and violently kill a fuckton of people and fool his wife over eighteen years because he's that intelligent and that much of psychopath. No further explanation for his motives required. No need to actually write him like a human being or build intrigue by saying why we shouldn't consider him a suspect in the first place. I've seen Scooby Doo villains with more thought out motives and backgrounds and backstories. He's just evil for the sake of being evil. There is no "his version of canon and morality" where he justifies the things he does. He's not even written to be a good manipulator. Nothing!
I also found Claire's writing hilariously bad. Again and again, every single character goes on about how she was such a precocious and silent child/ person who always observes and drinks in her surroundings without saying anything or being too obtrusive. But where do we ever see evidence of that? She isn't that observant of her husband of 18 years whom she did not suspect for a second. She has poor judgement and observation when it comes to trying to figure out which of the investigators/ FBI etc. were on her side. So... what was the point of that? Is she just head empty all the time? I guess she does only barely have a personality otherwise.
As for the plot, man, I can only suspend disbelief so much. By the end, the cheap twists and vain attempt to heighten the scale and stakes reminded me of the clumsy way Agatha Christie tried to do the same in a few of her books such as The Sign of the Four.
This book has 2 things going for it.
The writing, while nothing to write home about, is quick, snappy, fast paced and makes you want to keep thumbing through the pages without putting it down.
The relationship between the estranged sisters was really touching and was the only relationship I felt had heart in the book. It tugged at my heartstrings a little. The passages of the letter Sam writes to his daughter Julia are also sweet but because of the book's heavy "All Men Are Trash" agenda I was in constant fear that that fellow would also turn out to be a sick psychopath like literally every male character in this book.
I hope to god I don't get nightmares from this book. It wasn't even worth getting nightmares for.
vvnqo's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-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
4.25
gailanjian's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-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
salma101's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
ericachrist's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lisagray68's review against another edition
dark
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