Reviews with content warning for Gore - I'm Thinking of Ending Things

Reviews tagging 'Gore'

I'm Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid

38 reviews

cen0z0ic_me's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

I actually watched the Netflix movie (directed by Charlie Kaufman) before I read the book. They have the same bone structure and ending, but the journey they take you on is so different it was like I was experiencing the story for the first time. I highly recommend both.

The writing was phenomenal. It was just complex and clever enough to keep me engaged while not being pretentious. I love stories that are non-linear and that mess with your perception of reality, and if you do too you'll love this book. It's like putting together the pieces of a puzzle, trying to figure out what is actually going on. It kept me on the edge of my seat.

The pacing was generally pretty good. Reid knows when to speed up and when to slow down so it best fits the narrative. There is one part near the end that I think goes on for a bit too long and that was a bit distracting, But overall, the pacing was good. The characters are compelling and add to the confusion of the narrative.

This is a horror novel, so make sure you check the listed content warnings before engaging in this material.

Overall if you're a fan of psychological thrillers that mess with your perceptions of reality, suspense, and you don't mind a bit of gore and some heavy themes, you'll love this book!! I also HIGHLY recommend this audiobook. It does some fun things with the narration near the end.

Full review with spoilers here: https://open.substack.com/pub/mediathatmakesus/p/im-thinking-of-ending-things-iain?r=1gr0he&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

Content Warnings

elysests's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

3.0

So, so weird! Really interesting and atmospheric, but painfully slow at times. This book swerves from a tense and drawn own suspense novel to a devastatingly drawn out psychological horror ending. Even as a person who loves suspense/thrillers, and psychological storylines, I wish the author would have cinched together more of the (very cool) threads. Love the symbolism though, and the characters feel fresh. More specifics below the spoiler tag.

I really felt like the ending was unsatisfying— there are so many details I’m left confused by. I get that Jake was the janitor the whole time, and he was imagining what could have happened with a girl to care about him, but what was the man outside the window waving when she was a little girl? What about the scratches in the basement? What was the deal with the video in the janitor’s room, and the freaky notes? I feel like I barely understand what the caller signifies, and what their message means. This book is haunting, and definitely tense, but I wish the ending could have relieved some of the tension instead of just letting out the air. :/

Content Warnings

frogknitting's review

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mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I was considering giving this book a 4.5 because

I felt the end dragged on wayyyy too long + the writing was a bit too "here's a revelation about the world and let's not dwell"

, but I've been thinking about it for days now so it gets a 5 star. It's literally so well crafted and written and it's so creepy and tense. I don't usually like these sorts of books but maybe I'll read the rest of Iain Reid's work because I liked this one so much.

Content Warnings

jaylene's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-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

1.5

Ooooooookay..

Content Warnings

pchamblee's review

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challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

This is the first audiobook I’ve tried and made it all the way through, so I have to give major credit to Candace Thaxton and the rest of the narration team for pulling it off so well. Considering the psychological suspense factor, I’ll forever be curious what it would have been like to experience it the first time in print (possibly would have been even more mind-boggling)—but, I thoroughly enjoyed the delivery of the narration.

This is a very eerie and disturbing story. It’s obvious early on that there’s mystery involved and there will be a twist at the end, but I don’t think any reader can be fully prepared for what comes (despite all the hints woven in). Even though I typically go for comfort fiction with happily ever afters, I love a good psychological thriller story and this book does it really well. It’s unique in the way it balances a meandering intellectual commentary with a thoroughly terrifying cautionary tale.

I’ve heard the Netflix film adaptation isn’t 100% true to the book and many fans say it doesn’t do it justice, but once I get a chance I’m gonna watch it out of curiously and just because I liked this story so much.

Content Warnings

thomasmagee_'s review

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challenging dark mysterious 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

3.5

A fever dream where the twist makes all the difference. Not sure how to feel about this one, and definitely threw me for a loop

Content Warnings

strange_and_unusual's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

angrynerd's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

1.0

Labeled as a novel, I would put this work more in the ‘novella’ category. The plot compels readers to tackle it quickly and an avid reader with a stretch of time on their hands could finish this in a sitting or two. However, if it weren’t for it’s shorter length I may have abandoned it before the end. The writing style is very staccato and at the start I was unsure if I was being led by an unreliable narrator or if the author didn’t properly narrate from woman's perspective. The answer was yes to both and in the end it actually worked, but I wasn’t left with the feeling it was done purposefully. Women are not a monolith, but it never felt natural. The author does well constantly supplying a feeling of unease. The second to last chapter contains four pages of a single question asked over and over. However, there are several plot devices, at least one of which I considered important, that are just never explained. I thought reaching the end would give me the ‘Aha!’ that explained the things I was annoyed about or at the very least make them less annoying, but in the end it just wasn’t what the reviews promised.

Content Warnings

literatureleaf's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Age: 15+

Reading time: 3 days

Difficulty level: 1.5/5

Rating: 4.5/5

I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Iain Reid follows our nameless protagonist and her boyfriend Jake as they embark on a road trip to have dinner with Jake’s parents. Plagued by thoughts of ending the relationship, she spends the car ride mulling over how it got to this point, and wondering if this is how it was always meant to be.

Meeting his family does not quell her hesitations, and the journey back home begins in a very similar manner to the trip there. However, after an unplanned stop at the local high school Jake attended as a teenager, things begin to go downhill in a way that neither the characters themselves nor the reader could have predicted.

A genuine literary thriller, I’m Thinking of Ending Things intricately weaves suspense and in-depth, authentic character study together in a way that has never been done before. Without holding anything back, Reid puts a new spin on the concept of a plot twist and utilizes it in a way that can be described as nothing short of poetic.

Atmosphere reigns supreme in this novel. Built up slowly and steadily, through scarce but vivid depictions of a desolate, snowy setting brimming with despair, and an unfiltered look at the flitting, unfettered thoughts and observations of the main protagonist, consistent, permeating feelings of dread and unease slowly creep up as the plot advances.

Written in a deceptively simple, choppy manner, I’m Thinking of Ending Things will sneak up and grab you in a chokehold when you’re least expecting it. As the tale unfolds, and little glimpses of something that is deeply wrong just beneath the surface of what appears to be a straightforward, even somewhat boring, trip between a couple on the brink of a breakup emerge, the reader is left deeply unsettled, wondering what it is that they are missing.

Flaws are few and far between, but so much of the story takes place within the protagonist’s mind, that at times it can be a bit stifling. Inner monologues fill much of the story, only broken up intermittently with the stark, vivid imagery mentioned earlier, and although they are incredibly well written, feeling stuck in the narrator’s head is not an uncommon feeling.

Invoking feelings of longing, despair, unease, and grief for the characters, I’m Thinking of Ending Things reads and feels like a beautiful punch to the gut that will leave you simultaneously longing for more and begging for it to be over. A devastatingly believable account of a life filled with pain, loneliness, and resentment, I’m Thinking of Ending Things will live on in the minds of those who have read it for months after the final page is read and the book itself is closed.

Content Warnings

fae_on_fire's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-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

5.0

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