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sweetlikesadia's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Only negative is that some may find the book writing style and layout confusing as it shifts from present to past as well as characters point of views.
Graphic: Child death, Torture, and Murder
readingonfordearlife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Torture, and Murder
archaicrobin's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
Jack and her daughter are moved to a small town to be the new vicar. Once they arrive strange dolls, strange people, and strange bodies start to appear and soon Jack and her daughter Flo find themselves immersed in the towns’ secrets.
In my opinion there was WAY too much going on in this book for it to end well. You had burning ghosts, martyrs, rich people with influence over a small town, Jack had a dark past and secrets, her daughter had secrets, the church had secrets, the townspeople had secrets, and the initial set up for the town to be entirely in on the disappearances and strange deaths in the town never came to fruition.
Instead the last half of the book revealed a twist that just felt unexplained and random to me. I loved the first half of the book but the second half was so hard for me to get through and the ending just sucked. There was too many plot points introduced and twists thrown in that you could tell that beat the end the author was just trying to make sure she addressed them all.
I look forward to reading more books by this author but I’d say pick up Chalk Man over this one. 2.5 stars, just wasn’t enough to reach that full 3!
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
scburhans's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
** Spoilers Below **
The biggest thing I had an issue within this book was Ruby's family. It made me really uncomfortable that the first black and gay characters we get in the book are child abusers and murderers. While I don't think the racism and homophobia from this decision was intentional - I think it was in an attempt to introduce a discussion on unconscious biases - but it still did not read well at all. Having the villain of the story fake a disability also made me incredibly uncomfortable as a disabled person. There was a lot of covert, and I hope unintentional, ableism in the story. I did, however, enjoy the rest of the book, so I did decide to give the story 3.5 stars rather than just three.
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
kaylashauntedlibrary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Rape and Torture
Minor: Pedophilia
mgordon3118's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
emilynicholls's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicide, Torture, Stalking, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcoholism, Homophobia, and Vomit
kathryn_a's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
rishel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
powellki's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Death of parent