Reviews with content warning for Rape - Bright Young Women

Reviews tagging 'Rape'

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

51 reviews

mikaylarowan's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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americattt's review

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dark emotional sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

“‘And so? What’s wrong with being hysterical? It’s a hysterical thing that happened.’
‘We have more dignity than that’, I said, lifting my head with enormous effort. Never let them see you sweat, I was always saying except I could see the filmy residue my glands had deposited on the window.
‘I’ll tell you something from experience. ‘ Tina said, flexing her fingers on the wheel. ‘They will call you hysterical no matter how much dignity you have. So you might as well do whatever the hell you want.’”

A captivating read that is much needed amongst all the true-crime content that puts too much emphasis and thought on the killers and not enough on the victims and their loved ones, who should be the ones remembered and supported.

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kkoeller7's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-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

5.0

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porshainielsen's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.75

4.75- maybe even a 5 after I sit on it for a few days.

My opinion of true crime has shifted quite a bit in the last few years. I do not want to hear about the handsome mysterious man who murdered nameless women. I do not want to hear about the killers turbulent childhood. I want to hear about the victims and how they loved to listen to Fleetwood Mac, how they loved reading horoscopes and how they were people. This style of story telling made me quite emotional as these women could easily be myself or one of my friends. The person that this story is about killed thirty women. Yet, it is always his face in the paper or on the homescreen of your Netflix app. I also loved the narrative change of the killer being a brooding, handsome man- no, he was actually fucking annoying and prayed on the societal norm of women feeling obligated to help/entertain a man in need.

While I loved reading hearing this story told in a perspective based upon court documents and eye-witness reports, I can't help but think about how the victims feel about this portrayal. The two main characters, Ruth and Pamela, are based on real people. People who haven't or cannot confirm that these were the thoughts and feelings they were having at the time.

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cassidy_rain's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

This is intense! Scenes are pretty graphic. While the characters and novel is fictional, it is based on true events. If you like true crime this is the perfect book for you. The writing is very good and descriptive, you can tell the author really did her research. I found it a bit slow and confusing at times but the ending wrapped the story up in a way that left me satisfied. I like that it focuses on the women/victims, as so many true crime stories fail to do. The story takes place in a few different characters perspectives and timeframes. It took me a while to realize that the scenes taking place in the 70s were recollections, so when it randomly switched in the middle of the chapter to that characters real time thoughts or POV it could be a tad confusing. Check triggers!

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