Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

The Turn of the Key, by Ruth Ware

2 reviews

bethboo's review against another edition

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

3.0

Okay, so I'm conflicted. I kind of really enjoyed this book, but when thinking of things to say for the review, they're mostly negative. So I'll try to come up with a list of positives and negatives, or something.

Overall, the book was a pretty interesting read. It's quick, took me like 2 days, and isn't too dark or too light. There is a little romance, some character studies and development, some mystery, some supernatural. It gets a little boring in the middle because the author seems to spend a lot of time on seemingly everyday tasks, but I guess that's the point, to establish some normalcy. The ending felt pretty anticlimactic, which feels bad because someone dies, but because you know that a child dies from the first page onward, it hit softer. But it wasn't a terrible ending.

My highest praise is for the narrator of the audio version. Imogen Church is an angel and a goddess and her performance was amazing in this. It felt like I these people were real. 

 
Spoiler I guessed that Bill was her dad the moment that they met. I have proof, I entered a little note when I was updating my progress. I hate that the book wasn't an actual haunting, but I guess they were pretty clear about it being a murder from the beginning. IDK. I really liked the soft moments between Rowan and the girls, I wish she could have really connected with Rhiannon. Ellie's letter at the end hurt my heart and did explain a lot so that was very good. 
 

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mallory10100's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

wow this was a great read. bought it because i love the haunting of bly manor and knew that it’s based on a book called the turn of the screw, and there were so many similarities with the show it was fun. so many great twists at the end that i definitely didn’t see coming!

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