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jessicamarie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Graphic: Confinement, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, and Trafficking
bluehairedlibrarian's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
With that said, this book is dark and traumatic, but the writing quality kept me reading despite the horrors on the page. Jonah is a compelling narrator and I sympathized with him while also thinking he was a complete idiot at times. The situations he got himself into could be excused by his naivete and Midwestern religious upbringing, but at the same time, he was incredibly naïve. He's also a very unreliable narrator, but I liked the framework that is revealed later on in the book. I thought it a bit strange for it suddenly to revolve around his non-relationship with a side character, and the ending felt strange and little forced.
I can't say I enjoyed this book, but I don't regret finishing it either. It's difficult and does not fall under the Gothic Horror trope at all. It's a difficult read, but a mostly well-written one.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
horrorandscience's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Confinement, Homophobia, and Torture
Minor: Suicide
rachel_sf's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry
bookswithmybulldog'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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Homophobia, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, and Suicide attempt
ibeforem'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? Yes
3.0
Jonah starts out this story already full of trauma. His evangelical parents discovered he was gay and sent him to conversion therapy, which of course failed spectacularly. Now he is barely surviving in New York, waiting tables with his dreams of being a successful playwright one day. His first step in achieving that dream is to orchestrate a meeting between himself and successful playwright Richard Shriver. But when that meeting eventually leads to a summer on Richard's Hamptons compound as his boy-toy, Jonah gets a whole lot more than he bargained for.
This book went all sorts of places I wasn't expecting, and frankly I'm still thinking about it a month after I read it. I think it has a lot to say about the #metoo movement and the way victims can become perpetrators and perpetrators can become victims. Honestly, I would have given this 4 stars instead of 3 if it hadn't taken what felt like an off-course turn about 3/4 of the way through. The story finds its way back before the end, but that one turn felt extraneous.
Content warning: There is a lot of explicit sexual assault and violence in this book.
Graphic: Confinement, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Violence
zookie_b's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Alcohol
readwithcarly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
We follow the story of Jonah, an ambitious playwright in his twenties who has moved from Illinois to New York City to follow his dreams. When he finds himself barely scraping by with rent each month, he seeks out Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright Richard Shriver to help him get a foot in the door and make a name for himself in the industry.
They soon forge a romantic relationship, but as summer heats up and the two take a trip to the Hamptons where a handful of Richard's other successful friends gather, it takes a sinister twist.
This book is almost split into three parts: before the Hamptons, at the Hamptons, and after the Hamptons. The first part is a steep buildup toward the climax as we see the relationship with Jonah and Richard progress. The time at the Hamptons is the most brutal part of the story and was very, very hard to read at times because the content was so explicit and gruesome. The third part of the book is a relief, as everything becomes pieced together.
Themes such as abuse, power, homophobia, rape, trauma, grooming, manipulation, sexual exploitation and violence are only a few among many others explored over the course of this book. Although the content was triggering, the writing itself was done extremely well. Jonathan Parks-Ramage's writing had me hooked from the very first page and continued onward through this very intense reading experience.
Thank you Net Galley and Mariner Books for the digital advanced readers copy.
Graphic: Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Abandonment
lina_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Kidnapping
deezy'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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment