lauren_shilling's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I want to start out by saying that I really loved this book, and I would highly recommend it to any thriller lovers (except make sure you check the content warnings!). It was so dark and so creepy and so incredibly engaging. I really could not stop reading it. It's also a super fast read, which was exactly what I was looking for when I picked it up. This book is getting a good bit of hype right now and I think it deserves every bit of it! I was a little nervous going into it since I found another book by this author to be predictable and slightly boring, but this book was anything but! I was so invested in the story the entire time, and I don't think there was a single moment that bored me. It was entirely unpredictable too. I didn't guess any of the many plot twists, and trust me, there are a lot. This entire book is made up of plot twists, really, and they are all so well executed. Honestly, the main reason I'm not giving this the full five stars (even though I really thought I would for the first half of the book) was because I don't think it's going to stay on my mind the way I would want it to. Of all the genres I read, I find thrillers are the easiest for me to forget about unless they are five star favorites. I think I might forget aspects of this book, so I don't think I can give it a full five stars. I just didn't get that feeling I usually do when I've found a new favorite. That being said, this book was incredible, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested! However, as I said earlier, make sure to check content warnings, because there are a lot of topics touched on in this book that can be incredibly triggering for some people!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Domestic abuse, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Alcoholism and Alcohol
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
maddie_m95's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Murder, Violence, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault
sarahmae531's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
4.5
Needed a good thriller and this did not disappoint! If you’re a fan of unreliable characters, this one is for you. So many varying accounts of events leaves you wondering who is telling the truth, if anyone.
I’ve heard such good things about Lisa Jewell but this is the first book of hers I’ve read. I’ll definitely be picking up more in the future!
I’ve heard such good things about Lisa Jewell but this is the first book of hers I’ve read. I’ll definitely be picking up more in the future!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Stalking, Suicide, and Infidelity
michies's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Minor: Pedophilia and Sexual assault
rendermespeechless's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Oh my goodness I couldn't put this one down after I really got into it. Basically the story is of birthday buddies that celebrate in a local pub. They're from completely different backgrounds. It was a little confusing with the present day accounts of multiple murders uncovered. But trust me, it will make sense in the end. This is a very twisty, very dark glimpse into the mind of someone who is mentally unwell. How much is the truth and how much was spin into a lie?
Spoiler
I think Josie is in need of a medical diagnosis but I think she spins her life into a reality she can believe which is exactly what Walter said. I don't believe the daughters or Walter set her up as the ending implies. No way! This is 100% all fabrication to edit or what Josie can't handle of the reality
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pedophilia and Violence
Minor: Sexual assault
pages_of_devin's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Grief, Pedophilia, Murder, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse
beepbeep101's review against another edition
I'm honestly not sure if I can do psychological thrillers anymore. I enjoyed The Girl on the Train years ago, but I'm not sure if I would now. This premise intrigued me, and I wanted to know what happened with these characters. But overall, the book's attitude toward autism and the portrayal of it started to feel icky, and then it started to feel reallllly gross regarding sexual assault, not taking trauma from that seriously, and the possibility of lying about sexual assault to defame someone. So I said nope, and moved on to the next book on my tbr list.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, and Confinement
angelarae235's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
mynameisrebecca's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Blood, Sexual harassment, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
mads_jpg's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
1.5
I have a lot of thoughts about this book.
The positives:
The positives:
- I liked the non-linear storytelling through the Netflix clips that start to reveal certain details.
- The story was interesting enough that I read it quite quickly despite the length.
The negatives (Spoilers!):
- The book seems to paint Josie as a man-hating feminist, which doesn't sit right when she then goes on to kill the only men in the story.
- The author said in the acknowledgements that she wrote this book in less than a year, and it shows, because given the inclusion of something as sensitive as pedophilia she did not portray it in a responsible way.
- I can't tell if the book is a commentary on or a victim of the idea of the 'perfect victim' who never does anything wrong.
- The way the author described Josie's grooming by Walter was awful in almost every case, either saying she "allowed herself to be groomed" or that she in fact wasn't groomed at all and actually seduced Walter herself. Which still wouldn't make it ok since the adult is ultimately responsible for shutting that kind of thing down.
- Every character is incredibly unlikable, and their actions make no sense. E.g Pat who is reviled as this full of life, go getting woman just let's her 16-year-old daughter take her 40-year-old boyfriend from her? And doesn't do anything to stop it?
- Why the hell is Alix still working on the podcast after Nathan goes missing AND after he's confirmed murdered?!?!?! I was reading this assuming the police/documentary filmmakers had gotten a copy of the podcast, not that she'd RELEASED THE DAMN THING.
- Alix mourns Josie's victims as people who were killed "for no good reason at all", and that was a big issue for me. I really did feel like I had no idea why she would go this far, and the last minute twist in the epilogue doesn't account for that.
- I'm all for an unreliable narrator story, but at no point did it feel like the reader had any chance at following what was really going on, and the ambiguous ending made that even more frustrating, but that's probably just a me thing and not a legitimate issue.
- It was also bloody annoying how many times the author said Josie could hear the sound of Erin's headphones through the door, there's literally no way that's possible without Erin sustaining serious ear damage, I'm sorry but no.
Overall this felt like a dangerously careless representation of some very serious issues given the amount of trigger warnings I had to add to this review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Rape, Sexism, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Violence