adi_mazig's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Injury/injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Sexual assault, and Rape
Moderate: Murder, Child death, Abandonment, and Kidnapping
Minor: Alcoholism, Suicide, Violence, Drug use, Vomit, Stalking, and Grief
nikenacs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Not the biggest fan of this in the beginning, but it really won me over in the end. A tad too YA for my taste, but that's a me problem. Had I read this in my teenage years, I would have been absolutely /obsessed/.
The strong part of this book is definitely the finale, or generally everything that takes place after the hospital. This is where everything that has been laid out before really pays off. The main strong point of the book is that Sutherland is fantastic at describing surroundings, smells, sounds, sensations, all her horrors feel very tangible. The mix between strange natural beauty and body horror worked very well.
Unfortunately, this strongly descriptive style also felt like one of the main downsides to me. The book is VERY Tell, Don't Show, and I felt like very obvious things were being spelled out for me again and again. I could see most plot points/twists coming a mile away. Maybe this is a YA thing, though, and I really am just a little too old already. The pacing was odd in some places as well.
Overall, it didn't wow me, but it was pretty good. I probably wouldn't have stuck with it if it hadn't been for the book club, but I'm glad I did.
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Vomit, Death, Violence, Gun violence, Gore, Grief, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Rape
Moderate: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/injury detail, Toxic relationship, and Murder
Minor: Alcoholism and Alcohol
lyssb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Kidnapping, Stalking, and Body horror
Moderate: Injury/injury detail, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Gun violence, Death of parent, and Stalking
Minor: Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Addiction, Alcohol, Gun violence, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, and Vomit
kt2e56's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Very much looking forward to reading more from her.
Graphic: Death, Rape, Body horror, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/injury detail, Mental illness, Child death, Gaslighting, Grief, Murder, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Alcoholism, Stalking, Suicide, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Vomit
rhaenyra'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
3.75
This book felt like a thriller with a touch of supernatural which I loved. For me it wasn't that scary, and I actually excepted to sleep with the light on after this book but, it was good nevertheless.
It was a very faced paced book and, I was worried that the plot-twist would be ruined due the shortness of the book but, the author managed to do it. I had a thought about what the plot-twist would be but, I was still surprised. I didn't see most of these things coming which made it an enjoyable read.
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Suicide, and Vomit
_childofathena's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Rape, Body horror, Child death, Gore, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
mpbookreviews's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Vomit, Violence, Torture, Death of parent, Animal death, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Rape, Blood, Body horror, Child death, and Mental illness
ellasara's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Violence, Physical abuse, Murder, Injury/injury detail, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Suicide, Grief, Vomit, Stalking, Rape, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Medical content, Bullying, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
leaf_arrow's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Suicide, Grief, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Murder, Medical content, Eating disorder, Death of parent, Bullying, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Injury/injury detail, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Addiction, and Abandonment
mackinseyjoy'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
4.0
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Suicide, and Murder