Scan barcode
thetearex's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Excrement, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I received a copy of this book as a gift.
"Girl A" follows Lex Gracie, a woman who has spent the majority of her life trying to forget about her family. Lex was one of the siblings that grew up in the infamous House of Horrors, and she was the one who escaped and finally brought the torment to an end. Her father did not make it out of their home, and her mother has been in prison ever since. Her siblings were all adopted by different families and do not see much of each other anymore. But, when Lex learns that her mother has died and left her the rest of her possessions, including the house, Lex feels compelled to finally face what happened all those years ago.
I was so pleasantly surprised with this novel. This is not a thriller in the traditional way, but it definitely is mysterious. We know what ultimately happens to most of the characters, but we do not know how and we do not necessarily know how they are doing in their adult lives as they try to cope with the fallout from their childhood. There is one big "reveal" that I did anticipate, but I was not left feeling let down that I figured it out early on.
Lex is an interesting point of view to read from. Her life was irreversibly altered by the decisions her parents made, and it is difficult to read about the horrors she has faced, but she seems so strong. Some of her siblings have really struggled ever since their escape, and although Lex is clearly affected, she manages to seem the most levelheaded.
Each sibling gets a dedicated chapter, and we get to learn what their life was like in childhood and then what it was like trying to overcome their trauma. Each sibling handled things very differently, but it was still so interesting to see. There was one sibling in particular that made me very angry. They knew much more than they let on back then, and even contributed to the abuse in their own way. They seem so put together now, and I think it was because they did not face the same fear as their siblings. They do not deserve the beautiful life they have created, and I was angry learning of the transgressions against their siblings they committed.
The pacing of this book felt slow, but there was always so much happening, and we were learning so much about the characters that it ended up feeling very appropriately paced.
Overall, I was content with the resolution. I think the siblings are all moving on the best they can, and I think Lex made the best decision she could about the house.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a quiet mystery laced with family drama.
"Girl A" follows Lex Gracie, a woman who has spent the majority of her life trying to forget about her family. Lex was one of the siblings that grew up in the infamous House of Horrors, and she was the one who escaped and finally brought the torment to an end. Her father did not make it out of their home, and her mother has been in prison ever since. Her siblings were all adopted by different families and do not see much of each other anymore. But, when Lex learns that her mother has died and left her the rest of her possessions, including the house, Lex feels compelled to finally face what happened all those years ago.
I was so pleasantly surprised with this novel. This is not a thriller in the traditional way, but it definitely is mysterious. We know what ultimately happens to most of the characters, but we do not know how and we do not necessarily know how they are doing in their adult lives as they try to cope with the fallout from their childhood. There is one big "reveal" that I did anticipate, but I was not left feeling let down that I figured it out early on.
Lex is an interesting point of view to read from. Her life was irreversibly altered by the decisions her parents made, and it is difficult to read about the horrors she has faced, but she seems so strong. Some of her siblings have really struggled ever since their escape, and although Lex is clearly affected, she manages to seem the most levelheaded.
Each sibling gets a dedicated chapter, and we get to learn what their life was like in childhood and then what it was like trying to overcome their trauma. Each sibling handled things very differently, but it was still so interesting to see. There was one sibling in particular that made me very angry. They knew much more than they let on back then, and even contributed to the abuse in their own way. They seem so put together now, and I think it was because they did not face the same fear as their siblings. They do not deserve the beautiful life they have created, and I was angry learning of the transgressions against their siblings they committed.
The pacing of this book felt slow, but there was always so much happening, and we were learning so much about the characters that it ended up feeling very appropriately paced.
Overall, I was content with the resolution. I think the siblings are all moving on the best they can, and I think Lex made the best decision she could about the house.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a quiet mystery laced with family drama.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
cyndi1966's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Alcoholism and Pregnancy
harning12's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
3.0
This is good but it was somehow really slow. It is a thought provoking story about abuse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
hailthejessiah's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Haunting. Stayed with me for days afterwards.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
Minor: Alcoholism, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
tanja_reads_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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? No
3.5
This was a dark and depressing read, but it was still something that kept me hooked. You can see how it was influenced by the story of the Turpin Family. Instead of focusing on the cause of the suffering we are given the chance to read about how abuse, the spotlight and trauma impact the lives of the Gracie children after they are rescued. I do wish that each chapter that was named after each child did have more of their POV so we can understand how or why they ended up the way they did. Overall it was good - if a little lacking in some depth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Violence
soobooksalot's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
"Don't you ever get tired," she said, "of hating them?"
"Not really," I said. "No."
Girl A is an example of where the premise of a book was more, for me, than the execution.
I've had this one waiting on my TBR shelf for awhile. The story was interesting and well-written, but the pacing was off for me.
There are a lot of central characters in the troubled Gracie family that took a bit to differentiate, and much back and forth in time.
It all comws together in the end, though!
Girl A is ultimately worth checking out.
"Not really," I said. "No."
Girl A is an example of where the premise of a book was more, for me, than the execution.
I've had this one waiting on my TBR shelf for awhile. The story was interesting and well-written, but the pacing was off for me.
There are a lot of central characters in the troubled Gracie family that took a bit to differentiate, and much back and forth in time.
It all comws together in the end, though!
Girl A is ultimately worth checking out.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
raix's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I felt like I wanted to keep reading and know more! I thought this was a good exploration of how siblings who grew up in the same environment can turn out many different ways. Although the case in the book has similarities to some that have been in the news lately, the characters made it feel unique. I'm not sure how I felt about the reveal near the end, it was a little bit incongruous with the rest of the book, but I did enjoy how it ended.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Confinement
Moderate: Sexual content
anastasia_okodure's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
The concept was interesting, unfortunately, the substance and the form were not. The highlights of the book were certainly the flashbacks to the past, but they were scattered all over the place, making the narrative was often quite difficult to follow. There were a lot of loose ends to the story and the ending was ambiguous and disappointing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
elenikin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Excellent storytelling but sad (mentions child abuse). It was interesting to see how the siblings dealt with it, each in their own way. Nice closure at the end.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse