nadiamarjolein's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Car accident, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Blood, Abortion, Body horror, Child death, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Pregnancy, and Vomit
rebeccaelizabeth94's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Child death, Violence, Blood, Murder, Injury/injury detail, Death, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, and Terminal illness
jennaslaney_'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment and Terminal illness
groovyshay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Medical trauma, Blood, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Child abuse, Murder, Vomit, Abortion, Cancer, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Child death, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Violence
hiraethtales's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Spoiler
I did not see the plot twist coming, But like I still think Verity did it, How the hell can she explain so many things??? AND YES SHE DIED I COULD NOT STAND HER. Also Crew was a sweetheart and deserves the world <3333Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Self harm, and Child abuse
Moderate: Grief, Terminal illness, Abortion, Violence, and Child death
criticalgayze's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
A part of me wants to say that I now at least have an understanding of the CoHo craze, but this is her only thriller, and I truly cannot imagine reading a book by her that was just the romantic parts of this one.
I fully intended to give this book 1.5-stars because I am absolutely sick of the trope of painting PPD as some kind of villainous trait in women, but I think that, while the narrator is still disgustingly judgmental of the kind of psychological trauma pregnancy and childbirth can put a woman through, Hoover herself seems (maybe?) to have mostly redeemed her own complicity in the trope with the book's ending. (Although I am largely as confused as the narrator as to whether this is actually the case or not)
Speaking of the ending, talk about rushed. I felt like, throughout the book, the order of escalation was out of whack, there were largely spurts of tension in amongst the drudgery of straight white horniness as opposed to well built and sustained suspense, and that the culminating scene was over largely before I even realized it had begun.
tl;dr: Not good writing, but I tore through it in two days, so maybe there's something to be said for the Hoover phenomenon.
Graphic: Abortion, Child death, Murder, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Terminal illness, Blood, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Cancer, Confinement, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Medical trauma, Drug abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Car accident, Death, Alcohol, and Death of parent
def_jt's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abortion, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Suicide, Child death, Medical content, Child abuse, Fatphobia, Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Vomit, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Eating disorder, Car accident, Death, Blood, and Confinement
chaotically_katie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
One of the best pieces of writing advice is to trust your audience. And while I appreciate the spoon-feeding to a certain extent, there comes a point where it’s a bit excessive.
Overall, I recommend reading it. Just not at the top of your reading list.
Graphic: Abortion, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Injury/injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Body shaming, Car accident, Violence, and Vomit
lostreader_101's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Violence, Cursing, Medical content, Grief, Child abuse, Infertility, Chronic illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Murder, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Gore, Gaslighting, and Child death
eliya's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Toxic relationship, Child death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Child abuse, and Death
Moderate: Fatphobia, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, Grief, Cursing, Eating disorder, and Violence
Minor: Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Cancer, Vomit, and Suicidal thoughts