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explodingalice's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 - There was promise here, but ultimately it read like a Lifetime movie plot. I found the characterization of Millie (especially her speech) pretty insensitive, and the trope of having the baddie kill an animal to show how evil they truly are is overused in books and movies, and also gross.
kasija's review against another edition
2.0
I'm a bit disappointed, I honestly expected more nerve wrecking thrills from this.
Maybe I would've been more interested if there had actually been violence in this, if the author had turned Jack into a hypocrite by choice, but most of the time he's simply indifferent about her, locks her up only for the convenience of not having to watch her, not for malice. (Except when he sends her to the red room, but he seems to have some resemblance of an honor code as he only ever did if she angered him.)
It was also quite obvious from the start who would aid Grace in getting out of this mess.
Maybe I would've been more interested if there had actually been violence in this, if the author had turned Jack into a hypocrite by choice, but most of the time he's simply indifferent about her, locks her up only for the convenience of not having to watch her, not for malice. (Except when he sends her to the red room, but he seems to have some resemblance of an honor code as he only ever did if she angered him.)
It was also quite obvious from the start who would aid Grace in getting out of this mess.
Spoiler
It would've been much more interesting if Esther had actually gotten involved, if they had managed to secretly talk, if Grace would've had to convince her of the trouble she's in.dandelionwine1928's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed this book, so much so that I read it in about two days. It was instantly gripping. One of the most interesting parts to me is that you know how the story is going to end, you just don't know what events will lead there, or how the end will come about. Which is really unique for a mystery/thriller. This isn't a who's-the-bad-guy type of mystery. You know who the bad guy is. You hate the bad guy. And you hate him even more as the story goes on. This is more of a how-will-she-get-out-of-this mystery.
My review is rather short and to the point, because I'm afraid of spoiling anything. I liked the book, but I think there was definitely room for improvement. I think the characters were strong, although it would have been nice to see a bit more dimension in all of them. The plot drew me in right away and kept me interested throughout the entire book. I didn't particularly like the switches between past and present tense, but it was something I got used to. This was a debut novel, I think, and for a first novel, it was very solid. I'm looking forward to seeing what else this author comes up with and I'm interested to see more depth and dimension in her future novels.
My review is rather short and to the point, because I'm afraid of spoiling anything. I liked the book, but I think there was definitely room for improvement. I think the characters were strong, although it would have been nice to see a bit more dimension in all of them. The plot drew me in right away and kept me interested throughout the entire book. I didn't particularly like the switches between past and present tense, but it was something I got used to. This was a debut novel, I think, and for a first novel, it was very solid. I'm looking forward to seeing what else this author comes up with and I'm interested to see more depth and dimension in her future novels.
yasmingrabmeier's review against another edition
1.0
This was barely a 2 star for me. It’s hard for me to get through a book when I really don’t like the main character and this fmc was awful and the mmc was such a dummy. The only saving grace in this book is Millie and even then, it’s not enough for me to enjoy this book at all.
crtnybracy's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? Yes
4.0
A fresh take on the thriller/mystery genre. I enjoyed that this isn’t a whodunit murder mystery but instead a true psychological thriller where you know who the bad person is earlier on in the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Animal death and Death
Minor: Mental illness and Suicide
bexbookcase's review against another edition
5.0
well fuck me. this is the best bood I've read so far this year, it fucked me up at times because of how evil jack was i wanted to go through the book and kill him myself! amazing though highly recommend
ceskayyy's review against another edition
4.0
I devoured Behind Closed Doors in only 2 days because the writing was just that compelling and I could not put it down... but holy crap that was DARK. While I definitely feel like I now need to binge something super wholesome like Arthur or the Teletubbies, I have to say that I was impressed with this debut novel. Even though there were unfortunately parts of the story that just weren’t very plausible, B.A. Paris kept me so reeled in the entire time I didn’t really even care. I just had to know what happened and let me tell ya, that ending did not disappoint! Definitely looking forward to reading more thrillers by Paris.
samanthaburg's review against another edition
2.0
Like a bad Lifetime movie that you can't stop watching... Entertaining but improbable and laughable. I'm not off to a good start with thrillers in 2023.
emileejacks's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
bakedparmesan's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5