Reviews

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters

jckrbbt's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

5.0

bredabear4823's review against another edition

2.0

Sorry. This one is boring. Nothing much happens. The print is too small and too light on the pages for my 67 year old eyes. I did find it funny how much the author used the word "handsome" so much to describe people and things. 

merleslover's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-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

1.75

millerhope25's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

2.0

An incredibly boring book. It’s just a man telling a story. Nothing happens. Absolutely shocked that some people found it scary, because to me it wasn’t spooky at all. 

khrb's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad 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

4.75

the_sassy_bookworm's review against another edition

4.0

I really rather enjoyed this one! This was my first time reading anything from this author and I was honestly blown away, the writing is so atmospheric and beautiful. The story doesn't move along at a fast pace, but rather a slow methodical buildup, with detailed descriptions and wonderfully spooky happenings! Even though the story moves along slowly, I could not put this book down and finished it in two days. If you like old fashion Gothic reads, then this would definitely be one to add to you "to read" list!

lindylevito's review

4.0

This book was a slow burn, but I found it worth reading until the end. It reveals itself to you little by little and waits for you to catch on. The twist at the end is very subtle, but made me reevaluate everything I had read previously.

That's what gained a four star rating for me. The way you slowly piece together the real antagonist of the book, and once you do, everything you have read before is put into doubt and your perceptions are accordingly adjusted. I'm trying to be as vague as possible without talking of spoilers.

My advice (even if you find it tedious at first): stick with it.

norcani's review

5.0

This was exactly my kind of atmospheric gothic horror. Well, perhaps I shouldn't call it horror. It really is more of a historical fiction with some elements of horror - I don't think anyone would get genuinely spooked by it, except Stephen King apparently but at this point I'm convinced he blurbs everything with a variation of "This was so scary I peed my pants 3 times".

ave_reviews's review against another edition

4.0

“The Little Stranger” has all the ingredients for a standard gothic ghost story (Creepy houses! Spinsters! An unreliable narrator!) but with her masterful research and character studies, Sarah Waters weaves these elements into a vibrant and unique work of art. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
Her vivid descriptions, both of the setting and of the minds of the characters, drew me in from the first page and kept me reading until the delightfully eerie end. I’m hooked, and looking forward to reading her other books.

katykat3's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5