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brulereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
danaslitlist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
When I tell you at the beginning of the book I jokingly said to myself, "Watch it be X character" because that would be the most random yet predictable killer, I'm dead serious. And lo and behold, I was right. Not only did I find this reveal a complete let down because narratively it felt lazy, it was also a let down because while yes, it might be "shocking" that doesn't make it good. The reason it was shocking was because there was literally ZERO groundwork or clues leading to it being X. Of course it was going to shock the reader when you pull a villain out of thin air.
Add on top of that issue the totally misogynistic and bizarre logic of X's motives, and you've got a mess of an ending. Do I understand that serial killers have a tendency to be a misogynistic and illogical? Oh absolutely! But that doesn't fit the picture that has been painted of this character. If X is trying to punish people in retaliation for their past, why is it that it falls solely on this one type of victim and not the other when it's proven on page that they blame both types of people for the trauma of their past? It just didn't make sense to me. And maybe that is on me for expecting this genius level serial killer to have morals or emotions (even though again, we're shown that they're acting out of a place of EMOTION AND MORALS).
And, you're telling me that Rosa didn't realize WHO POTENTIALLY was involved when that event in the past was marked with a chestnut doll?!?! I cannot. I cannot.
But what absolutely stings the most is that the final lesson in this book is: traumatized and abused children turn into bad adults who will the same to others, intentionally or not. There is a severe lack of nuance or empathy towards X’s sibling who most definitely was not mentally well and extremely traumatized.
This was so beyond disappointing as the atmosphere and the build up was well crafted.
PS: the minister lady deserves to rot in hell.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
clarabooksit'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? No
3.25
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Confinement, Gore, Mental illness, Torture, Blood, Stalking, and Abandonment
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
lyton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Graphic: Rape and Sexual assault
Minor: Abandonment