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niceonehros's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
While much of the content is troubling, disturbing, and hard, this book was worth the discomfort. I don't want to give anything away, but do make sure you read the Afterword.sinisterbeard's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Addiction
cady_sass's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
After reading more reviews from people i follow, it seems like it is widely agreed that going in blind was definitely best, and i agree, and that most of the 5 star reviews I see are upon SECOND read. Which makes a lot of sense. I would probably give this 3.75… it is REALLY hard to talk about this without spoilers. Up until the last few chapters, I had some serious qualms with the representation here and how it could be damaging. I fear that because of the way it’s written, this could be triggering and people would not understand the full story or even finish it, so even though I can retract my claws (pun intended) I think the damage can still be done. I will attempt a second read at some point and see if my feelings change.
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
chelsearae87's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
evekcarroll'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
I think thrillers should be read blindly (I read the blurb, and I'll be honest say that this may have contributed to my overall disappointment). But briefly, the general set up for this book is that a girl with a popiscle disappeared years ago and the case has remained cold. It is a peculiar and sad case that leads us to Needless Street through the eyes of Ted, a murder suspect. As readers, we linger in several minds throughout this book, that of Ted and his cat (yes, there is a perspective of a cat) and Dee, a determined woman seeking to avenge her sister.
Indeed, this book is twisted and dark. I mean exploring the world through the eyes of an alleged murderer is an unsettling experience, and did make for a distrubing atmosphere throughout. But I think the perspective of the cat is where the light shines in this book. This is more imaginative than the plot itself in my opinion. I do think that the author makes each character distinctive and they all have their unique voices. However, I struggled through Ted's chapters as I just couldn't make sense of what was going on, and perhaps that was the goal, and I guess it was judging where the plot went, but it was so confusing at times that I just felt bored.
The writing is accessible and descriptive at times, it was not hard to picture scenes. But I just think the plot could have been more fleshed out. It isn't unusual to read thrillers dedicated to missing children and and creepy old men who are unrealistically hunted by family of the missing. There just wasn't a wow factor, or shock, that thrillers so desperately need in order to stand out. The twist (if you can even call it that) was predictable. Yes, seeds were planted early on in the book, but I would argue they were not seeds but flowers already in bloom, it was that obvious to me. When all was revealed, I found myself counting how many pages were left in the hopes that there was more to come. There wasn't. Thrillers shouldn't be like that.
I will give the book some credit from the perspective that it offers an interesting exploration of mental health. But definitely be warned that this may be extremely triggering.
I think I have read too many thrillers like this, and I think thrillers need to thrill, as it didn't thrill me I have to rate this low. I think this would suffice as a good starting point for people looking to get into reading adult thrillers.
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, and Blood
terrestrial_river's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Medical content and Abandonment
amandanerissa's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Alcohol
Moderate: Animal death and Medical trauma
kcelena's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
corncake'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Torture
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Drug use, Suicide, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Vomit
themaddbeanie's review against another edition
- 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
0.5
Yeah, someone's mental illness is not your horror story. You can't just steal a real disorder and turn it into a "freak show" for others to gawk at. Disrespectful
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Grief, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, and Vomit
I feel like this could potentially be very upsetting for people with certain mental illnesses or those who have experienced abuse.