Reviews with content warning for Murder - Come Closer

This was good, and I really enjoyed the descent into madness/possession. The book on demon possession was interesting, if a little repetitive, but helped demonstrate the progression. I enjoyed hearing her thoughts, and the audiobook narrator did a good job at distinguishing between Amanda and Naamah. The religious backstory was a fun addition, and I was interested to read after finishing that this was not created just for the book. I still have questions, and the book was nowhere near 'terrifying' as it's heralded elsewhere, but I enjoyed the journey: the questioning of what's real, what happened, and what is going on with Amanda was done particularly well. I did find the book repetitive at times, and some sections were just silly (eg a instance of psychometry where Amanda sees two men fighting from behind, and as their backs looked similar, deduced they were brothers???), but overall I enjoyed it.

Content Warnings

aleareads's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

oh my goodness, this is one of the creepiest books I’ve read maybe ever!!

I picked it up because I was feeling in a slump and needed something to get myself in the fall mood, and it did just that. It’s a quick read perfect for fans of horror movies! The first person perspective was very well done! I do wish the ending was a little more fleshed out, but I understand how the slightly abrupt ending adds to the overall effect.

Read this if you enjoy:
🎥 horror movies
👹 possession stories
🙍‍♀️ first person POV

Content Warnings

itsjustgrumpy's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Dark, sick and heart breaking.

Content Warnings

hauntedantiqueshop's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious sad fast-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

2.5

I started reading this, paused for whatever reason, and accidentally forgot about it. Oops 😬

The choices… incomprehensible.

Amanda easily accepts that she’s being possessed and doesn’t really try to get rid of Naamah until it’s beyond too late. She didn’t think any of the warning signs (that she was VERY aware of) were weird and is just passively aware that her body is now being used for theft, adulterous sex, murder. Just shrugs that shit off. The scariest aspect of this is slowly losing yourself and all control of your life. Which is terrifying!!! But for a demonic possession story, you just expect more. That being said, her last thoughts before unknowingly killing Ed— so sad.

There really was no other way this little book could have ended though. But Amanda’s reason thrown in on the very last page felt so last minute, it didn’t match the entirety of the story for me.

Content Warnings

elizabethandhermonsters's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

I really enjoyed Come Closer, but I took a star off for the ending being completely predictable. I don't know if it's my pattern recognition, or maybe I possess some clairvoyance that I was unaware up to now, but Come Closer follows a long line of 2024 reads that I just "knew" before I read them. I think I was annoyed because the protagonist was so infuriatingly stubborn about her choices, and that contributed to the later events.

Make no mistake. Come Closer is a smart and forward-thinking novel that is tragic, thrilling, and surprisingly feminist, and I enjoyed the ride. Even with references to things that were common in 2003 that seem anachronistic now, I liked the pacing, the worldbuilding, and the complicated nature of Amanda, the woman who is either possessed or rapidly losing her grip on reality. Each of the main characters is complex and imperfect, and that's a nice change from the idealized characters a lot of the horror novels I've read this year tend to feature. Amanda felt relatable despite her frustrating decision-making process. She could be someone that you grab a beer with on a Friday night, or

The "big bad" is hard to hate, because she brings a new vitality to Amanda's comfortable-yet-one-dimensional existence that she otherwise would have experienced. This is good in some ways, but catastrophic in others, especially when Amanda absolutely refuses to communicate about what's happening to her.

If you like strong female leads, examinations of mental health, imperfect characters, and an antagonist who may have a point, then Come Closer is definitely for you.

Content Warnings

chrisxmaverick's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Content Warnings

More...

Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Come Closer by Sara Gran

macncheese_pdf's review against another edition

directorpurry's review

jesikakaley's review against another edition

judassilver's review against another edition

clarke's review against another edition

aleareads's review against another edition

itsjustgrumpy's review against another edition

hauntedantiqueshop's review against another edition

elizabethandhermonsters's review against another edition

chrisxmaverick's review against another edition