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howorth's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Weird
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
hannaheinhorn's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I listened to this on Audible and really disliked the male narrator’s speaking style. This book reads a bit YA. I had seen this book talked about as “literary horror” and truthfully, I wouldn’t consider it “literary” in the sense that it wasn’t very sophisticated, which in this case, was something I was hoping for. I didn’t hate it, but the ending did cheapen it for me. I wanted much more story on the dagger man and cared so much less about the kids who were investigating the story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic friendship
mmccombs's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
3.5
Unsure exactly what to make of this one! I enjoyed the first half or so, coming-of-age story meets a serial killer reveal. But once it got overly meta I kind of lost it. I had a hard time with how this book was organized and felt that there was maybe one too many layers. I lost track of who was real and what had actually happened, which was the point and did make that piece of this story effective, but from a pure “did I enjoy that” perspective I did not. I did think it was an interesting indictment of the true crime genre and the writing made for some great lines and tangible atmosphere. But on the whole I’m leaving this book feeling a bit frustrated by the ending and unsatisfied.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis