Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - Giftig rök

I sadly did not enjoy this one as much as I was hoping. I do have to say that the discussions in this are good and very important and I enjoyed those. I did enjoy the plot of this book and the family dynamics I do have to say nothing really creepy started happening until about 60% of the way through so that was kind of a bummer I didn’t see something coming so that was cool and I do have to say the last 15% I really liked. I just found this to be boring at first and I know she’s an addict and I know weed helped her with her anxiety but hearing about it every other sentence was driving me crazy. I really liked Sammy as a character as well. He was probably my favorite part of the book. I think I also didn’t like this because the main character was very unlikable at times and that was hard like I understood her side of things but it was just too much of at times.

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thatenbyisisreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This book had a bit of a slow start for me, but it picked up eventually. I made the grave mistake of reading this at night and I had to double check that I was alone in my room.. Don't be like me unless you like scaring yourself.

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catsandbookstacks's review against another edition

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4.0

Do you have a fear of bed bugs? If the answer is yes, skip this book.

White Smoke is a YA haunted house horror with a lens focused on addiction, gentrification, blended families and the criminalization of marijuana.

I love a haunted house story, asking yourself whether it's paranormal, just in your head or some other explanation. The author blends social commentary into the horror, which is what I typically expect within the genre these days. I'm upset at myself for sleeping on Tiffany D. Jackson until now and look forward to reading more!

Jackson set the ominous scene of Cedarville and Maple Street through the dilapidated neighbourhood, construction workers leaving the site as soon as 5pm hits and odd things happening around the house.

The steady build of peculiar occurrences are balanced by Marcella Cox's vivid narration. I felt anxiety each time Marigold spiraled over her fear of bed bugs. I admit, I checked my bed halfway through this book.

Marigold struggles to find her footing within her family and in a new town. The relationship she has with her brother is heartwarming, though she holds a lot of guilt over him finding her overdosing. Stepsister Piper is just as annoying as you'd expect a ten year old to be from the eyes of an older sibling.

The ending was somewhat abrupt and I could have used an epilogue to provide a little more closure for the characters and town. Perhaps a sequel?

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madyou's review against another edition

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mysterious tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

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greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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peachmoni's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

My biggest gripe is the ending. I would have liked to see what happened directly after the events of the last chapter, when

The Foundation is finally exposed

. Maybe the author left it ambiguous because in real life, those with money, power and privilege usually win.

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booknerderika's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was good. I liked the character development from Marigold. I didn't like the ending. It felt like it needed an epilogue at the least. There were also some parts that felt rushed, but overall the pacing wasn't too bad. I was hooked on this story and had to keep reading to find out what was going on and what was going to happen. I just want to know what happened after all the chaos. I need some type of closure.

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