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lilias'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
3.5
I almost quit The Last House on Needless Street, except I never stop reading a book for the very reason that I’m glad I continued. I hated the first third or so. I read it thinking it was being weird just for the sake of being weird, it was irritatingly oddball. Then towards the middle I settled in to it, still thinking “wtf,” but in a more subdued voice. By the end of the book I thought it was so good. So I approached Sundial with this experience in mind. I had a similar experience with Sundial as I did with The Last House on Needless Street, I had this bubble of “wtf” over my head for a lot of it, but since I had learned to trust Ward, my overall experience was more enjoyable throughout.
It is a story about mothers and daughters, and, being a relatively new mother to a daughter, those stories hit me in a certain way. I was interested the whole time, and I’ve never read a book like this.
But a few things take off a star for me: first, I hate reading about animal abuse, and there is a lot of it throughout this book. In her afterward, Ward explains her reasoning for including it, but I still could have gotten the message if it had not been so graphic and so central. I suspect this is the same part of me that doesn’t like gore in movies but loves eerie suspense.
The second part that really irked me were the Arrowood parts. They stuck out to me as totally unnecessary, though I could have missed a very good reason to include them. But until someone gives me a good reason as to why they were included, I think they took away from the flow of the book, and a smoother narration would have made this book so much better.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Gore
maregred's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, and Infidelity
Minor: Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
kds247's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death
laneychaney's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infertility
jrocbutterfly'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
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Child death, Self harm, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
jesselyn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
lionfish_22'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? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
marselise's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Murder
Moderate: Gore and Infidelity
eggplantia5's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
3.5
Everyone is kind of the villain, (except Callie), but everyone is also trying their best. You don't really get to know Irving and find out why he's so terrible, although maybe just being a white male from a rich family is enough characterization?
The story unfolds well, even when I thought I figured out the twists in advance, there was additional color that made the payoff satisfying.
Borrowed from library, could see myself buying in the future.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, and Medical trauma
annie_reads_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail