Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Five Total Strangers by Natalie D. Richards

15 reviews

imlaurenshelton's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

had no intention of reading through this book so quickly but was able to knock it out in one sitting! The hook is just good enough to keep your attention throughout the story. This is a young adult thriller, with some gore-ish depictions throughout but I would say it’s a pretty enjoyable book. Especially for those more inclined to true crime and mysteries. I was actually very surprised by the ending, totally buying into the character’s mindset throughout the book (well with a few exceptions). The final chapters of the book may be disturbing to some readers, as they involve death, stalking, violence, and drug use. In the end, Mira learns to listen to what her Father told her on the phone: Always trust your gut.

im rating this a 4.5 because it is a great thrill read but did include some disturbing content that may not be well-suited for teens. I think if death and injuries make you queasy this book may not be for you, I’d be happy to recommend a less gruesome thriller for you, just let me know! This book was a fun read, but not worth a purchase for me, a one and done for sure.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Stalking, and Car accident

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Gun violence, and Violence

Minor: Medical content and Alcohol

The story follows a teenage girl trying to make it home to her mother on Christmas Eve when the last leg of her flight is cancelled. She decides to hitch a ride home with four strangers after the girl she sat next to on the plane offers her a spot for free. (BTW there is mention of turbulence but no plane crash.) The weather gets increasingly worse throughout the book, and Mira’s nerves are making her increasingly antsy because she feels like someone is watching her, and he is. There are letters written to Mira from the stalker’s perspective throughout the book. Along the ride, mishaps continue and violence ensues. There are car accidents, theft, drug abuse and addiction, and death. In one scene, an unfortunate incident involves running a young man over, it is unknown if he survived. Another man chases the car full of strangers around, toting a gun and threatening them, which leaves them with an ominous feeling, There are a few scenes that take place in hospitals but none are gruesome or overbearing. The final chapters of the book may be disturbing to some readers, as they involve death, stalking, violence, and drug use.

aconfundityofcrows's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

3.0

A good, but tense read if you like this sort of thing. :) Also it takes place over Christmas Eve, as the main characters travel across Pennsylvania from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh. Seeing as I read this during said dates and currently live in Pittsburgh, I find this a tad prescient.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Stalking, Car accident, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, and Vomit

Minor: Drug use, Medical content, and Alcohol

kimveach's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad 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

2.75

I picked this book up because it was a Libby "All Read" selection. I assumed that meant it was really good, but I was wrong. As a thriller, I enjoyed it right until the end, but there were so many loose ends that it left me very unsatisfied.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

pastry's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• 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

4.0

Wow, this was fantastic. The slow creeping terror the longer it all goes on and the weirder everyone behaves. I had a hunch of who it could be at the end, but I wasn't fully correct. I could never quite settle until right before it was revealed, so this was really well done. I think the one thing that was missing a bit for me was at the start - I never really warmed up to any of the other four characters, so it wasn't hard to be suspicious of all of them. I'd have liked it a bit better if some of that had seemed genuinely nice at the start, but Harper already seemed like a bit much. 
And

ngl, as much as Josh being the creep made sense, I think it would have actually been great if it had turned out to be a woman instead, which is why I suspected Harper for the longest time. I still kinda figured it would be expected for it to be a man, since that does seem to be more common, but it being a woman would have been great to subvert that trope.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail

bookishgoob's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail