Reviews

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Bad Ones by Melissa Albert was a beautifully written, atmospheric fantasy horror that sucks the reader in and doesn’t let go.

As someone who normally doesn’t read this genre, I loved this book as an introduction. The author did an great job of creating complex and endearing characters with relationships that were layered and unexpected. The plot was sinister and twisty and just dark enough to turn my stomach into knots without leaving me with nightmares.

I gave this book four stars and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to anyone, especially if they are new to the genre. The writing was lovely, the pacing exciting, and the characters tugged on my heartstrings. An overall excellent read.

hraeearl22's review against another edition

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4.0

Definitely a YA horror-type novel. Not super scary, but definitely effective in filling me with dread. The story’s pacing was slow, but still kept me interested. I found the theme to be well-represented: that the desire for revenge will “possess” you if you do not maintain control of it, and it will continue to grow and spread to others. An oversimplification, of course, for the sake of brevity. I will have to look into Albert’s other books.

bananaphive's review against another edition

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2.0

Just fine. The lore/ghost part of the story isn’t well developed but the story is fun and you are rooting for the protagonist.

julias_books_18's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I am so confused by the ending I can't even really explain what part I am actually confused about.
Decently spooky though, I guess.

felis_ignota's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-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

burdasnest's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.5

This book had a promising premise, but was ultimately unsatisfying. I think there were times when the “goddess” legend tidbits were too disparate. You would think a goddess born from sixties counterculture (cool idea) would have more substance.

The depiction of a toxic friendship and adding supernatural elements to it was one of the strong points.

Also, smaller critiques, but the wrongs of some of targets were too vague to have us rooting against them, and I don’t think that the protagonist lied much more than the average kid, at least enough to earn her the liar reputation.

lelandco's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

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