Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

17 reviews

mainereading's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

3.0

I've watched a few movies based on the original novella, and I was really excited to pick this up. Surprisingly enough, I haven't read the original novella yet and I really need to! I liked this book, and I ended up reading it in one sitting. It was a wild read with an interesting twist. Some of the characters had me ticked off. A couple of the kids were spoiled little brats that should have been disciplined and the men in this book were trash. Overall, I liked this book but I didn’t love it and I really wanted to love it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

sammybee's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

Good read but probably won't read again, got this book from my local library.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, and Murder

Minor: Child death, Infidelity, and Sexual harassment

achristi's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

I CRIED

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Murder

greatexpectations77's review

mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

This was quite creepy, and I appreciated all of the tension and mystery that Ms. Ware built up over the course of the book. But I didn't feel like the resolution was fully satisfying. It was like a friend telling you how incredibly delicious a restaurant is for lots of hours, and then you show up there and all they have is toast. Like, does this technically fulfill the need? Yeah, but you feel disappointed that the build-up didn't lead to a huge ending.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Minor: Death of parent and Murder

taliatalksbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

3.25

The Turn Of The Key by Ruth Ware didn’t live up to her other books, but was still suspenseful and thrilling throughout. If you’ve been following me for a while, you know that I love Ware’s books, and though this one isn’t necessarily an exception, it certainly wasn’t my favorite of hers. This was mainly to do with the format and conclusion of the novel. While I liked the twisty turns this took, I definitely would have liked a more robust conclusion. The last few letters felt a little lacking in detail when compared to the rest of the story, and I think that some of the emotion that (having read the end) should have been present, didn’t come through in the format of the letters as it might have in a more first hand (rather than reflexive) narration. While I did like the story, and the way it unfolded, this felt like it fell more into the “withholding information to surprise the reader”category than it did into the “skillfully placed clues until the big reveal” category. Usually I find Ware’s books to fall into the second category, and while there were a few breadcrumbs, I didn’t feel like the clues were obvious enough throughout to help have the ah-ha moment at the twist. All that being said, Ware is still one of my favorite suspense writers, and I’m looking forward to my next Ruth Ware read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Murder, and Sexual harassment

pershie13's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• 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? No

5.0

Let me start off by saying this: Oh. My. Gosh. I read The Woman in Cabin 10 a few years ago and still remember some of the uneasy feelings it gave me as a read, but this book took that to another level. I was questioning everyone and everything along with the main character, and I felt such deep emotions of unease and confusion as I tried to solve the mystery as I was reading. I don't think I have ever read a book that stirred up so many different emotions from start to finish, and I am not in the least bit surprised by how much I liked this book. The creepiness of the tech and surveillance was relatable as someone who tends to be afraid of the dark side of technology, and I found myself telling the main character to get the heck out of there pretty much from the start. The plot twist in the last hundred pages was truly shocking, and I love how Ruth Ware brought the whole book together in the end. The last couple pages definitely left me asking questions, and I did not expect the book to end the way it did. This is one of the best books I have read this year - or even ever - and definitely one of the most thrilling! An automatic 5-star read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Blood, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Gore, Sexual content, Grief, Abandonment, and Alcohol

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.75

The futuristic gothic novel I didn’t know I needed. Every moment was infused with stress and dread, I could not put it down. The red herrings kept me guessing and I had no idea how it would end even up to the last page. This is my 5th Ruth Ware book and probably my favourite. All I can say is WOWEE and smart homes are an absolute no for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Infidelity, Sexual assault, Abandonment, and Alcohol

ameliaflint's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Really good thriller! An excellent suspenseful read that had me on the edge of my seat. The only thing was, there were a few things that weren't quite explained in full about the happenings. I definitely couldn't have predicted the ending. A great one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Cursing

Minor: Child abuse, Incest, Self harm, Sexual content, and Murder

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

Holy shit! So many twists and turns I did not anticipate. I like that the book is written in a series of letters and that the narrator is not necessarily reliable. This book definitely made me a bit jumpy and the ending brought tears to my eyes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

morganperks's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Incest, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Stalking