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cassielaj's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
This was pretty mid… it kept me interested enough, so I read it really fast to figure out what was going on, but I thought it was just fine. I didn’t really like any of the characters, and even though it wasn’t necessarily predictable, it alluded to a lot that made the twists feel kind of dull. I also do not like an epilogue twist unless it’s done really well, which this wasn’t really. A decent summer vacay thriller, but not my favorite by any means. I also thought the characters’ attitudes about the locals and Thailand/Asia in general were icky.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Violence, and Murder
mstall_'s review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
The Resort by Sara Ochs is exactly what you need to tide you over until the new season of White Lotus airs. Set in Thailand (much like White Lotus' newest season will be), The Resort follows a group of ex-pats who live and work on a remote island resort. All of them appear to be running from something, and none of them care to share what that is.
The book pivots between two POVs, Brooke and Cass. At first it can feel a little annoying, especially because they sound alike as you're reading so sometimes it can feel confusing. Once you get the hang of it though the book is easy to sail through.
We find out early on the someone has died, but we don't know who. We also don't know who killed them. For the next 400ish pages we are uncovering the mystery along with the main characters as more people are killed. Cass, an expat living in Thailand to escape the deaths of her sister and father, is fearful that her past has now caught up to her and is threatening to ruin everything she's tried to rebuild. Brooke, a travel influencer, is committed to discovering who is killing resort guests and to enact revenge of her own.
At first I didn't think I was going to finish this book because I often hate thrillers that start "too hot" i.e. the prologue is a violent death of an unknown character and it's chaotic and unclear. However, I gave this book another shot and I'm glad I did. The first few chapters are chaotic and somewhat annoying but the rest of the book starts to pick up speed and you fly through it. There are twists and turns until the literal last page, which I love. The ending of this book had me thinking "oh SHIT". Highly recommend.
The book pivots between two POVs, Brooke and Cass. At first it can feel a little annoying, especially because they sound alike as you're reading so sometimes it can feel confusing. Once you get the hang of it though the book is easy to sail through.
We find out early on the someone has died, but we don't know who. We also don't know who killed them. For the next 400ish pages we are uncovering the mystery along with the main characters as more people are killed. Cass, an expat living in Thailand to escape the deaths of her sister and father, is fearful that her past has now caught up to her and is threatening to ruin everything she's tried to rebuild. Brooke, a travel influencer, is committed to discovering who is killing resort guests and to enact revenge of her own.
At first I didn't think I was going to finish this book because I often hate thrillers that start "too hot" i.e. the prologue is a violent death of an unknown character and it's chaotic and unclear. However, I gave this book another shot and I'm glad I did. The first few chapters are chaotic and somewhat annoying but the rest of the book starts to pick up speed and you fly through it. There are twists and turns until the literal last page, which I love. The ending of this book had me thinking "oh SHIT". Highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
amanda_reads89's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Alcohol
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
minimicropup's review against another edition
3.5
This annoyed me…why did I like it?! I’m glad I stuck it out but struggled with the way it was told.
Energy: Spiteful. Confounded. Secretive.
Scene: 🇹🇭 Set on the (fictional) island of Koh Sang, Thailand
Perspective: We follow two main characters, both in their twenties. One is an American with a negative reputation who moved to Thailand and became a diving instructor. The other is an aspiring American journalist working as a travel influencer on Instagram. Each chapter alternates between their perspectives.
🐕 Howls: The overly detailed writing style that didn’t contribute much to the story. Lack of atmosphere and culture. Ambiguous characters when the author has a specific appearance in mind. MC lying through…inner monologue?
🐩 Tail Wags: The story. The setting (in theory).
🤔 Random Thoughts:
It was too easy to confuse Brooke and Cass. They sounded the same in their text voice; audio saved me once I picked up on the nuance between the audio narrators.
Finding out a character was dishonest for most of the book was puzzling. We mostly get detailed inner monologues, so why would she think and overanalyze so deceitfully?
The setting was unique but underwhelming. It is not a luxury resort but more of a hostel, which I prefer, but it lacked atmosphere and took awhile to figure that out (it could have been any tropical island). I get the main characters were American, but the setting wasn’t. It was so absent of any cultural authenticity of Thailand.
The narrative pace is slow; it sometimes felt like the story unfolded in real-time. I love that, but the present tense narration made all the mundane day-to-day details seem overly dramatic and diluted the suspense because stretching in the morning had the same build-up as discovering a dead body.
The way-too-late dropping of minor but key details like character or setting specifics (appearance or an off-resort bar…) killed my mind-eye imaginings. It was so frustrating that I started ignoring what the author said about the characters’ appearance and setting later in the book.
Was there even a single Thai character in this book? Is that realistic? I have no idea, but it seemed weird.
----
🎬 Tale-Telling: YA style direct and simplistic. Verbose with lots of spoon-feeding and handholding.
🤓 Reader Role: Deep in the MCs’ minds, overhearing all their thoughts, reflections, and vague scheming as they go about their days, but not getting much context.
🗺️ World-Building: Detailed, but it didn’t capture the atmosphere and unique setting.
🔥 Fuel: Why did our main characters choose to stay on this island? What are their secrets? What are the guests’ secrets? How do they all connect? Who is killing staff on the island? Will our main characters survive? Who can they trust?
📖 Cred: Suspended disbelief, plausible-ish
🚙 Journey: Week-long vacay on a tropical island. Starts fun but soon becomes claustrophobic. Looking forward to going home.
Mood Reading Match-Up:
-White sand. Waves rolling in. Sour bar. Ocean salt. Grilled seafood. Suiting up with diving equipment.
-Not-all-is-as-it-seems characters lying and scheming
-Contemporary fiction about ex-pat island life in a hostel-style resort with a of thriller and YA writing style mash-up
Content Heads-Up: Death, dead body. Alcohol, drug use (partying, recreational). Sexual assault. Blood. Rape (on page). Mental illness (bipolar, brief). Drugging. Loss of sibling. Loss of parent. Medical (heart, brief). Adult/minor relationship (off page, mentioned). Gun violence. PTSD. Panic attack. Sexual harassment. False accusations.
Rep: White, somewhat ambiguous British and American. Swedish, Laotian, and Israeli peripheral characters. Heterosexual. Bisexual. Lesbian. Cisgender.
📚 Format: Everand Audio
My musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶
Energy: Spiteful. Confounded. Secretive.
Scene: 🇹🇭 Set on the (fictional) island of Koh Sang, Thailand
Perspective: We follow two main characters, both in their twenties. One is an American with a negative reputation who moved to Thailand and became a diving instructor. The other is an aspiring American journalist working as a travel influencer on Instagram. Each chapter alternates between their perspectives.
🐕 Howls: The overly detailed writing style that didn’t contribute much to the story. Lack of atmosphere and culture. Ambiguous characters when the author has a specific appearance in mind. MC lying through…inner monologue?
🐩 Tail Wags: The story. The setting (in theory).
🤔 Random Thoughts:
It was too easy to confuse Brooke and Cass. They sounded the same in their text voice; audio saved me once I picked up on the nuance between the audio narrators.
Finding out a character was dishonest for most of the book was puzzling. We mostly get detailed inner monologues, so why would she think and overanalyze so deceitfully?
The setting was unique but underwhelming. It is not a luxury resort but more of a hostel, which I prefer, but it lacked atmosphere and took awhile to figure that out (it could have been any tropical island). I get the main characters were American, but the setting wasn’t. It was so absent of any cultural authenticity of Thailand.
The narrative pace is slow; it sometimes felt like the story unfolded in real-time. I love that, but the present tense narration made all the mundane day-to-day details seem overly dramatic and diluted the suspense because stretching in the morning had the same build-up as discovering a dead body.
The way-too-late dropping of minor but key details like character or setting specifics (appearance or an off-resort bar…) killed my mind-eye imaginings. It was so frustrating that I started ignoring what the author said about the characters’ appearance and setting later in the book.
Was there even a single Thai character in this book? Is that realistic? I have no idea, but it seemed weird.
----
🎬 Tale-Telling: YA style direct and simplistic. Verbose with lots of spoon-feeding and handholding.
🤓 Reader Role: Deep in the MCs’ minds, overhearing all their thoughts, reflections, and vague scheming as they go about their days, but not getting much context.
🗺️ World-Building: Detailed, but it didn’t capture the atmosphere and unique setting.
🔥 Fuel: Why did our main characters choose to stay on this island? What are their secrets? What are the guests’ secrets? How do they all connect? Who is killing staff on the island? Will our main characters survive? Who can they trust?
📖 Cred: Suspended disbelief, plausible-ish
🚙 Journey: Week-long vacay on a tropical island. Starts fun but soon becomes claustrophobic. Looking forward to going home.
Mood Reading Match-Up:
-White sand. Waves rolling in. Sour bar. Ocean salt. Grilled seafood. Suiting up with diving equipment.
-Not-all-is-as-it-seems characters lying and scheming
-Contemporary fiction about ex-pat island life in a hostel-style resort with a of thriller and YA writing style mash-up
Content Heads-Up: Death, dead body. Alcohol, drug use (partying, recreational). Sexual assault. Blood. Rape (on page). Mental illness (bipolar, brief). Drugging. Loss of sibling. Loss of parent. Medical (heart, brief). Adult/minor relationship (off page, mentioned). Gun violence. PTSD. Panic attack. Sexual harassment. False accusations.
Rep: White, somewhat ambiguous British and American. Swedish, Laotian, and Israeli peripheral characters. Heterosexual. Bisexual. Lesbian. Cisgender.
📚 Format: Everand Audio
My musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, and Alcohol
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Blood, and Medical content
soobooksalot's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
Thailand. Two women. Twists upon twists.
This is The Resort by Sara Ochs.
Cass has lived in the island of Koh Sang for two years - she works as a divemaster and is recently engaged.
Brooke is a travel blogger, well-known on Instagram for her gorgeous photos and location recommendations.
Both are on the island to escape pasts they couldn't shed.
Suspicious deaths have been taking place on Koh Sang, making for the ultimate "locked island" mystery. Chapters alternate between Cass and Brooke, slowly peeling back each woman's story with tons of reveals.
This was a fun and satisfying thriller, perfect for a summer or travel read.
Recommended!
This is The Resort by Sara Ochs.
Cass has lived in the island of Koh Sang for two years - she works as a divemaster and is recently engaged.
Brooke is a travel blogger, well-known on Instagram for her gorgeous photos and location recommendations.
Both are on the island to escape pasts they couldn't shed.
Suspicious deaths have been taking place on Koh Sang, making for the ultimate "locked island" mystery. Chapters alternate between Cass and Brooke, slowly peeling back each woman's story with tons of reveals.
This was a fun and satisfying thriller, perfect for a summer or travel read.
Recommended!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
ynadavis's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
The best part of the audiobook is that at least one of the narrators mispronounces a surprising number of words and it keeps you on your toes (in a way the story doesn't).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
tracyweiler's review
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Rape, and Murder
Minor: Child abuse and Sexual assault
eliza_beth_23's review
adventurous
dark
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Infidelity, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Mental illness and Injury/Injury detail
melinda_sue124's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I will write an indepth review after I let my thoughts settle. But overall it was a good book imo, it definitely seemed by the synopsis it was like the movie fantasy Island meets a murderous TV show/game minus the prize money at the end and it was definitely not that lol. But more thoughts to come.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
emviolet's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
3.0
this was an okay thriller until the last third, when everything g started to feel a bit rushed and jumbled. i think there was just too much going on and too many twists being attempted instead of just letting the story have a few main elements. the epilogue also was not a good move in my opinion.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Mental illness, and Blood