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gabs_parr's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
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
5.0
This book, a fictionalized account from the survivor’s and victim’s perspectives, changes the zeitgeist of how we think and discuss Ted Bundy and similar serial killers. It is natural to have a fascination with these killers. This novel shifts our attention from the serial killer to the women affected by him.
Every reference to how handsome, charming, cunning, or promising “The Defendant” was made me feel just as sick to my stomach as it has in real life when I’ve seen the same true remarks made about Bundy. This novel did not shy away from how hard women had to fight to be believed and how inadequate the media and law enforcement truly was when dealing with this case. Rather than admit to their wrong-doings, the authorities would rather spin a tale that Bundy was a mastermind of some kind, though his school records would indicate that he’s anything but… with this kind of misogyny and idiocy abound, it’s really a miracle he was ever convicted at all. In relation to the media portrayal, the character of Carl was really well done. He really showed that even amongst men who were supposed to be helpful friends, these women still faced an uphill battle of perception.
I loved the way Knoll knitted the two main female character together using the Tina character. It was a brilliant throughline. And the side drama of Ruth wrestling with her sexuality and family life was an excellent addition to the story. Sexuality changed everything for Ruth. It was because of the rejection of her family and her fight with Tina about her family that she went to her father’s ceremony solo, thus ending up at the lake alone on that fateful day. Pamela was an extremely strong and lovable character. She is relatable, smart, confident, and incredibly brave.
Something that I was really reminded of while reading this book is that women do not need to be nice to men. We do not owe men our time, our smiles, our attention, our help, nothing. If that makes us “bitches”, then so be it. It’s better to be an alive bitch than a dead nice lady. Ted Bundy was able to lure so many of his victims away because he made them feel bad for him and made them feel like they owed him help. They didn’t.
This book is a must read for all fans of true crime, thrillers, or mysteries.
Every reference to how handsome, charming, cunning, or promising “The Defendant” was made me feel just as sick to my stomach as it has in real life when I’ve seen the same true remarks made about Bundy. This novel did not shy away from how hard women had to fight to be believed and how inadequate the media and law enforcement truly was when dealing with this case. Rather than admit to their wrong-doings, the authorities would rather spin a tale that Bundy was a mastermind of some kind, though his school records would indicate that he’s anything but… with this kind of misogyny and idiocy abound, it’s really a miracle he was ever convicted at all. In relation to the media portrayal, the character of Carl was really well done. He really showed that even amongst men who were supposed to be helpful friends, these women still faced an uphill battle of perception.
I loved the way Knoll knitted the two main female character together using the Tina character. It was a brilliant throughline. And the side drama of Ruth wrestling with her sexuality and family life was an excellent addition to the story. Sexuality changed everything for Ruth. It was because of the rejection of her family and her fight with Tina about her family that she went to her father’s ceremony solo, thus ending up at the lake alone on that fateful day. Pamela was an extremely strong and lovable character. She is relatable, smart, confident, and incredibly brave.
Something that I was really reminded of while reading this book is that women do not need to be nice to men. We do not owe men our time, our smiles, our attention, our help, nothing. If that makes us “bitches”, then so be it. It’s better to be an alive bitch than a dead nice lady. Ted Bundy was able to lure so many of his victims away because he made them feel bad for him and made them feel like they owed him help. They didn’t.
This book is a must read for all fans of true crime, thrillers, or mysteries.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Murder, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Cursing, Fatphobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Kidnapping
abernathy_33's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexual violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Eating disorder, Incest, and Dementia
enc8659's review against another edition
emotional
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? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Murder
correnreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
erinjeanette's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexism, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
Minor: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Medical content, and Death of parent
bestkasescenario's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-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
5.0
If I could give this book more than 5 stars, I would. An excellent read, I love that this didn’t romanticize Bundy & respected the victims - even though it’s considered to be fiction. This is the story telling about murder victims & their families that needs to be in the world, not those bullshit Netflix shows that glorify murder. Well done - best book I’ve read all year
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting
madisonlcollins0917's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
hjb_128's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism and Alcohol
amyvl93's review against another edition
dark
reflective
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
3.5
This novel was everywhere last year and so I was excited to be picking up this novel at last; and was left having had a good reading experience but not one that I think will stay with me in the way that I wanted it to.
Bright Young Women is a fictionalised look at the final murders and arrest of Ted Bundy, told from the perspective of women whose lives were changed forever by him - one, Pamela - the president of the sorority shaken by the murders of their friends and the other, Ruth, who is learning to find herself and her identity away from her overbearing mother after the death of her father.
Knoll clearly has a message that she wants to share through this novel - which is that a fascination with serial killers and the rise of true crime risks further magnifying and amplifying men who were not that special, and whose stories shield those of the people whose lives they have either ended or affected forever. Bundy goes unnamed within the text, and his smart suaveness that we've come to hear as a given from numerous stories about him is consistently disrupted through the pages of this novel.
However, Bundy is not the only man who comes out poorly within this novel. There are bad boyfriends, journalists who see the potential of a career gain as of greater importance than reporting the truth, police forces who want to take the most straightforward way out and members of the judicial system who struggle to see a charming man as anything other than a potential victim. Knoll is excellent at building this just pile-up of male incompetence throughout the novel, in direct contrast to the women who are coming together to support each other and never let the truth go. Knoll also brings to life the pain of women with bright lights and lives ahead of them being cut short which are usually buried in our considerations of true crime narratives.
I did feel that there was a lot going on within the pages of this novel though, and did feel like there were opportunities for it to be tighter. The fictionalisation also didn't necessarily always work for me, it was slightly distracting knowing we were talking about a real man but that the women in the story were largely creations. Whilst I'm sure this was out of respect for the real victims, it felt that the narrative was almost saying that their real stories were not of interest enough for a novel to be created about them. I would have almost preferred Knoll to create an entirely fictitious scenario, with nods to Bundy, instead.
Bright Young Women is a fictionalised look at the final murders and arrest of Ted Bundy, told from the perspective of women whose lives were changed forever by him - one, Pamela - the president of the sorority shaken by the murders of their friends and the other, Ruth, who is learning to find herself and her identity away from her overbearing mother after the death of her father.
Knoll clearly has a message that she wants to share through this novel - which is that a fascination with serial killers and the rise of true crime risks further magnifying and amplifying men who were not that special, and whose stories shield those of the people whose lives they have either ended or affected forever. Bundy goes unnamed within the text, and his smart suaveness that we've come to hear as a given from numerous stories about him is consistently disrupted through the pages of this novel.
However, Bundy is not the only man who comes out poorly within this novel. There are bad boyfriends, journalists who see the potential of a career gain as of greater importance than reporting the truth, police forces who want to take the most straightforward way out and members of the judicial system who struggle to see a charming man as anything other than a potential victim. Knoll is excellent at building this just pile-up of male incompetence throughout the novel, in direct contrast to the women who are coming together to support each other and never let the truth go. Knoll also brings to life the pain of women with bright lights and lives ahead of them being cut short which are usually buried in our considerations of true crime narratives.
I did feel that there was a lot going on within the pages of this novel though, and did feel like there were opportunities for it to be tighter. The fictionalisation also didn't necessarily always work for me, it was slightly distracting knowing we were talking about a real man but that the women in the story were largely creations. Whilst I'm sure this was out of respect for the real victims, it felt that the narrative was almost saying that their real stories were not of interest enough for a novel to be created about them. I would have almost preferred Knoll to create an entirely fictitious scenario, with nods to Bundy, instead.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexism, Violence, and Grief
kellybee_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, and Murder