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thenovelbookshelf's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-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
This is a solid read, with a great premise and an open-ended ending. However, the revenge part lacked feeling and meaning that the whole journey for 'Lydia' was for nothing.
Very much The Talented Mr Ripley meets revenge.
Very much The Talented Mr Ripley meets revenge.
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Suicide and Murder
itsnotalakeitsanocean's review
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
[Updating because somehow my review got eaten]
This book was extremely frustrating to get through. My points of praise would be that I enjoyed the setting, and I felt that the group of rich, spoiled teenagers that the main character wormed her way into were realistic as a friend group would go.
Such a shame then that the protagonist spends most of the book hesitating over going through with the murders she set out to do! I probably should have DNF'd whenshe stopped the sisters from drinking the wine that she deliberately poisoned but I suppose my curiosity was still piqued.
The ending also feels extremely rushed and one of the plot points,the protagonist losing video evidence framing one of the sisters as a bad basketball player, proving her scholarship was forged , goes completely unresolved despite the fact the protagonist made such a big deal about it.
This book was extremely frustrating to get through. My points of praise would be that I enjoyed the setting, and I felt that the group of rich, spoiled teenagers that the main character wormed her way into were realistic as a friend group would go.
Such a shame then that the protagonist spends most of the book hesitating over going through with the murders she set out to do! I probably should have DNF'd when
The ending also feels extremely rushed and one of the plot points,
Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Classism
Intriguing premise; terrible execution that lead the book to be subpar in my opinion. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the setting, seeing just how terrible the family the protagonist was targetting was, and learning the lengths that the protagonist went to go through to keep her identity a secret. It's just a shame then that she spends most of the book fretting over actually going through with the very thing she set out to do. I can understand feeling at least some hesitation about taking a life, but I knew things were only going to only get more annoying when
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