Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Reprieve

The summary for this book, while not exactly misleading, is a lot flashier than what is presented in text. A murder happens in a full contact haunted escape room, but the real meat of the story is the characters' backgrounds, and what led each of them into this situation. It takes a look at the toxicity of sexism, racial fetishism, and entitlement. I really enjoyed the concept of the Quigley House as a whole, even if I'm too chicken to set foot in a place like that, and I'm imagining how vindicated the characters who condemned the attraction from the beginning must feel. Overall, a good read even if it wasn't quite what I was expecting.

Content Warnings

ouijabroad's review against another edition

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fast-paced

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

1.5

This book had me hooked in the beginning, but ultimately it didn’t accomplish anything. I think tackling racism in horror (as there IS a lot in horror genre) could have been meaningful, but in this case it just didn’t accomplish anything.

As others have said,

I still don’t understand John’s obsession with Bryan or his motive for killing him. I don’t understand how it benefited him in any way…if anything it hurt him since the Quigley House couldn’t stay open after the murder.

Also, LOTS of fatphobia. Anyone described as beautiful or good looking is always thin, but anyone who is in a larger body we need to be reminded all the time that they are large and jiggle etc etc especially when it came to Rae. An unlikeable fat character who talks about food???? How original.

This author talks about racism, stereotyping and xenophobia, but I think he needs to examine his own biases.

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soph_solberg's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense

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

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solanacr's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad 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? N/A

3.75

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queergoth_reads's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

I was definitely expecting something different when I started this book. If I had realised it was more literary I don't think I would have been as disappointed as I was with this.

Overall I think it was a good book but it wasn't really a horror and my expectations were all wrong. I didn't find sympathy for any of the characters except maybe Kendra and think she could have done this a bit more at the end.

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mxajlikesbooks's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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apersonfromflorida's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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