Reviews with content warning for Mass/school shootings - The Taking of Jake Livingston

There was a lot of internal dialogue and monologuing- a lot. The first half of the book I was completely invested but the second half was a lot of talking and thinking and not a lot of actual action driving the plot. Also, we need to include trigger warnings on the audiobooks too, because while I was prepared for the difficult content related to the violence of the ghost’s past, childhood SA is a deal breaker for me. Thankfully this was a buddy read so I had a friend fill me in before I got to that part. But I struggled overall with this one.

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niyareadstoomuch's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

4.0

quick read, I enjoyed the duo point of views between Sawyer and Jake. Sometimes the atmosphere and the way things were explained was confusing which I didn’t like, but it did a good job and keeping the story eerie and engaging, I think this would be an amazing film adaptation. The story, discusses, micro aggressions, racism, abuse, sexual assault, school shootings, so definitely check the trigger warnings before reading it, but it was an amazing read. Would definitely recommend

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eddieboy's review against another edition

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I started reading this on a day where I was rather stressed and sleep deprived, I have a history of mental health problems and I'm queer, probably wasn't the best thing to read in a state where I was more at risk of those kinds of thoughts. It's a good book and it discusses things a lot of books leave out. But I have it as a library book and I'm not sure if I'm ready to face it again really. At least not yet.

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tessa_stephens's review

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dark tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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curlyghost307's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

2.0

I dont like that it tried to make you feel bad for/sympathize with the school shooter. It was written well and covered other good topics, but that part just kinda soiled the book for me.

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herelieshenry's review against another edition

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challenging dark hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-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

3.75

This is a tough, but well-written, book. I’m a firm believer in the idea that if a child is old enough to experience something, they’re old enough to learn about it in an age-appropriate manner; that extends to the very difficult topics being dealt with here that, unfortunately, children experience every day, from mass violence to familial abuse to bullying and discrimination. On top of that, I think Douglass is genuinely very talented at writing Young Adult Horror, and these combine into a piece of art that I think is both accessible and very well-done.

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gellyreads's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Sawyer as a character is conflicting, but I liked the way this book set up the characters, powers, and world.

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