Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

15 reviews

caffeinatednymph's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse

Moderate: Kidnapping and Abandonment

Minor: Transphobia and Xenophobia

aleen_elizabeth's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

sierrabowers's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful informative mysterious reflective tense 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? Yes

5.0

This was a great read. It reminded me of ‘the turn of the key’ by Ruth Ware (which is a good thing). I also really liked the ending, because

it didn’t end with the main character breaking her sobriety.

it is a great story showcasing that even through hard times, you can stay sober. I really liked how the author incorporated that into the story, and showed how previous addicts can get better and have a full life.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

ivykennerauthor's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Racism and Violence

Minor: Transphobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Outing, Abandonment, and Alcohol

savreads28's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

dazedl's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense 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? Yes

3.25

ahh i like how intriguing this story and it's actually quite well written.. as long as you can get past the overtly cliched trope of "atheistic vegan leftist millenial parents" like how avid fox news views people who are not conservative in their book lol

also the epilogue was boring and the book would be better off without that part 😭

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Transphobia, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment

jennabeck13's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)

Genre: Thriller

About 370 pages

Mallory Quinn is a recovering addict who has spent the past two years desperately trying to turn her life around. So when she gets the chance to be a live-in nanny for a picture-perfect family in a quaint New Jersey suburb, she is determined to excel in the position. She gets along great with Teddy, the young boy in the family, and the job seems to be going well. Until one day, she notices some of Teddy’s drawings are a bit disturbing. They show what looks to be a murder… Combining the drawings with a story she heard from a crazy neighbor, Mallory begins to wonder if the house is haunted and if a ghost is using Teddy to communicate its story. She’s not sure how to approach this with the parents as she worries they will think it’s related to her prior drug use, so she sets out independently to figure out what is going on.

WOW. THIS BOOK IS INSANE. I’ve had this on my shelf for a few months but was so nervous to read it because of all the good things I’d heard and was afraid it wouldn’t live up to my expectations, but holy cow, it exceeded them. I won’t go into details for fear of spoiling. But this book was chilling, twisted, and engaging from beginning to end. Rekulak did a terrific job at character development and creating a super eerie setting. I also loved the inclusion of the drawings throughout, so this is definitely one that I recommend picking up a physical copy.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

spooderman's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Confinement, Stalking, and Outing

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Chronic illness, Infertility, Infidelity, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Classism

ellaticonstellation's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

OMFG! This book is insane! Extremely good! Fast-paced and creative. I don't want to spoil it, but damn, this was a good read. I couldn't stop reading. The spirit stuff was creepy, and the drawings, omg, it's wild. The audiobook companion helped a lot. Wow! Jason, it would be amazing if you wrote more books, my man. Thank you for the ride❤️🔥 Mallory Quinn, the Maxwells,  Caroline, Ted, Teddy. The revelations were astonishing💕

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

kshertz's review against another edition

dark sad 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? No

4.0

It’s definitely an excellent thriller. I was really hoping for a different ending but at least it wasn’t completely predictable. I had some difficulty with their language around trans people and Progressive people. But I do think it was a really interesting story and I do think that the way it was told kept me on the edge of my seat. I think people who are Christian will enjoy this book a lot more than anyone else but it’s definitely a book I enjoyed reading.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Violence, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail