Reviews tagging 'Infertility'

Not a Happy Family by Shari Lapena

23 reviews

axkerti's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• 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: Bullying, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Infertility

cozy_pnw_bibliophile's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Infertility

jax00's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

It was very predictable. Everyone hated everyone and there was no background for them hating each other. Everyone also lied for no reason.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Murder

Moderate: Stalking

Minor: Infertility and Infidelity

hollymich's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-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? Yes

3.0

Overall, a decent read. Shari Lapena did a good job at developing the motives of the various suspects and shifting who the reader thinks is guilty. However, I didn't really care who did it because I didn't come to care for any of the characters. The conclusion felt rather rushed and unsatisfying. 

Ellen Archer was a fantastic narrator for this story. If you are interested in this story, I recommend listening to the audiobook.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, and Stalking

Minor: Cancer, Infertility, Suicide, and Vomit

julienicole1106's review

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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? Yes

3.0

This murder mystery is fast paced and interesting. It’s easy to read and the author makes you change your mind about who the killer is repeatedly. Deep down I knew who it was from about the middle of the book but the story telling was engaging enough to keep me second guessing.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Classism

colettesjourney's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Minor: Infertility

romam93's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

This was...ok?

I think my main problems with this book were caused by my expectation that this was a thriller, and in my opinion, it is not. To me this book is more of a mystery/whodunit, and I think if I had gone into it expecting that, rather than a fast paced exciting thriller, I probably would have enjoyed it a lot more. 

The book was well written and I liked the family drama aspect, I was just expecting more excitement. Some of the reveals caught me by surprise but I ended up not really caring about who committed the crime as the parents were so unlikeable. I would definitely try another book by this author to see if I got on better with her other work. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Murder

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Blood, and Stalking

bookhoarder93's review against another edition

mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

The story had a bit of a slow start, but quickly picked up the pace. While it is a typical “who done it” murder mystery, the culprit wasn’t super obvious and the writing kept you turning the pages. You loved to dislike many of the characters. Even with the subject matter being murder, it was a light read that was easy to read at your leisure. This would be a perfect book to take along on a vacation or long weekend trip. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Murder

Minor: Infertility

kstockard's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Blood, Stalking, and Murder

Minor: Infertility and Infidelity