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wickedgrumpy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
1.0
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Islamophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
thequiltyreader's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
I really enjoyed the exploration of the impact of making decisions based on the information you have to hand which is perhaps not reflective of the full picture.
This was the first John Marrs book I have read and I flew through it as I just had to know what would happen next. I am now on the look out for more of his books.
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
poetsofsweetpea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, and Classism
sophieamreacher's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Islamophobia, Medical content, Dementia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation
madanxiety's review against another edition
5.0
Aside from pace, I am also always a huge fan of ensembles, which is part of what initially sustained my attention. I was like damn, how many hostages are there? Lol.
More to the content of the novel, I liked how each character was flawed in a very human way, and yet the protagonist (who, despite all the other characters, I'd say is Libby) was still always someone you could route for. This was a skillful balance to maintain.
I also have a soft spot for anti-establishment narratives lol. As one of the characters states at some point, the real villains turn out to be people, not AI.
My only critique of the book is how characters of color are treated. I will say more under the cut, but ofc it will include major spoilers.
I might've written this off as simply revealing Alex's own biases and flaws, but POC in this book are pretty much all murdered or painted as villains. It seems like the narrative of the book leans sympathetic toward POC, with only unlikeable characters being outright racist, the POC still die unjust deaths. It's like, I get that the novel is meant to be representative of the ugly parts of reality, including the disproportionate victimization of POC, but idk if that's enough justification for using characters of color as mere plot devices or backstory, not when that's the plight of ALL of them.
Anyway, I think the book is an interesting exploration of how AI could be weaponized by both powerful people and vigilantes. It's a cautionary tale about being too trusting of technology with regard to the collection and sharing of private data.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, and Murder
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Pregnancy
Minor: Cancer and Infertility
katiehelen1995's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Car accident, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
loysydneyweissman's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Genocide, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Car accident, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
taleofabibliophile's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Infertility, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Medical content, and Alcohol
Minor: Ableism, Gun violence, Homophobia, Slavery, Vomit, Dementia, Trafficking, and War
hufflesnoot's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Car accident, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, and Infertility
hillarydanielle's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Infertility, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Hate crime, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder