Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - In My Dreams I Hold a Knife

This one had me up until three a.m. reading!! I love a good dark academia murder mystery/thriller, especially with dual timelines, and a narrator that you’re not sure you can trust.

The writing and pace was so perfect for the material. Half of the book is set in current day, during the ten year college reunion of a group of friends at their prestigious North Carolina university. Ten years after one of those friends was murdered, still a cold case. Who did it, and why? That’s just what this homecoming weekend is for finding out. The other half is told in snippets from the past, what happened before and after Heather was killed, who had motive, who was hiding secrets.

Only, everyone was hiding secrets.

To me, the whole book kinda read like the last two episodes of the original Gossip Girl season one, just add more sinister vibes and definitely some Scream vibes. Everyone is a suspect, everyone is hooking up with people they shouldn’t be, everyone is lying to someone they love. Everyone is pretending to be something they’re not.

While I guessed the killer before it was revealed, I still had a lot of fun with this one. The book is full of characters you love to hate, lives you wish you could steal, until someone ends up—as they usually do—dead.

Content Warnings

lifeofchrstnlvly's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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

2.0

I had high hopes for this book, but it didn't live up to my expectations. It had a dark and twisty plot, which I usually enjoy, but the twists were quite mediocre. Although there were multiple twists, they felt overused and unoriginal, making the story predictable.

Despite being marketed as an adult novel, the characters' behaviors and thoughts seemed more suited to a young adult audience. This discrepancy, combined with the lack of depth and relatability in the characters, made it difficult for me to fully engage with the story. The protagonist, Jessica, came across as extremely self-centered and unlikable.

While I did speed through the book because it was easy to read and had some entertaining moments (there's nothing more entertaining than reading about other people's drama), I can't say that I would recommend it. It's often described as a dark academia book, but it's more of a mystery/thriller. In my opinion, there are much better mystery/thriller novels out there that are worth reading.

Content Warnings

mariaxreads's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

it was a slow start, hence the rating, but oh my god this was sooo good

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aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition

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fast-paced

4.0

Liked this for a variety of reasons but didn't love it. Really liked the messed up Breakfast Club-esque cast of characters (Coop is my fave and I kept going, in my best Squidward voice, oh God he's hot 😂). Each character was annoying or terrible but like in a good way? Or at least in a way that it was entertaining and kept you invested. Really enjoyed the setting as well and the mystery of who did it.
Overall was okay with the ending. Wrapped nicely enough for me where it didn't feel like it left me hanging.
Def check trigger/content warnings.

Content Warnings

noragoudie's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

When I began reading I was very enthralled with this book and the story that was being woven, but the ending and some of the choices cheapened it for me. It was well written prose wise, and entertaining (I was certainly engaged the whole way through) but I felt that some of the characters didn't make sense together, and that the punches pulled at the ending were somewhat underwhelming. I also found the main character's complexes uninteresting, and I wasn't rooting for her throughout.

Content Warnings

kirstenpod_'s review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

cannibaldear's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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