Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole

88 reviews

haemby's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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

4.25

This is the first time I've read a thriller. I gotta say...everything I read after this is going to have big shoes to fill.

From the beginning, the author sewed the seeds of mystery surrounding the main and side characters. There's a constant tenseness when flipping through the pages that makes it impossible to put down.

The plot slows at points, but I think it's because I'm so used to watching a thriller. Reading a thriller gives you every single detail you may miss from a fast paced movie. This author does not disappoint. Makes me want to watch it on a screen!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Medical content

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

shaun_dh's review against another edition

challenging dark funny informative mysterious sad 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail

lampbee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.25

Really well done thriller, no overly unreal aspects so it’s really easy to stay hooked. The twists are semi predictable but that doesn’t cheapen the read , it’s still very entertaining. Reading it as a white person might make you question just how realistic some of the depictions are but just lean into it, she’s right. The two leads Sydney and Theo are a good pair but for a lot of the book I found Theo very unlikeable , though as it continued I feel that that was intentional. A lot of the situations of conflict within the book make your stomach turn with frustration and helplessness which is the whole point but get ready to be very angry at a plot point  with absolutely no recourse. The build up is fantastic, the final reveal is fantastic, the way that that is dealt with is sort of lack luster bit it’s still worth it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Hate crime, Racism, Sexual content, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Slavery, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Although it’s meant to be a huge if not the biggest twist in the book

Sydneys mom being dead the whole time

is fairly obvious from the first we hear of the situation. The reveal about 75% of the way through feels a little silly because of it, like, duh… Also I felt a little annoyed at how

blatant Kim’s racism and generally evil personality was

, it felt so intense that it was no longer believable. Also the

sex scene between theo and sydney

was pretty unnecessary, is that just me ? Is anyone else getting tired of every book having a weirdly graphic scene for no real reason?

bringitona's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Slavery, Terminal illness, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Minor: Addiction, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

tey_lynn's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

callidoralblack's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Cancer, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, and Deportation

rurouni's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Addiction, Infidelity, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Stalking, and Deportation

bessadams's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Gun violence, and Racism

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Infidelity

archiebb's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I really enjoyed this thriller. 
The main character was really likeable although she was really going through it. Like I really wanted things to turn out for her. 
I've seen people say that this book would've worked just as well without the white guy and I agree. Like the only important plot point he matters for is when

for a moment she thought he had played her and was working with his gf to get rid of her

. 
Things I did see coming

the mom dying

Things I didn't see coming

1. the friend being dead. I thought she was just also kidnapped. I am confused about how that happened. Like how was she murdered and left in the crawl hole or just stuck there and died without anything happening to the MC? 
   Also I did not see it coming that the neighbors were the ones that moved the body. I loved that.
   I did not see all that bloodshed coming!

I did like the pacing as well going through the stages: the creepy part, the person falling apart with all the tension rising, and the bloody conclusion. I loved her use of real concepts into thriller form. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Gun violence, Racism, Torture, Kidnapping, and Murder

rachelfayreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, Terminal illness, and Torture