theuncannydani's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Antisemitism, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Car accident, Child abuse, Child death, Abandonment, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Racism, Sexual violence, Stalking, Trafficking, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Addiction, Hate crime, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Suicide, Infidelity, and Mental illness
Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Kidnapping, Medical content, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Dementia, and Gun violence
Minor: Abortion, Cancer, Classism, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, War, Biphobia, Fatphobia, Bullying, Police brutality, and Ableism
lulugirl297's review
- 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
Graphic: Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Torture, Murder, and Violence
cassandrareads_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Rape, Body horror, Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexism, Torture, and Racism
gagne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Torture, Sexual violence, Sexism, Rape, Violence, and Misogyny
Moderate: Infidelity, Incest, Sexual content, and Murder
Minor: Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Cursing, Pedophilia, Ableism, Animal death, and Abortion
involuntary guardianshipellensmith's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual content, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Incest, Drug use, Eating disorder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, Misogyny, Car accident, Death, Domestic abuse, Forced institutionalization, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Religious bigotry, Torture, Violence, and Xenophobia
rrkreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Usually, good thrillers are anywhere between 300-400 pages. This book is a chunker of almost 540 pages. So I was a bit skeptical about how info-dumpy and descriptive the narration will be. But it was none of those.
The narration was exceptionally good with small chapters broken into digestible paragraphs. The narrative style is breezy though the subject matter is quite intense.
Plot-wise I cannot give out much except what's already mentioned in the synopsis. I haven't seen the movie so I have no reference for comparison.
I must warn though, there are every trigger warnings possible in the story. Sexual assault, abuse, murder, gore, mental health issues, etc.
But, what really surprised me was the brilliance of the author. This book was written in 2005 and the technological know-how was exceptional. I am not sure if I could find such a tech-savvy fictional novel even today in 2021. It's not futuristic but he has taken the latest up-to-date technology of his time and has put them to good use in his story, which for me is an impressive feat. I despair at the loss of his talent.
If it is not obvious by now. I must tell you that I really was surprised and taken by the story, narration, and characters of this book. I did find the sexual references to be a distraction in parts but they were just minor irritations rather than a major complaint.
RRKReads Objective Grading - Invest Grade - Book worth buying and adding to your collection.
RRKReads Subjective Grading - ⭐⭐⭐⭐✰
Graphic: Animal death, Xenophobia, Violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, Stalking, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Rape, Racism, and Incest
camillesuzannes's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Hate crime, Incest, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Torture, Violence, and Animal death
Moderate: Antisemitism, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Medical content, Murder, and Xenophobia
Minor: Abortion, Eating disorder, and Suicidal thoughts