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elgin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction and Alcoholism
Moderate: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Stalking, and Dysphoria
Minor: Animal cruelty, Cursing, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
laurenvoice's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
The main characters, Roach and Laura, were well-written. They were so well written that somehow it became easy to feel sorry for Roach and have a strong dislike towards Laura.
Despite the feeling Roach was meant to be the "bad guy" in this story, it was hard to ignore Laura's toxic behaviour and no one ever holding her to account due to her past trauma; what happened was unthinkable, but it shouldn't give her a free pass to be a bully.
That said, Roach was very much on the creepy side; she's the female version of Joe Goldberg. It would have been interesting to get more insight into why Roach was the obsessive type and why she tried to mimic the image of other people rather than her own. Although it was easy to feel sorry for Roach, it did not excuse her behaviour and what she put Laura through.
Surprisingly, it felt fitting that Death of a Bookseller ended on a cliffhanger. Usually, a cliffhanger with no signs of a sequel is quite irritating, but for this story, it felt right. Death of a Bookseller had that constant dread and unease feeling; it only felt right that the story would end with the same feeling.
Graphic: Stalking
Moderate: Bullying, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Alcoholism, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
wowsmeows's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
"Reading is a way of life for some customers, the
kind of customers who buy more than they read, who behave as though 'bookworm' is as inherent as their blood type or their astrological sign."
Death of a Bookseller is about two characters told through their alternating POVs. There's Roach, a creepy true crime fanatic and Laura, who is unhealthily dealing with her traumatic past. The pair work together in a bookshop are are both unlikeable in their own unique ways. The book explores the idea of hating someone so much that it turns into an obsession and morphs into stalking. As the title suggests, it does delve into a lot of morbid topics with a lot of grotesque language and descriptions throughout. I'd recommend checking out content warnings for this read. However, it is a very slow read and because we have the split POV, I dont think I would personally class it as mystery or a thriller novel as we know what both characters are doing and thinking at all times.
What I I did enjoy was that it had some interesting ideas around the ethics of true crime as a genre. It really made me think about how healthy it really is to consume true crime content. I also thought the book was well written and I thought both characters had distinct personalities that shone through in the text.
I will say that I did dislike the ending and I did feel a bit frustrated by it.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
lottieingham'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? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
g_monaghan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
The opening starts with the main character going to a serial killer podcast and judging the other people in line for liking the 'stereotypical ones' that says it all.
Graphic: Violence, Stalking, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Body horror
mj_86's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Violence, Vomit, and Alcohol
anothergirlanotherbook's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, and Murder
rkatw's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Was sucked in immediately and finished reading in less than 24 hours. Thought the dual narrative was good, even though I definitely preferred one character over another, helped to really highlight their contrast and they key misunderstandings Roach has about Laura.
Was so tense as I reached the book's conclusion.
Graphic: Grief and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Violence
thebookcident's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I found lots of visually evoking imagery was used that rinsed my pallet from the darker themes in this novel.
Also, Slater really captures the feeling of being a retail working over the Xmas period PERFECTLY. 😅
Would recommend as a summer read.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
scarlettreadsbooks'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
3.5
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death