Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Case Study

This book was definitely a page-turner for me but it has it’s quirks. The blend of fiction and real(?) accounts is interesting, but since the journals are from the 1960s some of the language and ideas are hard to read and get behind (i.e., some homophobic remarks and anti-feminist stuff etc.). I did enjoy having the journal chapters between chapters about Collins Braithwaite, it was a nice break from the journals. The themes of self, identity, and deception made me stop and think at times. Overall interesting and engaging read but sometimes rough. Probably wouldn’t read again.

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charlma's review against another edition

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3.0

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nyah_lou's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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giuliawanders's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I personally really enjoyed it and I really wanted to keep reading. I liked how the narration of the stories of the two characters are intertwined. I would’ve liked to know what Rebecca ends up doing afterwards but I imagine that leaving us guessing is part of the charm of the book.

Also, the book left me wondering if it was a true story until the end. Like, so many references to real people and places!

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julziez's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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abookishtype's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Graeme Macrae Burnet works his metafictional magic again in Case Study, a tale of unreliable narrators and unstable identities. The narrator of this book—also named Graeme Macrae Burnet—has been working on a biography of a controversial psychologist when he receives a set of five notebooks from a woman who believed that this psychologist was responsible for her sister’s suicide. The narrator shares the notebooks and his chapters for the biography, leaving it up to us readers to puzzle over all kinds of juicy questions about duty of care, psychological care, identity, personality, mental illness, and so much more. I absolutely devoured this book...

Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type.

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sakisreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

✨ Thrifted ✨

I was immediately intrigued when I saw this book on the shelf at the secondhand bookshop! Having Braithwaite’s biography play a part in ‘Rebecca’s’ narrative was well done too, I liked reading Books 1 - 6 and then getting her perspective too.

However, it still wasn’t all that gripping. I did want to put it down in some parts, so I’m giving it 3 out of 5 stars, thank you ✨

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mendim's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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