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bookswithmari's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, and Classism
sydizen's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
leahkarge'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? It's complicated
1.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
seekerxr's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
From the very first page, the writing style of this book is just incredibly gripping. There is no easing you into this book's particular flavor of suspense and horror and revulsion; you're in the deep end from day one. You know exactly where this book is going, exactly how it's going to end, and all you can do is just watch uneasily as the bitter end grows closer and closer. The writing in this book is truly like nothing I've ever seen: first person from Joe's point of view yet also second person, as if his entire narration of the book is a story he is telling TO Beck. It's chilling and vicious and so incredibly unsettling you just can't look away.
Joe really is the worst sort of criminal and internal monologue tells you that clear as day. The worst part is he doesn't think he's bad, which is probably par for the course when it comes to people like him, but it still makes you a bit incredulous to read how he justifies the absolutely insane things he thinks about and does. The way he claims that Beck is the love of his life but half the time literally all he thinks and cares about is her body and when he'll next get to sleep with her.
That being said, I did have some problems with this book. It definitely shows its age at being early to mid-2010s literature with just a smattering of bigotry. I don't if the author put that in deliberately to show it was how Joe thought or if it was just a product of the attitudes at the time it was written. For me it was just on the border of too much sometimes, but never bad enough to stop reading the entire book.
I would say definitely do a bit more in-depth research on the trigger warnings before deciding to pick them up because the tags on Storygraph missed some important ones, but otherwise this book was pretty great. I won't be continuing the series, because having someone like Joe Goldberg as the main character and being in his head is a LOT, but I did enjoy this book!
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Fatphobia, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting
Minor: Homophobia
urfriendash's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
so i bought this because i loved the show, and everyone told me 'joe is so much darker in the book!' and i was like okay ill bite
i don't think joe is like super darker in this, but because we are limited to his inner dialogue in the show, we miss out on some of the crazy creepy stuff he thinks about. plus, the show made a lot of changes to the plot. like the paco plot doesn't exist in the books, and yk in the show ur like 'oh he a terrible guy but at least he's helping paco' well you cant say that in the book..
this book was actually scary, not cuz of some monster or vampire yk but because this could happen to anyone irl! plenty of people don't figure out their being stalked for years.. joes narrating was so crazy to me, like people actually think this shit. he's super perverted and he's great at gaslighting and manipulating!
anyway super good book, very disturbing, anddddd id say 13+. if your mature. there's a bunch of perverted stuff and sex scenes, as well as detailing of murder and stalking (obviously)
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
lots of perverted contents1ck4n's review against another edition
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, and Stalking
prinners's review against another edition
Moderate: Sexism
kelseyr713's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Car accident and Alcohol
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
brittsky's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
And yet, for some reason, this particular stream of obscenities really works for me. I think Caroline Kepnes is a uniquely talented writer, capable of giving us a cast of horribly depraved characters and a sick, twisted little plot, and making it both explosive and educational. I feel like this is the best sort of cautionary tale, getting to live in Joe’s head and listen to him rationalize how nothing he does is ever his fault. It’s so disturbing, but in a way that feels purposeful, and the unique second-person perspective makes the readers feel they are in it, experiencing it.
Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Stalking, Murder, and Sexual harassment
phantomgecko's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Think of the whiniest, most foul-mouthed little incel you can, and that's this dude. Note how many times he refers to women as objects. How many times he reduces Beck to her sexual availability or genitals. How many times he misinterprets media to justify his actions. Also, lol at how judgmental he is about books. I think this is a more fun variation than being super judgmental about music or comics or video games.
Joe is seven layers of delusional, from thinking Beck is obsessed with him to awaiting the collapse of the internet so he can lord it over with his typewriters to thinking he ever helped anyone. However, some of what I thought he was making up at the beginning turned out to be close to the truth. Like how he says that Beck loves attention and is an exhibitionist. Still, I'd categorize him as an unreliable narrator.
Beck isn't a great person either. She has real issues and a way annoying personality. Joe's observation that she wants to be a writer more than she wants to write is spot on. Nevertheless, a victim is a victim whether or not they are "innocent" or you personally dislike them.
One of the book club questions at the end asked something along the lines of, "did you find yourself wishing Joe would be punished for his crimes or did you want him to get away with it?" And like... ?????????? If you found yourself sympathetic to Joe's self-imposed, imaginary, selfish plight, maybe you need help too?
I honestly cannot adequately express how despicable the main character is. I understand that that is the point. I feel dirty for reading this book, tbh, and I'm not continuing the series. Joe is too accurately written, and that's too depressing for me.
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Classism