Reviews tagging 'Abortion'

The Skeleton Key by Erin Kelly

25 reviews

perfectcupoftea's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Suicide, Abortion, and Pandemic/Epidemic

kbio's review against another edition

mysterious 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, and Stalking

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Blood, Abortion, and Abandonment

taylorfield's review

dark slow-paced

• 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

3.5

Long Story Short: 50 years ago, Sir Frank Churcher published The Golden Bones, an illustrated treasure hunt that took the world by storm and led to obsession, death, and attempted murder. The 50th anniversary is the perfect time to reintroduce the hunt with a modern twist, but much more is revealed than the location of the final hidden bone.

The Skeleton Key is set in 2021 with flashbacks to previous moments in the characters' lives. Speaking of characters - there are many and they are so intertwined with one another that my Long Story Short summary can't begin to scratch the surface of the full plot. The book starts off at a snail's pace as a consequence of the amount of characters and complexity of the story, and by a quarter of the way in I found myself double-checking that I was listening to a mystery/thriller. The pace picks up as the search for the Golden Bones restarts, but this moment is short lived and the treasure hunt plays only a minor role. As flashbacks reveal character dynamics, shady intentions, and abuse, discoveries in the present are filtered through a whodunit lens that ultimately leads to a dysfunctional group of people proving just how far they'll go to protect themselves.

I'm left with mixed feelings, but I suppose that's to be expected considering the cast of unlikable characters (save one or two) and their questionable decisions. It was hard to grasp the magnitude of the effect The Golden Bones had on the world when told through Nell's perspective; her dramatics and holier-than-thou attitude made it really hard to take her perception of danger seriously, especially when literally nothing comes of it. One thing that really stood out to me is how much these characters yell at one another, but I suppose that's another layer of the dysfunction. I guess my final takeaway is that the whole lot need intensive therapy.

Enjoyment: 3/5
Craft: 4/5
Overall: 3.5/5 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Suicide

Minor: Abortion

bonestheartist's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I really loved how the mystery took you down different theories, as if you were with the main character Nell trying to uncover the secrets held close within her two families. Absolutely loved this!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic

imogenlj's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense

3.75

A deftly plotted and complex multi-generational mystery. It feels modern and realistic in post-covid London. I wouldn’t reread but a good holiday thriller.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Infidelity, Stalking, and Murder

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug use, Suicide, Blood, Abortion, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

helena01's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Abandonment

fairymoo83's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol

greta_mal's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

the start of the book was slow and boring, but once it got going it was so good 👌

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Rape

Minor: Abortion

capacitorofflux's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense 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

4.75

This book was one whip-lash after the other (in a good way). Did not see half of the ending twists coming. Draws together each thread brilliantly.

Random brief mentions of Covid could have been removed. Did nothing for the story and stopped being mentioned around halfway through. Felt like they were just thrown in for no good reason.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Abortion

Minor: Suicide and Pandemic/Epidemic

kayleejanes's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Pedophilia, Suicide, Stalking, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Abortion