Reviews with content warning for Suicide - The Only Survivors

Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

The Only Survivors by Megan Miranda

65 reviews

lrenkate's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Heartbreaking events that caused deep guilt in the survivors, with unlikely bonds keeping them connected a decade later. I found the timeline of the flashbacks a little difficult until it all came together, but overall I enjoyed the book despite not really connecting with or liking any of the characters. The twists & reveals weren’t wholly unpredictable, she did lay a little groundwork for them so it wasn’t out of left field, but they also weren’t staring you in the face from the start which I appreciated. Not my favourite from this author, but still an enjoyable entry.
I read it in one day, so clearly had me hooked into the story/what would happen next.

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herelieshenry's review

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

Megan Miranda is adept at weaving together the past and the present; the twist here is a bit stronger than the first book of her’s I’ve read, because it feels a bit more foreshadowed as opposed to being kind of sudden. I’m starting to notice some themes that appear to be recurring in her work that interest me, like the nature of being an outsider, the choice to protect people you love, and the complex feelings of someone who has been made to feel invisibilized. I really enjoyed the setting—both the Outer Banks vacation house and the Tennessee ravine feel very vivid and integral to the book as settings. The audiobook in particular is stunning; the full cast helped keep the flashback chapters distinct and Allwine’s voicework here was a lot stronger than in The Last to Vanish.

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emilyjean917201999's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

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maebemerissa's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

4.0

A group of friends - bonded by a car crash they all survives in high school- make a pact to spend one week together every year on the anniversary of said traumatic event. The book has flashback chapters to the car crash they all went through, and it is pretty obvious that all the facts are not adding up. The book had a lot of twist in it, some I did NOT see coming at all!

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sierrajhansen's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

3.0

this book was mainly just okay. it felt much longer than it needed to and will probably be forgettable. i was also super confused for most of the book as to what we were even worried about. i did, however, appreciate the two twists at the end and did not see them coming. i did also feel palpable tension during many parts of the book which is a sign of a thriller setting the mood effectively. overall, this was good and an interesting premise but i wouldn’t reread.

p.s. why was there so much therapist slander and misunderstanding… it annoyed me every time the main character would talk about therapists as being manipulative and simply out to get people’s secrets. a little goofy if you ask me (but i’m biased)

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bluz19's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious tense 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

2.5

This story focuses on teens of this tragic accident and then those same people 10 years later and how that one event changed them and what secrets they have hidden from all those years ago. It has a nonlinear timeline, with teenagers, a whodunit, and considered a rugged story. In all honesty this book didn’t really hold my interest. Even the parts that were supposed to have me wowed, it just didn’t hold up. I didn’t hate the book, it was just that to be considered a thriller, it didn’t meet my expectations. The story from the night of the crash, the backstory, had its moments of intrigue. And so did the current timeline of them 10 years later. However I mostly kept reading just to see if the story got any better throughout and I was more so disappointed. I enjoyed how the book was written, I didn’t hate the characters, they just seemed very one dimensional. Nobody really had layers to them and neither did their stories. I just wanted a bit more action to keep me along. This book was very slow and didn’t really have a climax at the end. We found that everyone was keeping secrets from when they were 18 years old, it just didn’t seem worthy of writing a book about to me. The two big twists at the end that we find out are interesting and do bring flare to the book but it wasn’t enough to carry the book for me, unfortunately. I probably would not read again.

If you enjoy slow burn thrillers with slight mystery and teenager guilt then this book may work for you or if you’re looking for a trip that turns out to be very different than you expected then this book might work for you. I think of the right audience this book could be great, it just didn’t work for me particularly.

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kyra_joy's review against another edition

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dark tense 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

4.0

I honestly don’t really know how I feel about this book, it felt slow but also wasn’t bad and had moments I enjoyed. In the end it felt flat and was happy to be finished. But at the same time I can’t fully say I didn’t enjoy it. Weird read.

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cassielaj's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

4.25

I read the whole audiobook in a day. I couldn’t stop. The timeline jumping and the forward-backward storytelling was super effective in pushing things forward, as was the character shifting in the “then” chapters. I thought this was a super original premise, and well crafted for the most part! I definitely caught some twists ahead of time, but usually not too far ahead. There were a few things I wish had been tied up a little more effectively, but overall I liked this one a lot.

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hollispaige's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.75

I chose this one from my TBR because there is a character with my name (hollis) and my name is never in/on anything. It didn’t disappoint! I feel like there were some plot holes, but overall nothing that ruined the book for me. What can i say? i’m a sucker for a good mystery that is not a detective novel.

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lpdx's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

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