litwrite's review against another edition
4.0
Great book but one I'm not sure I would widely recommend due to the choice of topic, which covers the same material as [b:Tampa|17225311|Tampa|Alissa Nutting|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1393784199s/17225311.jpg|23731028] and to a lesser extent, [b:What Was She Thinking? Notes on a Scandal |13258|What Was She Thinking? Notes on a Scandal |Zoë Heller|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1386922976s/13258.jpg|18650].
The direct comparison to Tampa would be more likely as they are both tales told from the perspective of a female child molester - however where Nutting presented her narrator as a straight up unfeeling monster, Conlon's narrator slowly descends into madness and mania throughout the story. Where I think this book shines and where it disturbed me a lot more than Tampa was in its representation of the young male victim - a lot of the things that the boy says felt spot on to what people say are the biggest psychological effects to victims and it was pretty intense to read.
I can't say that I enjoyed it because I was always low level uneasy throughout the whole book but I recognize that it was bravely and well written especially considering the topic.
The direct comparison to Tampa would be more likely as they are both tales told from the perspective of a female child molester - however where Nutting presented her narrator as a straight up unfeeling monster, Conlon's narrator slowly descends into madness and mania throughout the story. Where I think this book shines and where it disturbed me a lot more than Tampa was in its representation of the young male victim - a lot of the things that the boy says felt spot on to what people say are the biggest psychological effects to victims and it was pretty intense to read.
I can't say that I enjoyed it because I was always low level uneasy throughout the whole book but I recognize that it was bravely and well written especially considering the topic.
heart_eater's review against another edition
1.0
Huh?
If you couldn't guess from the description of the book, the premise of this story is very dark and disturbing, but on a different level than any other book I've read. It will probably be the same for most other people who take the time to read this. There were several different times I was so disgusted that I nearly stopped reading it, but I was unfortunately curious how it would end. As the story progressed, I really just looked forward to the part where Mona would get caught; that is pretty much the only reason I continued trudging on. I don't really know what to say about the book, aside from the fact that I hated it, based on the subject matter and not the writing, which was fine. Who wants to read a story that goes into graphic, too graphic detail of child molesting? This is seriously something I'd be embarrassed to tell anyone I read. I feel there could have been a lot less super descriptive sex scenes and more story. Overall, hated it and wish I hadn't wasted my time, and polluted my brain, reading it. Ugh.
If you couldn't guess from the description of the book, the premise of this story is very dark and disturbing, but on a different level than any other book I've read. It will probably be the same for most other people who take the time to read this. There were several different times I was so disgusted that I nearly stopped reading it, but I was unfortunately curious how it would end. As the story progressed, I really just looked forward to the part where Mona would get caught; that is pretty much the only reason I continued trudging on. I don't really know what to say about the book, aside from the fact that I hated it, based on the subject matter and not the writing, which was fine. Who wants to read a story that goes into graphic, too graphic detail of child molesting? This is seriously something I'd be embarrassed to tell anyone I read. I feel there could have been a lot less super descriptive sex scenes and more story. Overall, hated it and wish I hadn't wasted my time, and polluted my brain, reading it. Ugh.
moormanmak's review against another edition
5.0
pretty much made me want to throw up and then never leave my house again but I read it in basically one sitting so
idogrocker's review against another edition
dark
fast-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
I’m not sure there are enough trigger warnings in the world for this book.
theboldbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
This is not an easy book to read. It's heartbreaking and engraging. It's sick and twisted and truly horrific. It is also well-written and pushes boundaries. It's along the same lines as Tampa by Alissa Nutting, but I found it much more disturbing than that. There are scenes in the book where Connor says what they're doing feels dirty and I felt dirty reading it. So why would anyone want to read a book like this? Because it has an impact, it gets one thinking, and it elicits emotion. Definitely stay away from this one if you can't handle abuse of a child.
dungeonmasterteacher's review
First off, I read this for a book club. I did not pick this one, and in retrospect I probably should have just refused to read it. I also considered stopping once it got graphic, but in a way that felt like letting the main character get away with it. Like, I needed to see her life fall to pieces for what she had done, which meant I needed to stick around.
I don't even know how to review this, and I sure as hell am not giving it a star rating. This is easily the most uncomfortable I've ever felt reading a book. By a pretty wide margin actually. It makes sense that this is from an indie publisher. The author has some interesting ideas about obsession that are communicated well in the book. There's a lot to be said about cultural fixation on youth. The main character has an obsession with aging and clearly feels she was robbed of her childhood when her brother died. The book also uses the obviously innapropriate relationship in the story to call out innapropriate obsessive behaviors that show up in adult relationships. All that being said, I'm still not sure it was worth reading.
This book is unflinching. That's what makes it a horror novel. The camera doesn't pan away no matter how much you want it to. I usually don't mind that, but this book definitely crossed some lines for me. I would not recommend this to anyone. I'm honestly not even sure I would admit to most people that I read it.
I don't even know how to review this, and I sure as hell am not giving it a star rating. This is easily the most uncomfortable I've ever felt reading a book. By a pretty wide margin actually. It makes sense that this is from an indie publisher. The author has some interesting ideas about obsession that are communicated well in the book. There's a lot to be said about cultural fixation on youth. The main character has an obsession with aging and clearly feels she was robbed of her childhood when her brother died. The book also uses the obviously innapropriate relationship in the story to call out innapropriate obsessive behaviors that show up in adult relationships. All that being said, I'm still not sure it was worth reading.
This book is unflinching. That's what makes it a horror novel. The camera doesn't pan away no matter how much you want it to. I usually don't mind that, but this book definitely crossed some lines for me. I would not recommend this to anyone. I'm honestly not even sure I would admit to most people that I read it.
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