sarah_shelf's review against another edition
4.0
This book is described like a mystery, but it’s really not about that at all. At least not in the way I think of traditional mysteries. The narrative is told from the perspective of Sadie searching for her little sister Mattie’s killer and from Wes McCray a podcast journalist who has picked up Sadie’s story after she has gone missing. The general whodunit and why that I was expecting isn’t really a part of it. Sadie knows what happened (even if it takes a while for her to explain that to us) and Wes’ investigation is largely parallel and two steps behind Sadie’s journey. Rather, the focus is on the sisters’ relationship: how much Sadie loves Mattie as well as the things she is willing to do for that love because no one else will.
I was not prepared for the monster Keith/Darren/Jack was. (Seriously check the content warnings. I was caught off guard and even more unsettled because of it). So much of Sadie’s journey involves the effects and reactions to his abuse, which is never fully described on the page. Instead we get disturbing flashback scenes of creepy behavior, the emotional turmoil of the evidence he and Silas kept, as well as testimonies from a host of characters who thought they were great guys. All of that makes this so much more real because “girls go missing all the time” but rarely are we forced into the true aftermath of these stories.
There was no other way to end this book. Apparently the ending is contentious, and I get that because usually such an open-ending feels unfinished and unsatisfying, but it would have hurt the story to do things differently.
Moderate: Grief, Death, and Child death
Minor: Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Murder, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
amystainton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Car accident, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Eating disorder, Drug use, Abandonment, Rape, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Child death, Murder, Mental illness, Bullying, and Addiction
kbenavidez44's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Sexism, Self harm, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Violence, Drug use, Grief, Kidnapping, and Murder
sophiafaurs's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Physical abuse, Blood, Child death, Violence, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Death, Rape, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Murder, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Mental illness, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, and Addiction
Minor: Gore
ghostlyprince's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Grief, Rape, Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Ableism, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Classism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Stalking
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Kidnapping
brazenbooch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Rape, Pedophilia, Violence, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Grief
Minor: Murder and Kidnapping
majoch3's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Child abuse, Alcoholism, Murder, Rape, Kidnapping, Domestic abuse, Child death, and Violence
lisa_m's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
3.0
This book was quite a ride and also quite out of my comfortzone. That is also the reason why you shouldn't let my review of only 3⭐ make you not want to read the book.
It is incredibly written and I can absolutely appreciate it for what it is. The representation of stuttering (which I have never ever read in a book before!) was something you have to get used to but its definitely worth it.
What made it hard for me to get through was mainly the themes of the book. I have put the Trigger Warnings on top and as you can see there's a lot of them. All of those topics are definitely issues that have to be adressed. I read the book knowing it was going to be hard to get through but I did it and I'm glad I did. The book never made me feel like it was exploiting Sadies experiences and memories. She had flashbacks and she described what she experienced but it was never in extreme detail.
I'm not a fan of horror/gore/thrillers and the book isn't that at all. It's a YA-contemporary mystery with very heavy topics. If you feel like you are able to read it, I would definitely recommend it. It made me think a lot for sure.
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Kidnapping, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Violence
lubsyreads's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, and Physical abuse
beawithane's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Murder, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Alcoholism and Rape
Minor: Alcohol