Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

2 reviews

imstephtacular's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexism, Blood, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Misogyny, Lesbophobia, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual violence, Mental illness, Body shaming, Death of parent, Rape, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Classism, Cursing, Sexual content, Dementia, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Fatphobia, Sexual harassment, and Alcohol

Minor: War, Vomit, Pandemic/Epidemic, Gun violence, Racism, Kidnapping, Incest, Religious bigotry, Stalking, and Physical abuse

jennabeck13's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) 

Genre: Thriller/Mystery

About 375 pages

In the 1970s, a serial killer terrorized women across the United States. At first, it was all on the West Coast which was why the sorority sisters at Florida State University never felt at risk. As a result, they were shocked when he terrorized their house one night. He seriously injured two sisters and murdered two others. Crazy, right? What is crazier is that Pamela saw him as he escaped the house and lived to tell the tale. As a key witness in the case, she is getting a ton of attention from the police and the media which is how Tina finds her. Tina’s friend, Ruth, went missing years ago and she believes the same man is responsible. In an effort to take him down, Pamela and Tina team up to find the truth that everyone else seems to be glossing over.

Jessica Knoll’s writing style is chef’s kiss👌🏽 It pulls you in and I couldn’t put this book down. Though it was not as twisty as Luckiest Girl Alive, the characters made this story. I loved hearing from Ruth's (a victim) and Pamela’s (a survivor) perspectives, as well as how their lives intersected even though these two women never met. Both women were strong, fierce, and determined, which made me admire them throughout. I really liked how Knoll gave attention to and glorified the women affected by Ted Bundy rather than to Bundy himself, as the media has done for years. It was also interesting to hear the differences in the way media influenced a criminal case back in the 70s compared to today and how the media glorified Bundy in a way at the time. 

Favorite Quote: “No one tells you that the truest stories are the messy, unwieldy ones, that you will be tempted to trim in the places that make people scratch their heads and pad the parts where they lean in closer. It takes fortitude to remain a true and constant witness, and I did.”

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Medical content, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Murder, Rape, and Sexual violence