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bgray98's review
4.0
Ooft. The twist in this book? Didn’t see it coming. Cleverly written, a compelling and pulse-pounding book. Loving JP Pomare’s work!
mollierats's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
bookiebook's review
dark
hopeful
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? It's complicated
3.0
lunaseline's review
3.0
Streamingjätten (nej, inte den - den andra) släppte en ny serie med blekta blondiner.
Så jag plockade fram boken.
Läste ju Pomare nyligen och var sur på att han inte placerade sin historia i Australien, vilket denna sekt-roman ändrade på. Tyvärr är det mer just en sekt-roman än en Aussie-roman, så förutom "det är varmt" och "akta er för ormarna" fick man inte särskilt mycket Down Under-känsla.
Inte så mycket andra känslor heller, faktiskt. Det är rätt snyggt upplagt och jag såg inte riktigt twisten komma - å andra sidan var jag inte särskilt engagerad, så jag letade inte heller.
Nu låter boken supertråkig, men jag är rätt säker på att den är bättre än Disneyversionen (they usually are...). Och första halvan var ändå underhållande och välskriven.
Gillar du sekter gillar du säkert.
Så jag plockade fram boken.
Läste ju Pomare nyligen och var sur på att han inte placerade sin historia i Australien, vilket denna sekt-roman ändrade på. Tyvärr är det mer just en sekt-roman än en Aussie-roman, så förutom "det är varmt" och "akta er för ormarna" fick man inte särskilt mycket Down Under-känsla.
Inte så mycket andra känslor heller, faktiskt. Det är rätt snyggt upplagt och jag såg inte riktigt twisten komma - å andra sidan var jag inte särskilt engagerad, så jag letade inte heller.
Nu låter boken supertråkig, men jag är rätt säker på att den är bättre än Disneyversionen (they usually are...). Och första halvan var ändå underhållande och välskriven.
Gillar du sekter gillar du säkert.
sleepytimebooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
helgamharb's review
4.0
The past is a parasite. It could lay dormant inside for years and eventually flare up and kill you.
Welcome to Eden, to paradise, where you are safe from the atrocities of the outside world; where the blue demons won’t be able to hurt you. You are saved and now you will be taught how to survive.
Only on one condition: You should protect the queen.
You never escape a cult.
The story is told alternately by Amy who lives in the Clearing among her “brothers and sisters” and Freya who has a troubled past and a wounded soul.
It all begins with a kidnapping and as the story unravels we begin to wonder if we should believe what we are told.
Who is telling the truth? Who can we trust?
Trust is a precious flower. Squeeze it a little and it wilts. Pick it and study it beneath a microscope and it will die.
Welcome to Eden, to paradise, where you are safe from the atrocities of the outside world; where the blue demons won’t be able to hurt you. You are saved and now you will be taught how to survive.
Only on one condition: You should protect the queen.
You never escape a cult.
The story is told alternately by Amy who lives in the Clearing among her “brothers and sisters” and Freya who has a troubled past and a wounded soul.
It all begins with a kidnapping and as the story unravels we begin to wonder if we should believe what we are told.
Who is telling the truth? Who can we trust?
Trust is a precious flower. Squeeze it a little and it wilts. Pick it and study it beneath a microscope and it will die.
ppppaula's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
saritachr's review against another edition
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
lucy_k's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
litwithleigh's review
3.0
Writing: 4/5 | Plot: 3.5/5 | Ending: 3.5/5
3.5 rounded down.
THE PLOT
Freya is pretending to be normal. But when her son goes missing, her mask starts to slip. Amy has only known The Clearing, but she starts to wonder what's poppin on the outside. When their stories intertwine, the past is exposed.
MY OPINION
I'm a h0e for cults. So automatically this puts the book on my "good side." If you don't like cults, skip this read. It is all about cults.
This was a tough one to rate because on one hand, I love anything to do with cults, but on the other hand, this just wasn't hittin EMOTIONALLY. Yes, the torture scenes at the cult were difficult to read (in fact I had to skim past some of the gorier ones), but I didn't feel anything from Freya about her missing son. She kept thinking about how much she missed him, but idk... it's hard to explain but I felt like she was saying all the right things, but the emotion was missing.
I didn't feel any urgency or despair over Billy's disappearance. She seemed preoccupied with protecting her past and trying to figure if her mum was a fake ass hoe.
If you saw my update, I made a guess about the twisty twist, and boy was I OFF. But I felt that the first twist was lacklustre. I would've preferred my prediction LOL.
SPOILERS SO SCROLL AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T READ IT YET
Perhaps it's because I've read an abnormal amount of thrillers, but I felt like the twists were been there, done that. The fake journal? Seen it. (But I did feel bad for Adam. WTF. Adrienne chose to protect a violent pedo over Adam, who was fiercely loyal and a lifesaver??? K....) The ex-cop keeping tabs on her? Immediately made me think of Final Girls by Riley Sager. Her brother actually didn't get his shit together and was starting Blackmarsh 2.0? Ok.
I felt like the final Aspen twist was random. Given his background, you would think Wayne would warn him about Blackmarsh and all the whackos, but somehow he ends up falling for Jonas' boo boo? Also the fact Wayne spent so much time (and money) keeping Aspen apart from Freya and then at the end was like "nbd let bygones be bygones" was ????
Ok and last plot hole: Freya wondering if Adrienne was her mom. You would think in an investigation like this, DNA tests would be performed to suss out if the kids were actually hers or stolen, and then they would cross-reference with the missing children's data base?
PROS AND CONS
Pros: well-written, pace was pacing, cult flashbacks were eery af
Cons: twists were lukewarm, some plot holes, lacked emotional punch
3.5 rounded down.
THE PLOT
Freya is pretending to be normal. But when her son goes missing, her mask starts to slip. Amy has only known The Clearing, but she starts to wonder what's poppin on the outside. When their stories intertwine, the past is exposed.
MY OPINION
I'm a h0e for cults. So automatically this puts the book on my "good side." If you don't like cults, skip this read. It is all about cults.
This was a tough one to rate because on one hand, I love anything to do with cults, but on the other hand, this just wasn't hittin EMOTIONALLY. Yes, the torture scenes at the cult were difficult to read (in fact I had to skim past some of the gorier ones), but I didn't feel anything from Freya about her missing son. She kept thinking about how much she missed him, but idk... it's hard to explain but I felt like she was saying all the right things, but the emotion was missing.
I didn't feel any urgency or despair over Billy's disappearance. She seemed preoccupied with protecting her past and trying to figure if her mum was a fake ass hoe.
If you saw my update, I made a guess about the twisty twist, and boy was I OFF. But I felt that the first twist was lacklustre. I would've preferred my prediction LOL.
SPOILERS SO SCROLL AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T READ IT YET
Perhaps it's because I've read an abnormal amount of thrillers, but I felt like the twists were been there, done that. The fake journal? Seen it. (But I did feel bad for Adam. WTF. Adrienne chose to protect a violent pedo over Adam, who was fiercely loyal and a lifesaver??? K....) The ex-cop keeping tabs on her? Immediately made me think of Final Girls by Riley Sager. Her brother actually didn't get his shit together and was starting Blackmarsh 2.0? Ok.
I felt like the final Aspen twist was random. Given his background, you would think Wayne would warn him about Blackmarsh and all the whackos, but somehow he ends up falling for Jonas' boo boo? Also the fact Wayne spent so much time (and money) keeping Aspen apart from Freya and then at the end was like "nbd let bygones be bygones" was ????
Ok and last plot hole: Freya wondering if Adrienne was her mom. You would think in an investigation like this, DNA tests would be performed to suss out if the kids were actually hers or stolen, and then they would cross-reference with the missing children's data base?
PROS AND CONS
Pros: well-written, pace was pacing, cult flashbacks were eery af
Cons: twists were lukewarm, some plot holes, lacked emotional punch