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roshanreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC of this book!
I picked this book up, and it pulled me in almost immediately. I was flying through the pages to get more information and find out who was behind everything. I ended up giving this book four stars and would definitely recommend it.
There are some spoilers after this point.
The book starts with an introduction to the dynamic between Tucker and Blythe that define most of their interactions for the rest of the book, and then we’re straight into the action. Things start getting weird when one of Blythe’s friends seems to suffer what people refer to as everything from a mental health episode to a psychotic break, becoming paranoid about the school’s security cameras and talking about how her parents aren’t truly her parents. It peaks when Gabi murders the vice principal of the school with Blythe watching, before hitting Blythe in the head with the same trophy and disappearing. This sets off a whole chain of events that leads Blythe, Tucker, and Tanya to uncover the answers behind why they, and some of the people around them, are having strange memories and dreams.
I thought the way we’re introduced to what’s happening was great. There wasn’t any waiting around while small, strange things happened. The first sign that something was wrong was everything going terribly wrong in one go. It only gets more out of hand from there, but Kelley Armstrong wrote it in a way where not a single discovery seemed like it had come out of nowhere. Even a comment from a side character that I initially brushed off ended up being incredibly important to the plot and the big reveal at the end of the book.
Despite the plot ending up very close to literal brainwashing territory, I just accepted everything because it felt like it fit into the natural progression of the story.
All in all, if you’re a fan of Karen M McManus with a bit of Phoenix Files, I would recommend this book to you. It was a fairly quick read with action from the very beginning and it continues pretty consistently right until the end. I think it’s a book that will hold up to rereads, especially since I was flying through it so quickly that I probably missed a few details that I’ll find next time. This was a super fun read, and I’m super glad I got to read it before it came out. I will probably be talking about it for a while in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Gun violence, Suicide attempt, and Fire/Fire injury
maddireads13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Blood, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, and Fire/Fire injury
gkaltam's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence and Murder
theoceanrose's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Gun violence and Murder
Minor: Suicide