Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - I Killed Zoe Spanos

Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

I Killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick

24 reviews

melody_t's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

If you're starting to get into murder mysteries, then it's a good starter book. However, if this is one of your favorite genres (it's one of mine) then I'd say avoid it because it doesn't really develop a good mystery like other books do (example: truly Devious)

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clairophy's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

What a wild ride of a book! This was one of the more confusing thrillers I’ve read but in a fun way? I found that the confusing aspects are what made me so hooked. From the first chapter I was so intrigued as to how it could work out to where a certain character DIDN’T kill the victim.
I was consistently trying to read characters and figure out where the truth lies and the author didn’t make it easy but that’s what made it such a good read! And the switching times and inclusion of a podcast transcript helped set the tone and hook me!
An amazing read.

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alicelt's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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jillkaarlela's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Mystery thriller, but in the Hamptons. A mysterious disappearance takes place in a small rich town, riddled with family drama and dark secrets. This book keeps you on the edge of your seat with an addicting plot line and crazy twists you can’t see coming. It cuts back and forth in time, and including a podcast about the disappearance, that causes the reader to question everything. My mind was constantly blown, and I was in a constant state of shock. I truly couldn’t put it down. I hold my mystery books to an extremely high standard, and this exceeded all of my expectations. This is one of the best thrilling ya mysteries I have read. I highly recommend, and I especially recommend listening to the audiobook of this book! I will definitely look into more books by this author!

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chipwich's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

*starts incoherently screeching*

THIS. THIS WAS EVERYTHING WE WERE LIARS WANTED TO BE. "I Killed Zoe Spanos" is now probably my new all time favorite book. no, i am not lying, yes, this was INSANE.

this book follows our main character anna, who's new in the hamptons nannying for a fucking loaded family. she literally stays in their GUEST BEACH HOUSE, and sketches next to the INFINITY POOL at night. she comes from brooklyn, and is trying to recover from years of alcohol abuse and pretty toxic relationships. anna thinks that if she just ignores that her life in brooklyn was a thing, it just wouldn't exist anymore. the writing does such a good job of portraying anna's unreliable narration very early on with her odd decision making and clear confusion of who she actually is.

once she spends more time at this rich town, she realizes something is off. she keeps getting odd rushes of nostalgia, and people are consistently mistaking her for the girl that had gone missing on new years, zoe spanos. THE NOSTALIGIA RUSHES? THE WRITING ON THOSE SCENES WAS IMMACULATE. ESPCIALLY THE FIRST SCENE IN THE ICE CREAM SHOPPE?? I FELT JUST AS CONFUSED AS ANNA AND IT WAS AWESOME!!!

she meets a "mysterious boy next door" soon after, which was immediately where i was scared this book was going to immediately go downhill. the best part? anna has an unrequited/kinda-sorta-maybe requited crush on caleb, BUT IT HAS ALMOST NO IMPACT ON THE PLOT. ITS JUST TO ADD TO THE WHOLE FEELING THAT ANNA IS BEING TRICKED BY THE ENTIRE TIME/NOT REMEMBERING SOMETHING SHE'S SUPPOSED TO, AND REALLY MAKE HER BREAKDOWN SCENE SO MUCH BETTER.

i don't know how to get into this book without spoilers, but be warned- the twist is CRAZY. this isn't really a whodunnit mystery, because we literally get a confession (even if spotty) to the murder by anna in the beginning chapter. the whole book is really just about why anna feels such a connection to the hamptons without have ever been there before, why she confessed, and why everybody keeps mistaking her for zoe. WHICH BY THE WAY, WHEN IT ALL COMES TOGETHER, IT'S SO SATISFYING AND JUST MAKES SO MUCH SENSE?!? GOD IT WAS SO GOOD I NEED EVERBODY TO READ THIS BOOK I'VE BEEN TRYING TO BE SERIOUS BUT HOLY SHIT I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH.

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mo345's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

2.0

i had such a hard time finishing this book. it reads like the first book of an author who has no idea what their writing style is. there are only two POC and LGBT+ characters, both of which feel forced and unnatural; most likely thrown in for “diversity points”. the ending was kind of a let down and was not as dramatic as the story made it seem like it would be.

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kaylaaa's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

I liked the story and the setting, but the ending was disappointing. there were also far too many infodumps. the podcast thing is interesting, but it leads to too much straight info. you barely get a chance to put the puzzle together yourself.

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viljahe's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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ne0n_ange1's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious medium-paced

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? It's complicated

4.5

I read this as an audiobook and let me tell you; it was an incredible experience! There were so many different voice actors that were brought in to narrate the Missing Zoe Podcast and the first time a podcast episode came on I was so shocked at how much effort was put in to make the episode feel like an actual podcast. Those episodes felt like they came right out of Serial or something! And the overall premise of the book was really well done. There was just enough mystery surrounding every new piece of information the reader gets to keep us guessing the whole way through. It's a great read!

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stormywolf's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Another hold-over from 2020's 25 Reads of December from RivitedLit. I wasn't planning on picking this one, what with it not having any of my typical favorite aspects, like Fantasy or Sci-Fi setting, nor did it promise much in the way of sass or rom-com vibes. But then I read that it's inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, which I haven't read but know a bit about from one of my favorite YouTuber's Lost in Adaptation episode on it. So, armed with a cursory knowledge of the mystery I might be facing, I jumped in with both RivitedLit's web version and the audiobook on loan from my library. And boy, did things sure get twisty.

Read my full review at The Wolf's Den

Overall, this was a pleasant surprise in a genre I'm not usually keen to pick up. Though the pacing was a little slow at times, the mystery was enticing and the podcasts were a unique way to keep the information flowing such that it kept me reading almost nonstop. I'd highly recommend the audiobook for the podcasts sections, as they were hands down the best case of audiobook production I've experienced in a while, but the transcripts in the text work fine if audio isn't your thing. So if you're in the mood for some Unsolved Mysteries-esque intrigue wrapped up in a tidy YA package, definitely give this one a try.

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