Reviews with content warning for Self harm - Wilder Girls

Reese was a great character, it was amazing how they handled her dad's death, but Hetty wasn't that great of a character, I was surprised because this book contains really well thought out twists and characters.

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milesbian's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

We 👏 support 👏 women's 👏 wrongs 👏

Jokes aside, this was an... interesting book. I just finished, so maybe I should let it settle a bit more better writing this, but eh.

First off, the obvious: the ending. The ending was... it just was. It definitely leaves you with questions, way too many questions, but I don't know. I didn't think it was absolutely horrible like other people claim. Seriously, based on what I'd heard, I was expecting the most dogshit writing I've ever seen lol. But I think maybe, for some people at least (and this is why I'm being vague and not marking this as spoilers, so that anybody that wants to read the book but is wary because of all the reviews lambasting the ending can see), you just need to go into it knowing you aren't going to get all the answers to all your questions. In fact, you won't be getting the answers to most of your questions. So just keep that in mind. And a bit more in regards to my own thoughts: there is so much we don't get to learn, and I know it feels more like the end to a chapter rather than the whole book, but personally, I think there's almost something admirable in that. It doesn't tell you what happens next, and I think that's what'll help this story stay with me: the questions, and the wondering.

Honestly, people complain so much about the ending, but I had way more of an issue with the beginning of the book. The book has a very rough start imo, the writing coming across somewhat juvenile and just a tad bit too edgy for my liking. I would go into more detail if I wasn't typing all of this up on my phone, but basically, I just really feel like the first few chapters could've used more editing than I think they actually got. Like, when I first started this book, I described it to my dad as a YA version of Annihilation (and yes, though I don't usually approve of the way some people use "YA" as shorthand for "bad," I did mean that in a disparaging way). I even considered DNFing it. But I'm glad I kept reading. It's not a perfect book, and the ending seems to be divisive, but overall, it was a decent read with an interesting premise. Whether it sticks the landing, honestly, is up to you; but for me, I do think this is a book I'll be thinking about for a while.

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laughingrecord's review

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

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cupofcauliflower's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

my god this is an incredible book, will recommend this for people who wont take my advice to not read the troop by nick cutter (or who really want to but want to build up to it)

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nicosta_music's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I feel like Wilder Girls is being done a disservice by being marketed as Lord of the Flies but with girls. Both books involve one gender of schoolchildren being stuck on an island, but the similarities stop there. And speaking as someone who hated Lord of the Flies: thank god that they do.

Wilder Girls was a truly exciting read -- the plot kept me hooked the entire way through, and the characters were interesting and engaging. I thought the world-building was interesting and the different twists were essential in continuously raising stakes throughout the book. I think my only complaint is that

the ending does feel a bit underwhelming. It sort of leaves the book open to a sequel, but not enough so that I felt it was a good ending. It reads more like the author just didn't know how to end the book so it was left ambiguous.

But besides that, I still thoroughly enjoyed Wilder Girls, and it definitely defied my expectations in a good way.

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