Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell

33 reviews

avalon's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Me the first 95% of the book: okay that was pretty predictable

Me the final 5%: oh. Maybe i should have listened to the title

Seriously though the ending was pretty strong in my opinion, though it can be considered a sort of copout for any plotholes I still enjoyed it. Was it a perfect mystery? Not by any means. Was it fun? Absolutely!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Ableism, Kidnapping, Grief, and Death of parent

ivi_reads_books's review against another edition

dark emotional sad 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? N/A

3.75

The concept of a podcast unintentionally uncovering a crime is intriguing and adds a fresh twist to the story. However, while the premise is compelling, the ending feels somewhat predictable. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Minor: Death, Pedophilia, Medical content, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

katerina_l's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

emlynbooks's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

I’ve read a lot of Lisa Jewell and I can easily say- this is one of her best yet. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and Child abuse

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Violence

Minor: Ableism and Alcoholism

fkshg8465's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Wow. The creep and ick factor were so high in this book that I need to start another book right away to cleanse my brain’s palate. How else will I sleep tonight?

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

bsesek's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Stalking

Minor: Ableism, Pedophilia, Kidnapping, and Pandemic/Epidemic

anjayne's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Murder

Minor: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Pandemic/Epidemic

sweill803's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? Yes

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking

Moderate: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Body horror, Cursing, Drug use, Infidelity, and Blood

daffodilcherry's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

A psychological thriller following the link between two women, Alix and Josie, who meet when they realise they share their birthdays. Josie then asks Alix to make a podcast about her, unravelling her life. Interspersed in their tale are flashforwards to a true crime documentary made from their story. 

This story reads like a Netflix/BBC miniseries that gets crazy popular and that everyone's mum is obsessed with. The first 50% is amps up the tension between the two women, but ultimately it goes along very slowly. The second 50% is fast paced, desperate and dramatic. My one ultimate annoyance with this book is the title: None of This is True.

It ultimately spoils the fact that Josie is lying about the exact circumstances of her life.

if it had been named differently I think the revelations of the second half would have hit a lot stronger. However, the ending was so very satisfying (ending spoiler:)

especially the final twist of Josie's final chapter where she may not be as diabolical as we were lead to believe...

 

In terms of diversity, both Alix and Josie are white cis women, married to their husbands. Everyone appears to be ambiguously white and straight, except for, some of Nathan's friends and

Josie's daughter Roxy, who is a lesbian with her dark moments.

Erin is autistic with smooth food preferences and is the gamer queen of my heart. 

I very much enjoyed this as an audiobook, with two excellent main narrators and then a full cast making up the interviewees of the inserted documentary moments. My only gripe with it was that at times in the documentary aspects the interviewer's voice was very quiet, but otherwise it was good.

Wheelhouse: narrative parallels/foils, women protagonists over 45,

unreliable narrators,

spliced in revelations in the form of interviews.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Incest, Torture, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting

The dog is uninjured and fine at the end. Josie's relationship with Walter:

allegedly started dating when she was 15 he was 42, describes grooming behaviour, alleges that he is physically, emotionally and fiscally abusive towards her.

spoiler for the twist of Josie and Walter:

this is then twisted when her children allege that she was manipulative and emotionally abusive towards the whole family, including Walter, and that she may have attacked him as he died.

Josie's relationship with her children:

Erin is autistic and while Josie is mostly supportive in terms of providing her with food she likes there is an underlying current of slight abelism when it comes to Josie's views on Erin. Josie ends up fighting Erin, restraining her in her house and abandoning her for dead while stealing her money. Roxy appears to have a more fraught relationship with Josie, with allegations of child abuse and that Josie allegedly sabotaged her relationship with Brook. There is a custom made child's chair with restraints which apparently Josie used on Roxy.

Josie's final plan:

she kidnaps Alix's husband and ends up killing him, apparently accidentally.

Roxy:

final final twist spoilers: Roxy might have been the one to have killed her then girlfriend Brook.

lizziaha's review against another edition

3.5

My only problem with this book is that it didn’t quite stick the landing. The alternating perspectives of the original timeline and the podcast worked really well, and pulled me in. Having the before and after perspective built tension and kept focus even during slower parts of the story. So for the climax of the story to be told largely off-page felt a little off. I also think (and a lot of thrillers fall into this trap) that the author valued plot twists over a completely coherent plot. Both were subtle—the twists and the inconsistencies—but they both detract from each other. I sort of wish that we’d been able to get a little more into Josie’s headspace as well, though that would’ve perhaps ruined some of the twists. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Violence, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Blood