Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Whisper Man by Alex North

12 reviews

haileyhardcover's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Holy crap this book was CHILLING. A serial killer who goes after kids is always going to be especially horrific, but North did an incredible job building up the anxiety as you realize the real horror of the situation at the same time as the characters do. There’s a really interesting supernatural element to the story (or, is there?) but by and large it is, unfortunately, an entirely plausible story which makes it all the more terrifying. At the end of one chapter in particular, my heart was beating out of my chest! No book has ever scared me like this one did. 

There are also several reveals throughout the course of the story. Though a couple seemed a little obvious to me, there was one specific one where my jaw very literally, almost comically, DROPPED.

There are also deeper tones to The Whisper Man. Beyond the thrills and the horror, the story examines the complexity of father-son relationships from multiple, vastly different angles. It also does a great job of portraying the on-going battle of addition recovery (specifically alcoholism, but I think the portrayal would translate well to any addiction) and what the daily struggle to remain sober can look like for many. 

I am giving this book five stars because, at the end of the day, it has accomplished what no book ever REALLY has and legitimately scared me, so it feels deserved; but I don’t think I would say it’s perfect. Listen, I award my stars how I want to. Deal with it! 

The story jumps between five different points of view, which can be a little confusing at times, especially when you’re not always immediately sure whose point of view you’re reading. One point of view is Jake’s, and it did occur to me as I was reading that I don’t think North accounted for how differently a child might think and process these situations. There was a point when it was acknowledged that Jake had a better grasp on vocabulary than most other kids his age, which I think was a way of addressing this disparity, but it felt a little off to me. I also felt like the book had a slower start. While the first chapter gets your blood pumping, it slows down pretty considerably and for quite a few chapters after that. It’s all important story building, but the first third of the book or so is a little slow. Still, the chapters are short (often 3-4 pages!) so it is an easy one to binge and get through pretty quick! 

If you have children or kiddos that you love in your life, keep in mind that this one is going to be a tough and terrifying read, but it is still really good and I absolutely recommend it. It’s one that is going to sit with me… probably forever. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Abandonment

lcm_xo's review against another edition

dark emotional medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

ruthypoo2's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Violence and Blood

augustinedreams's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Mental illness, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Pregnancy

weatherd's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent

Child death

fernyfh's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, and Alcohol

ebb_and_flow's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, and Death of parent

Moderate: Cancer, Confinement, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcohol

wrensreadingroom's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

hannahs_library__'s review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Looks like I won't be sleeping tonight

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Blood, Kidnapping, and Grief

ggcd1981's review

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

Rating: 3.75 estrelas 

TRIGER WARNING: Kidnapping, Death of child, Death of parent, Child abuse, Murder, Mentions of Alcoholism, Mentions of Domestic Violence 

The whisper man foi indicado em uma das primeiras listas de recomendação de terror que li quando estava retornando a leitura. Só que não concordo que esta obra é terror. É na verdade um thriller que inicialmente passa uma ambiguidade de se existem elementos paranormais ou é apenas uma história de serial killer (SPOILER: É apenas um serial killer). Não sei se é adequado também chamar o livro de Mistério, pois os mistérios que existem (Quem é o assassino e porque mata) são revelados mais ou menos na metade do livro. A partir da revelação o foco da obra se torna encontrar a criança, Jake, que foi sequestrada. 

É em geral um livro interessante, inclusive houve um momento um pouco assustador devido a narração (de Christopher Eccleston) do “boy under the floor”. A história mantém seu interesse, mas não posso dizer que ela atingiu seu potencial completo. A premissa de The whisper man é bastante interessante, mas a sensação que tive foi que o autor não queria cruzar a linha para que a história fosse mais Dark e honestamente mais realista (Desnecessário dizer que quando as vítimas nesse tipo de enredo são meninas MUITAS dessas linhas são comumente cruzadas). Ou seja, o autor manteve a história PG-13 e não cruzou a linha para o terror. 

Gostei de como as relações de pai e filho, tanto de Tom Kennedy com seu filho Jake, quanto de Tom com seu Pai Pete foram retratadas. Não há muitos pontos ruins na obra. Acho que o mais frustrante para mim foi a sensação de que o autor tentou pegar leve na história quando esta poderia ter sido um terror. Da narração de Christopher Eccleston devo dizer que esta me deixou confusa, pois houveram momentos bons e momentos ruins. Eu ouviria uma narração dele novamente? Sim, mas não de um livro que eu esteja antecipando MUITO. Em resumo, gostei e estou feliz de ter lido, mas não é um destaque do gênero Mystery/Thriller. Dou nota 3.75 estrelas.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse and Grief

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Toxic friendship