connorjdaley's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Received the audio through NetGalley, and I thought that Rachel Fulginiti did a great job with this.
This was a unique story for me. I was for the most part pulled in by the cover, so I did not give the blurb a read. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it was not for the main character to be murdered in the very beginning of the story! I guess I thought with the book’s title that it would be about her being haunted, not killed and becoming a ghost! (FYI, that is revealed in the blurb, so not me spoiling). So, it was a nice surprise and worked for me as a plot twist.
The main character is believable and relatable. Her grief and paranoia has pushed her to become a complete agoraphobe inside her well secured apartment complex. Even though she completely cuts herself off from the outside, it’s not enough to keep her safe. Nothing is. I didn’t really feel like that was creepy while listening to it, but now that I’m writing it out it surely does.
The author does a great job subverting a lot of the expectations around paranormal activity—what a ghost can do, and can not do, may surprise you a lot. It is much more along the lines of someone normal trapped in the in between of life and death, than it is like a malignant spirit in movies.
The author weaves a very twisting story, where every character, and every interaction, may lead to another clue or even another mystery. My only gripe is I did feel like this went on to the point where the main character’s story is a little less mysterious than I wished it would have been. Personally a 4/5* for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Murder, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Violence, and Blood
amobrien's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.25
Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.
If you're in the mood for a paranormal thriller, I highly recommend The Ghosts of Thorwald Place. It's dark and tense with more than a few horror elements. The paranormal aspect is blended into the mystery well — sometimes when I'm reading a mystery, especially a domestic thriller, I feel like the addition of ghosts pulls away from the story, but this is a story that is 100% benefitted from it. There were some twists that I expected, but there were also many that completely surprised me. Overall, I found this to be a really interesting read, but I would recommend checking the content warnings before diving in.
If you're in the mood for a paranormal thriller, I highly recommend The Ghosts of Thorwald Place. It's dark and tense with more than a few horror elements. The paranormal aspect is blended into the mystery well — sometimes when I'm reading a mystery, especially a domestic thriller, I feel like the addition of ghosts pulls away from the story, but this is a story that is 100% benefitted from it. There were some twists that I expected, but there were also many that completely surprised me. Overall, I found this to be a really interesting read, but I would recommend checking the content warnings before diving in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, Murder, Child death, Addiction, Stalking, Death, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Confinement, and Animal death
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Blood, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Car accident, and Body horror
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