reads_emily's review against another edition
5.0
This book had a lot of good reviews and I’m often wary because a lot of the time, I don’t agree. However, this is an exception. This was a very enjoyable book to read. I found it very easy to follow and it had me second guessing my opinions all of the time. I kept guessing and guessing who did it but it only made sense in the end.
The main character was fairly annoying but she was going through some tough times and I totally get where she was coming from. But the whole dynamics between her and the other characters was very frustrating. It would put me off reading it though because everyone is annoying!
If you’re a fan of crime and thrillers I would definitely give this one a go!
The main character was fairly annoying but she was going through some tough times and I totally get where she was coming from. But the whole dynamics between her and the other characters was very frustrating. It would put me off reading it though because everyone is annoying!
If you’re a fan of crime and thrillers I would definitely give this one a go!
georgiana03's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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? Yes
4.0
lola425's review against another edition
3.0
If you like Lucy Foley's books, but wish they were a little more sinister and darker you will like this book. Straddles the line between suspense and horror, although I suspect true horror fans would be disappointed, this scaredy cat with an overactive imagination felt like it skewed too horror for my taste. Well written and well-paced with a protagonist you can get behind.
summer_reads1's review against another edition
3.0
From the title and the cover art, I expected a supernatural/haunting gothic type of story(I was really hoping for this!). Instead, I got a locked room/whodunnit murder mystery. Once I started reading I felt like I had already read this story before, it’s very similar to One by One by Ruth Ware.
It took me awhile to truly get into this book. The beginning has a very slow start. When introduced to the main character Elin, I had a hard time connecting with her. She wasn’t relatable and didn’t really have much depth besides her PTSD flashbacks.
Going further into the story there is a lot of people that ends up dying. Almost too much of an unbelievable count of bodies. After one person died, the characters didn’t really focus on the recent death until there was another sudden death.
As far as the twist, it was not surprising/shocking in the least bit. Maybe I’m just a little jaded from reading so many thrillers but the only thing I found interesting was the epilogue.
Overall this book was just okay. I didn’t particularly hate the story, but I didn’t necessarily like it either. I think this book had a lot of potential but it just fell flat for me.
It took me awhile to truly get into this book. The beginning has a very slow start. When introduced to the main character Elin, I had a hard time connecting with her. She wasn’t relatable and didn’t really have much depth besides her PTSD flashbacks.
Going further into the story there is a lot of people that ends up dying. Almost too much of an unbelievable count of bodies. After one person died, the characters didn’t really focus on the recent death until there was another sudden death.
As far as the twist, it was not surprising/shocking in the least bit. Maybe I’m just a little jaded from reading so many thrillers but the only thing I found interesting was the epilogue.
Overall this book was just okay. I didn’t particularly hate the story, but I didn’t necessarily like it either. I think this book had a lot of potential but it just fell flat for me.
mariafh91's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed this book. When I thought I had figured it out a new twist left me wondering what was coming next. Warning this book does contain talk about abuse and rape.
olivethebooks's review against another edition
3.0
Everyone I know who's read this book said it was disappointing which I found disappointing because it looked like the sort of book I'd enjoy. Well I finished my last audiobook and wasn't really feeling drawn to any of the others available on Borrowbox, the one I had on reserve was still not available. I found this one and thought hell I'll give it a try how bad can it be?
I'd like to thank everyone who said it was a let down and also Gemma Whelan for narrating it because I think this is the only reason I enjoyed it as much as I did. I am usually quite forgiving with books but even I was exasperated by the protagonist.
She's just so gullible, she's like ET following the Reeses Pieces. "Oh I've been lead to this conclusion I GUESS IT IS DECIDED THIS IS THE TRUTH. Oh, contradicting evidence. Guess I went in too hot there. THIS IS THE REAL TRUTH." Rinse and repeat. It was at least consistent though, she held a grudge against her brother for 10+ years because she had trippy dreams after a traumatic event. Not flashbacks, dreams. Granted there was a lot of investment in setting her brother up as a child sociopath only falling short of explicitly stating it, but this also seemed to be abandoned as soon as she realized she was the one watching their younger brother when he died. Suddenly all memories of her middle brother are softer and you're kinda left to assume that maybe you were dealing with an unreliable narrator situation. Her partner seemed to flip flop between supportive and like the cliché husband in a horror film.
Why was he even with her? In the beginning he seemed exasperated, how had they stayed together - even gotten together - when she's apparently so closed off? At the start of the book it was like she wanted him to go away but hadn't figured out that breaking up with someone is an option, and somehow five days later she can't live without him. What was in it for him? Honestly I was so suspicious of why he was in that relationship that I thought he might be the killer early on. I knew it was a logical stretch and it would take a lot of work to make it even slightly plausible but that's how unconvincing their relationship was to me. If it had been 100 years ago when divorces were almost unheard of I'd have accepted it easily. I'll just have to assume that not seeing much of each other and disapproving of each other's behavior for five days is the key to unlocking true love. But only if someone sustains a life threatening injury which conveniently prevents them from voicing their plot-obstructive opinions.
As much as I adore the insane asylum as a premise, I had to give the novel brownie points for going with the less glamorous tuberculosis hospital. Then I had to retract them when the author clearly wanted to have her cake and eat it too.
The epilogue seems to circle back to the idea that her brother really is a sociopath after all but it just wasn't believable. Whether it was deliberately inconsistent writing and Elin is an unreliable narrator or it was a cheap cliché jammed in for dramatic effect... It didn't work either way. How does that work when it directly contradicts the CCTV footage? If you're going to do unreliable narrator you have to keep the constants constant, there needs to be a baseline the reader can cling to and it has to remain sacred or it ruins all credibility.
I'm not even going to mention the nail polish thing. Actually I am. I've used nail polish when it's really old, I've worked at Lush with nail polish where it won't stay pristine through a full day of work, and I love picking my nail polish off. Never in my life have I left a Hansel and Gretel trail of nail polish. Has the author ever worn nail polish before? Even the peeling paint on my bathroom ceiling hasn't left any deposits yet and it's bad. Fingernails are small and it chips off in relatively large pieces or else tiny tiny pieces you'd never notice. Unless you're sitting there ripping it off (and usually you can peel most of the paint of one nail off in one go) but you wouldn't leave a pile of paint behind every time you use your hands. It would be more believable if Elin thought it wasn't Margot because she'd never seen her with nail polish on BECAUSE IT HAD FALLEN OFF ALREADY.
Anyway it was a fairly enjoyable if clichéd book and I had a mostly unrelated trippy dream this morning while listening to it so.
I'd like to thank everyone who said it was a let down and also Gemma Whelan for narrating it because I think this is the only reason I enjoyed it as much as I did. I am usually quite forgiving with books but even I was exasperated by the protagonist.
Spoiler
I can't decide if the author intended to make her ridiculously gullible and impulsive or if it was an accident - it kinda seems like it was a conscious decision because of the whole job suspension circumstances and other characters somewhat calling her out on it. I don't know why the police want her back but maybe I can't fault the author for that, not all police officers are perfect so there probably are a few like her out there.She's just so gullible, she's like ET following the Reeses Pieces. "Oh I've been lead to this conclusion I GUESS IT IS DECIDED THIS IS THE TRUTH. Oh, contradicting evidence. Guess I went in too hot there. THIS IS THE REAL TRUTH." Rinse and repeat. It was at least consistent though, she held a grudge against her brother for 10+ years because she had trippy dreams after a traumatic event. Not flashbacks, dreams. Granted there was a lot of investment in setting her brother up as a child sociopath only falling short of explicitly stating it, but this also seemed to be abandoned as soon as she realized she was the one watching their younger brother when he died. Suddenly all memories of her middle brother are softer and you're kinda left to assume that maybe you were dealing with an unreliable narrator situation. Her partner seemed to flip flop between supportive and like the cliché husband in a horror film.
Why was he even with her? In the beginning he seemed exasperated, how had they stayed together - even gotten together - when she's apparently so closed off? At the start of the book it was like she wanted him to go away but hadn't figured out that breaking up with someone is an option, and somehow five days later she can't live without him. What was in it for him? Honestly I was so suspicious of why he was in that relationship that I thought he might be the killer early on. I knew it was a logical stretch and it would take a lot of work to make it even slightly plausible but that's how unconvincing their relationship was to me. If it had been 100 years ago when divorces were almost unheard of I'd have accepted it easily. I'll just have to assume that not seeing much of each other and disapproving of each other's behavior for five days is the key to unlocking true love. But only if someone sustains a life threatening injury which conveniently prevents them from voicing their plot-obstructive opinions.
As much as I adore the insane asylum as a premise, I had to give the novel brownie points for going with the less glamorous tuberculosis hospital. Then I had to retract them when the author clearly wanted to have her cake and eat it too.
The epilogue seems to circle back to the idea that her brother really is a sociopath after all but it just wasn't believable. Whether it was deliberately inconsistent writing and Elin is an unreliable narrator or it was a cheap cliché jammed in for dramatic effect... It didn't work either way. How does that work when it directly contradicts the CCTV footage? If you're going to do unreliable narrator you have to keep the constants constant, there needs to be a baseline the reader can cling to and it has to remain sacred or it ruins all credibility.
I'm not even going to mention the nail polish thing. Actually I am. I've used nail polish when it's really old, I've worked at Lush with nail polish where it won't stay pristine through a full day of work, and I love picking my nail polish off. Never in my life have I left a Hansel and Gretel trail of nail polish. Has the author ever worn nail polish before? Even the peeling paint on my bathroom ceiling hasn't left any deposits yet and it's bad. Fingernails are small and it chips off in relatively large pieces or else tiny tiny pieces you'd never notice. Unless you're sitting there ripping it off (and usually you can peel most of the paint of one nail off in one go) but you wouldn't leave a pile of paint behind every time you use your hands. It would be more believable if Elin thought it wasn't Margot because she'd never seen her with nail polish on BECAUSE IT HAD FALLEN OFF ALREADY.
Anyway it was a fairly enjoyable if clichéd book and I had a mostly unrelated trippy dream this morning while listening to it so.
miabooksx3's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-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
2.0