Reviews tagging 'Dementia'

Penpal by Dathan Auerbach

42 reviews

samtana's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Murder

lugosi147's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book is deeply deeply scary and tense at times and so deeply deeply tragic in others.  The author has a knack for crafting horror and pathos into an incredibly paced narrative.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

one boy’s friendship damns his friend’s entire family

madelinequinnee's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Wow, this book has left me absolutely broken. I had no idea what to expect going into this as I knew it was best to go in blind from the recommendations i’d seen online, and i’m so glad i did because this was one of the most incredibly sad horror stories i’ve ever read. 

The horror was so effective in such a ambiguous way, it didn’t rely on shock value or gore, it was all in the atmosphere and the unknown of what was happening, and I think it was so cleverly written. 

This story will stick with me for a long time 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

haleyhorrorshow's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Stalking

Moderate: Animal death and Dementia

Minor: Pedophilia

ninasloft's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Grief, and Stalking

Moderate: Dementia

Minor: Animal death and Vomit

sp00ky_girl28's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed this book! Such a gutwrenching read that made me feel so disturbed and angry. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep for a while 😅

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, and Stalking

Moderate: Animal death, Dementia, and Kidnapping

Minor: Bullying, Pedophilia, and Murder

madfromonline's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Violence, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

dusksolace's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Dementia, Kidnapping, Stalking, Car accident, and Murder

itsjustgrumpy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Utterly heart broken. Tense, and emotional. Auerbach gives you the pieces of the puzzle to put together yourself, each one more horrifying than the last. The final picture is harrowing. What a read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Blood, Stalking, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Dementia and Trafficking

Minor: Vomit

sydneyjustreads's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Pedophilia, Dementia, Kidnapping, and Stalking