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jaimeeleigh_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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
never has there ever been a Holly Jackson book that hasn’t been incredible. this one had me on the edge of tears at the end. I genuinely didn’t know how it was going to end and things did shock me, which is hard when you have read as many crime thriller books as I have
Holly Jackson will always be the queen of writing ‘I killed the people who hurt me and now I need to hide the body’
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Infertility, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Slavery and Pregnancy
jocelyn62013's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping and Abandonment
Moderate: Eating disorder, Dementia, Stalking, and Gaslighting
Minor: Infidelity, Murder, and Pregnancy
sophiesometimesreads's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.0
This was well-paced, in my opinion, as it kept my attention the whole time, though I did go in with the expectation that this was more of a mystery over a thriller so wasn't expecting a super fast pace. Some people seem to feel like it dragged in the middle but I didn't really find this to happen for me.
I didn't pick much of the nitty gritty details (and most of the time when I did it was two pages before it was revealed in text). Some of the overarching details I did get, but I was questioning myself the whole time, and there was one reveal that really shocked me but made sense when looking back, so that was fun. I was hoping for a little more of a shocking reveal for a five star read, but there were components that shocked me so I wasn't disappointed, just felt like there was a little room for more shocking details or a big twist to the overarching narrative. In saying this, all the loose ends were tied up one way or another which is something I really appreciate about Holly Jackson's novels. Even the red herrings were explained away.
A lot of the characters are unlikeable, so if that's not your think you might not enjoy this, but I thought it made for an interesting dynamic between them all. Bel did get a bit frustrating at times, but it wasn't enough for me to hate her or to feel as if I didn't want to keep reading. I did feel like her character development happened a little quickly at the end though, and could've been fleshed out a little more, particulalry given the length of the novel, but it was still good to see how her character changed and grew across this novel.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time with this and if you like HJ's other novels, I'm sure you'll also like this one!
I didn't pick much of the nitty gritty details (and most of the time when I did it was two pages before it was revealed in text). Some of the overarching details I did get, but I was questioning myself the whole time, and there was one reveal that really shocked me but made sense when looking back, so that was fun. I was hoping for a little more of a shocking reveal for a five star read, but there were components that shocked me so I wasn't disappointed, just felt like there was a little room for more shocking details or a big twist to the overarching narrative. In saying this, all the loose ends were tied up one way or another which is something I really appreciate about Holly Jackson's novels. Even the red herrings were explained away.
A lot of the characters are unlikeable, so if that's not your think you might not enjoy this, but I thought it made for an interesting dynamic between them all. Bel did get a bit frustrating at times, but it wasn't enough for me to hate her or to feel as if I didn't want to keep reading. I did feel like her character development happened a little quickly at the end though, and could've been fleshed out a little more, particulalry given the length of the novel, but it was still good to see how her character changed and grew across this novel.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time with this and if you like HJ's other novels, I'm sure you'll also like this one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Dementia, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Abandonment
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Murder, and Pregnancy
Minor: Eating disorder
dcnireads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Murder
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Dementia, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Minor: Eating disorder, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic
alyssamhartley's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.0
I always ADORE a Holly Jackson book and this was so exception! Her writing is just perfect YA thriller/mystery writing. It is suspenseful whole not being too scary and no one writes a MC like she does. Her MCs always have so much to them and I love getting to be in their heads. I think anyone who doesn’t enjoy her books is not reading it like it is a YA book. YA books are always going to feel younger and the writing is going to be simpler than an adult thriller/mystery book. This storyline was enthralling to read and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I wish we had gotten a little bit more about Ash and the film crew in total. I felt like his relationship with Bel was not as plotted out as I would have liked it. It would have just been nice to see more of it because I really enjoyed them together. The thing that made this book 4 stars instead of 5 was that I didn’t love the ending because it just didn’t feel realistic at all and I felt like it ended with a lot of plot holes. I still had the best time reading this book and finished it in 2 sittings, but I wish I had gotten a little more from the end. I would highly recommend reading this if you like Holly Jackson books and as always, I recommend reading A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder if you are looking to get into Holly Jackson books because I think it’s a great set up to her writing style.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Eating disorder and Violence