A review by leahhateshardbacks
Magpie by Elizabeth Day
dark
mysterious
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
3.0
A very promising start that is great at building tension and eerie uncertainty, but comparatively poor at delivering on its threats.
•
The twist happens very early on in this book, so much so that the story doesn't bank on it like so many thrillers do. The issue was, because it was so unusual to have a twist early on, I spent the whole rest of the book waiting for another twist to come and it never did. There's a distinctly ominous feeling building throughout the story; I was apprehensive about ever thinking I knew exactly what was going on because the early twist proved otherwise, and I was waiting for that gotcha moment but it never came. This is the epitome of anticlimactic... the build up was so exciting and dark, I never had any confidence in what was going to happen but I was so eager to uncover the truth, and then it just fizzled out.
•
For the life of me I can't figure out the relevance of the "She almost has everything. The rest she'll take" tagline on the cover... who are we talking about? I genuinely can't think which character this is supposed to relate to. This isn't affecting my rating though as I think this is a symptom of design teams picking up on vibes of the summary/plot rather than a lack on the writer's part.
•
I would pick up an Elizabeth Day again - I enjoyed the journey I was just disappointed in the destination. Good writing, good atmosphere, and when I wasn't reading it I was always wanting to pick it back up.
•
The twist happens very early on in this book, so much so that the story doesn't bank on it like so many thrillers do. The issue was, because it was so unusual to have a twist early on, I spent the whole rest of the book waiting for another twist to come and it never did. There's a distinctly ominous feeling building throughout the story; I was apprehensive about ever thinking I knew exactly what was going on because the early twist proved otherwise, and I was waiting for that gotcha moment but it never came. This is the epitome of anticlimactic... the build up was so exciting and dark, I never had any confidence in what was going to happen but I was so eager to uncover the truth, and then it just fizzled out.
•
For the life of me I can't figure out the relevance of the "She almost has everything. The rest she'll take" tagline on the cover... who are we talking about? I genuinely can't think which character this is supposed to relate to. This isn't affecting my rating though as I think this is a symptom of design teams picking up on vibes of the summary/plot rather than a lack on the writer's part.
•
I would pick up an Elizabeth Day again - I enjoyed the journey I was just disappointed in the destination. Good writing, good atmosphere, and when I wasn't reading it I was always wanting to pick it back up.