shedevls's reviews
166 reviews

Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

there were a few *faceplam* moments, but not enough that it turned me off from the book. overall, it was a pretty quick and easy read, and i had fun.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Suicide, Blood, and Medical content

Minor: Self harm, Sexual content, and Car accident

The Family Game by Catherine Steadman

dark mysterious tense slow-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

3.5

meh, it was fun. i rather liked harry

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Suicide, Violence, and Car accident

Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, Abortion, and Pregnancy

The Island by Adrian McKinty

adventurous dark tense 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? It's complicated

3.5

it went on a little long for me, but the pacing and writing of the book made this a really fast read (it could easily be read in one day) so it wasn’t too much of a turn off. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Rape, Torture, and Car accident

Minor: Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Suicide

The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager

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

3.5

this one was kinda blah. i didn't find myself attached to any of the characters (though i did like one) and everything was just a little too much, especially towards the end. 

overall, though, i found myself having fun so i gave it an additional half star.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Death, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Vomit

How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

dark emotional funny mysterious sad 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

though mark pissed me off enough in the beginning that i almost decided to dnf this, i'm really glad i stuck it out it out. i ended up having a lot of fun with this one! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Grief, and Car accident

Minor: Animal death, Self harm, Vomit, and Fire/Fire injury

Survive the Night by Riley Sager

dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.5

this is definitely my 2nd favourite sager book (for now, at least). there was a lot of back and forth with charlie's movie imagination that i could've done without, i think, but it was still a super fun read and i quite liked the ending!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

Minor: Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

This Cursed House by Del Sandeen

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

i had originally planned for this to read to carry me into the new year, but i somehow? ended up? reading the whole thing in a day 🙃

so, needless to say, this cursed house is a wonderful debut by sandeen and, while a heavy read, it's 1000% worth it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Slavery

Moderate: Incest, Violence, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Child death, Self harm, and Car accident

Ghost Camera by Darcy Coates

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

i really liked death birds and untamed things with the run to broken ridge lighthouse being an honourable mention. 

though they were all good (save for payment for the deac. that one just didn’t hit for me) and well written; i really look forward to reading more from her!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Gore, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Body horror, Cursing, and Fire/Fire injury

Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra

dark 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

4.5

at first, i was a little worried about how well this would keep my attention when it’s 351 pages and we’re dropped into the thick of things on the first page, but it seems i was worried for nothing.

this was a wonderful book, even more so as a debut novel, and it’s one i’ll be recommending to everyone… just, for any other women (or those who are empathetic to the way women are treated by others, especially men), be prepared to punch the air more than a few times.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Stalking, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Pedophilia, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, Physical abuse, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, and Car accident

Bunny by Mona Awad

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

hahaha.. hah... what the fuck, bunny?

(also, i just want to say that the writing of this was beautiful)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Gore

Moderate: Drug use, Self harm, and Death of parent

Minor: Rape, Sexual content, and Car accident