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teeclecticreads's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’m gonna be honest, I don’t have a clue was I just read. It was funny for sure, but the mystery is kinda confusing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Stalking
jodar's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
An unsettling mystery novel in which the narrator seeks to uncover the motivation for someone who is harassing her family – and the narrator herself specifically – in a very weird way. The reader encounters truth and falsehood, toxic fantasies, and happy and unhealthy relationships within and across generations.
The psychological uncertainty and creepiness kept me immersed in the story; however, the narrator’s solution to her dilemma was morally repellant, even though it wasn’t wholly unexpected. At the very end of the story, some falsehoods are maintained and kept secret from the outside world.
Perhaps this is an appropriate sort of mystery novel for a post-truth era in which some believe that there are bad lies and good lies but that it is naive to endeavour to live in truth.
The psychological uncertainty and creepiness kept me immersed in the story; however, the narrator’s solution to her dilemma was morally repellant, even though it wasn’t wholly unexpected. At the very end of the story, some falsehoods are maintained and kept secret from the outside world.
Perhaps this is an appropriate sort of mystery novel for a post-truth era in which some believe that there are bad lies and good lies but that it is naive to endeavour to live in truth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Murder
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
suneaters's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I enjoyed much of the story, but the humor infused in the writing sapped much of the tension. How am I supposed to feel real fear for the characters when the story is telling me to not take anything seriously? And my suspension of disbelief kept being broken. It's like the author couldn't decide between realism or something more akin to Lemony Snicket's absurdist writing. It's just not the right tone for a psychological thriller. Even so, I did enjoy the characters and the overall mystery was satisfying (I mean, the story within a story mystery since Anne's death really....wasn't. "And she was crazy" isn't really satisfying nor creative plus it makes the school seem even LESS believable) . I loved some of the subtler clues left like that Malachay is a dog and not a thirteen year old boy and that the parents are the ones who killed Perrine (so Allisande tried to ignore this while Lisette left in horror).
I’d give it a better rating if not for the one chapter containing the word “transmisogynistically” as an adverb. That single-handedly (or single word-edly) dropped the book a rating point. The most charitable interpretation of this section of the story is that it’s a cautionary tale against mob mentality, but seeing as the author has a Twitter, I’m sure the true message is that women are evil, lying bitches who ruin the lives of innocent men (less funny of an accusation after Depp DARVO’d the internet and a jury full of idiots) and that women who DARE to divorce autogynephiles are the worst of all as opposed to, I don't know, victims of their husbands' misogyny. Sorry, the one gay boy in your book who doesn’t have internet isn’t gonna know what the fuck “cis” means and neither will the other adolescent girl who seems normal (so she probably doesn’t know unless she’s been booted from a female sports team or harassed in the locker room/bathroom by men in wigs).
Ah well. I liked the mother-daughter relationship at the center of the novel.
Ah well. I liked the mother-daughter relationship at the center of the novel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Child death, Mental illness, Child abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Misogyny
eve_leclercracine's review
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
This book started off great. It was easy to read and it eased me into the story.
But eventually there were too many different plots that were mashed together to try and relate that just didn’t seem to work.
The ending was not it.
But eventually there were too many different plots that were mashed together to try and relate that just didn’t seem to work.
The ending was not it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking and Murder
Moderate: Mental illness
laurawoods13's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Animal death
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