Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect by Benjamin Stevenson

14 reviews

kylieqrada's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

Just as fun as the first one, also not quite as traumatic for me! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, and Blood

Moderate: Sexual assault, Alcoholism, and Rape

Minor: Vomit, Child abuse, and Child death

katelynprice's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I find this writing style and narrator to be so much fun! It's the very opposite of the mystery books I hate: ones that trick the reader, withhold information, and take themselves too seriously. Instead, Stevenson gives the reader all of the clues and formulas while still making the solution fresh, clever, and plausible. I enjoyed this book just as much as the first, maybe more. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death

Minor: Child abuse, Rape, Vomit, and Car accident

boba_n_books's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Sometimes sequels to mystery novels don't hold up to the original. I'm happy to say that is not the case with Everyone in This Train is a Suspect. 

Ernest Cunningham is back, and even at a crime-writing festival on a train, murders continue to follow him. Surrounded by crime writers, Ernest and the remaining 5 authors are on the case to figure out who did it. What first seemed like a simple murder turns out to bring in elements from years ago, and Ernest will need to give it his all, and trust some new friends, in order to solve the mystery.

I listened to this one on audio again and believe that audiobook is the best medium for these novels. The narrator is so funny, and the humor is so effective through the spoken word. 

This novel has the same meta and fourth-wall-breaking tone as the first. I did miss Ernest's quirky family, but we do get some cameos from Uncle Andy, which was fun! There were just enough call-backs to the first book without it being too much. I just love this author's prose and the way he creates a compelling character arc through a typical whodunnit mystery. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit, Child abuse, and Child death

libraryfrog's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt

Moderate: Sexual assault and Child abuse

korpney's review

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Blood, and Murder

Minor: Rape, Child abuse, and Child death

toffishay's review against another edition

funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

This was a really fun reading experience, enhanced by the fact that I actually read it on a long train ride! The meta, self-aware narrative device really works for me and I think it makes it stand out from other mysteries. I love a train-based mystery so I had fun with that as well, even if the mystery didn't grip me quite as much as I would have liked. Our narrator feels a little more far-removed in this sequel, but even that is worked into the plot...

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexism, Murder, and Death

Minor: Child abuse, Suicide, Rape, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Child death, and Injury/Injury detail

anntharai's review against another edition

funny reflective tense fast-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

4.5

This book was very up and down for me - there was a lot of eyerolling early on but gradually got in the groove with it. I think as a writer there were things that annoyed me as it talked about several of the industry issues that rile me 🤣  
It's all very meta and interesting, and it did what it said sequels should do for those who haven't read the first book -  it made me want to read the first book. So. Well done. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Death, Alcoholism, Blood, Suicide, and Vomit

Moderate: Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual assault, and Grief

Minor: Pedophilia, Incest, Child abuse, and Child death

mary_catherine's review

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual harassment

Minor: Rape, Child abuse, Sexism, Grief, Child death, Murder, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious 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

4.5

I won this ARC through a giveaway that HarperCollins Canada hosted over the winter holidays, which I was stoked about because I loved the first book in this series and was highly anticipating the second.

This book absolutely lived up to my expectations and I’m already looking forward to the third! This series is fun and continues Ern’s breaking of the fourth wall. Of course, I’ve got a soft spot for books about books and this definitely fit the bill.

A unique take on a classic murder mystery that I’d recommend to all Agatha Christie fans and those who are looking for a laugh out loud read!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Murder, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Medical trauma

Minor: Child abuse and Rape

emetrock's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Violence, Gore, Death, Murder, and Alcoholism

Minor: Child abuse and Rape