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nerdybookqueen's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
This book was awful. I would've DNF'd it much earlier but I finished it because it was my book club book this month, and it only got worse.
Minor problem: it was boring, which is awful for a suspense novel. Every time I thought things would get interesting, they just went back to boring again.
I found the writing style very annoying to read. I hate the awkward switching between third and first person and I realize that it was meant to mislead as to who the one character was, but it made it very difficult and frustrating to read. Especially when it continued after the reveal of who the first person character was.
SPOILERS AHEAD:
What actually made me frustrated and dropped this to a one star was two things:
First, the big twist was the first person narrator, the villain, surprise, not a woman, a gay man! This book came out in 2020, are we not past villainizing gay folks? If your only LGBT character is the villain, and that's also your big twist, you're doing something wrong. I would've been more interested if it had been a woman, tbh, because I would've have been so frustrated with this BS. The homophobia trigger warning is for the author, not the book.
And the second part is that the ending is straight out of a different book. Referencing the book as the source for the character's decision to do those things doesn't excuse the fact you copied the plot. If anything the acknowledgement was more annoying.
Minor problem: it was boring, which is awful for a suspense novel. Every time I thought things would get interesting, they just went back to boring again.
I found the writing style very annoying to read. I hate the awkward switching between third and first person and I realize that it was meant to mislead as to who the one character was, but it made it very difficult and frustrating to read. Especially when it continued after the reveal of who the first person character was.
SPOILERS AHEAD:
What actually made me frustrated and dropped this to a one star was two things:
First, the big twist was the first person narrator, the villain, surprise, not a woman, a gay man! This book came out in 2020, are we not past villainizing gay folks? If your only LGBT character is the villain, and that's also your big twist, you're doing something wrong. I would've been more interested if it had been a woman, tbh, because I would've have been so frustrated with this BS. The homophobia trigger warning is for the author, not the book.
And the second part is that the ending is straight out of a different book. Referencing the book as the source for the character's decision to do those things doesn't excuse the fact you copied the plot. If anything the acknowledgement was more annoying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Homophobia, and Stalking
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Infidelity, Death, Dementia, Death of parent, and Grief
mtnest's review
dark
emotional
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Confinement, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Stalking
Moderate: Medical content, Grief, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Pregnancy
jasmine256's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Stalking, Kidnapping, and Dementia
Minor: Death of parent, Infidelity, and Sexual content
rivercat0338's review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, and Violence
Minor: Infidelity
brookey8888's review
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
3.0
he first 50 pages of the ebook were ok. Then the next like 100 had like two twists I didn’t see coming which was good. But then it just good boring and there was no more plot twists. Also like no mystery. As for the characters they were fine like nothing I really liked and they weren’t that annoying. I didn’t love the ending SLIGHT SPOILER it’s a happy ending which I don’t really read thrillers for and plus they didn’t really go through it to be honest to deserve that happy of an ending.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Stalking, and Suicide
lilifane's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Loved the first half, how the author used the different perspectives and played with my expectations. The second half was okay, it referenced another book a little too much for my taste. I guess it made sense, but was way too predictable because of it. I really liked the reveal at the end but then the ending ruined it a little for me. In conclusion I liked it, it was fast paced and mostly fun to read, just the ending a bit common/disappointing, escpecialy because the first half was so amzing and refreshing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Medical content, Stalking, and Suicide
thrillofthepage's review
dark
mysterious
fast-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
3.5
This month #thrillerswithgems book club pick was Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy. I was excited to finally read this one because it had been sitting on my shelf for months! Unfortunately, due to the winter weather I had to miss our discussion and I’m super bummed about that.
My first impression of Goodnight Beautiful was that it was incredibly fast paced and I knew exactly what was going on....yeah right!! I read part one thinking I knew whose POV I was reading and where the story was headed. *Note, the chapters are not labeled and you have to guess who is actually narrating.* Then part one ended and I was utterly confused. Everything I thought I knew was incorrect.
Part two cleared up some of my confusion, but after the way part one ended I questioned every thought and theory I had. I desperately needed to know what was going to happen next and I couldn’t stop turning the pages. This book clocks in just under 300 pages and can easily be read in one day, which makes this a great binge read.
I will say that I didn’t feel super connected to our main characters, Sam and Annie. There wasn’t a single reason why and I didn’t dislike them by any means. There wasn’t a ton of character development for either of them and they were pretty surface level. My favorite POV was unknown for about half of the book and I found him incredibly interesting. Molloy conveyed his troubled life so well that I actually connected with him the most (not sure what that says about me).
Overall, the book was a quick read and I enjoyed it. I did want more from the ending and felt that it all tied up too nicely. If you’re a fan of fast paced thrillers that keep you guessing then you’ll enjoy this one!
My first impression of Goodnight Beautiful was that it was incredibly fast paced and I knew exactly what was going on....yeah right!! I read part one thinking I knew whose POV I was reading and where the story was headed. *Note, the chapters are not labeled and you have to guess who is actually narrating.* Then part one ended and I was utterly confused. Everything I thought I knew was incorrect.
Part two cleared up some of my confusion, but after the way part one ended I questioned every thought and theory I had. I desperately needed to know what was going to happen next and I couldn’t stop turning the pages. This book clocks in just under 300 pages and can easily be read in one day, which makes this a great binge read.
I will say that I didn’t feel super connected to our main characters, Sam and Annie. There wasn’t a single reason why and I didn’t dislike them by any means. There wasn’t a ton of character development for either of them and they were pretty surface level. My favorite POV was unknown for about half of the book and I found him incredibly interesting. Molloy conveyed his troubled life so well that I actually connected with him the most (not sure what that says about me).
Overall, the book was a quick read and I enjoyed it. I did want more from the ending and felt that it all tied up too nicely. If you’re a fan of fast paced thrillers that keep you guessing then you’ll enjoy this one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide
Minor: Death of parent and Dementia
thebakerbookworm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a psychological thriller at its best, in my opinion! It starts out feeling like your average domestic thriller, but there are so many twists in this. I did not guess anything correctly. 😂
It’s definitely plot-focused, but there are some nice character touches throughout and a small amount of development in our main characters. I didn’t really fall in love with any of the characters, but the story had me caring about what happened to them.
The plot will keep you on your toes, and it’s not very long, so if you’re looking for a book that will completely suck you in for a few hours, this will do the trick. I do think the ending was a bit abrupt and rushed. I can’t recommend the audiobook enough though—another stellar listen!
Thank you to Libro.fm, Harper Audio, and the author for my copy.
I feel like I can’t say much more about this book without it being a spoiler…but it’s one that’s more enjoyable if you go in knowing nothing!
Read if you like: psychological thrillers, fresh takes on thriller stereotypes, eavesdropping, stalking people on social media.
It’s definitely plot-focused, but there are some nice character touches throughout and a small amount of development in our main characters. I didn’t really fall in love with any of the characters, but the story had me caring about what happened to them.
The plot will keep you on your toes, and it’s not very long, so if you’re looking for a book that will completely suck you in for a few hours, this will do the trick. I do think the ending was a bit abrupt and rushed. I can’t recommend the audiobook enough though—another stellar listen!
Thank you to Libro.fm, Harper Audio, and the author for my copy.
I feel like I can’t say much more about this book without it being a spoiler…but it’s one that’s more enjoyable if you go in knowing nothing!
Read if you like: psychological thrillers, fresh takes on thriller stereotypes, eavesdropping, stalking people on social media.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Dementia, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Blood and Kidnapping
Minor: Death of parent, Medical content, and Sexual content
heykels's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, and Forced institutionalization
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