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butilikeit's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, and Mental illness
Moderate: Stalking
Minor: Death of parent
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
mothercoconuts's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I was so disappointed in this after reading the raving reviews saying there were so many twists and turns….
For one, there aren’t even any “twists” there are only light reveals. Once the main reveal is done, about half way thru, it’s pretty much over.
The book even mentions another novel in it that the second half of the story pretty much mirrors! 🙄 So, there really isn’t much mystery there.
The reveal about the landlord towards the end is pretty obvious. I didn’t predict it, but it’s not surprising and made me just go “oh yeah ok that sounds about right.” 😒
I also felt very disconnected to Sam and Annie as a couple. Like, I didn’t feel their chemistry or know much about their dynamic at all besides that they role play, which also had zero significance to the main plot!! 😡
The end was also a little too perfect and felt rushed. It was fun in the first half, and I kept reading to find out what happens but I just felt so let down. A very run-of-the-mill thriller imo.
For one, there aren’t even any “twists” there are only light reveals. Once the main reveal is done, about half way thru, it’s pretty much over.
The book even mentions another novel in it that the second half of the story pretty much mirrors! 🙄 So, there really isn’t much mystery there.
The reveal about the landlord towards the end is pretty obvious. I didn’t predict it, but it’s not surprising and made me just go “oh yeah ok that sounds about right.” 😒
I also felt very disconnected to Sam and Annie as a couple. Like, I didn’t feel their chemistry or know much about their dynamic at all besides that they role play, which also had zero significance to the main plot!! 😡
The end was also a little too perfect and felt rushed. It was fun in the first half, and I kept reading to find out what happens but I just felt so let down. A very run-of-the-mill thriller imo.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Stalking and Violence
Minor: Death of parent
lindseyrenee's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was a very quick and easy read that started strong with part 1. I enjoyed learning about the patients and was even pulled in thinking “Charlie” would play a larger role. Part 2 brought the twist pretty early on into the story and I thought it was great! That’s where the great ended for me though. I was hoping for more twists and turns but unfortunately the climax was in the middle and it became extremely predictable from there. I think there was an attempt at another twist towards the end, but it was already so obvious that it didn’t do much to add to the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Mental illness, Alcohol, Confinement, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Dementia and Suicide
Minor: Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
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
justagirlwithabook's review
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
4.5
Oh, this book was unputdownable. I recently posted a little blurb about great psychological thrillers on Bookstagram and was given a handful of recommendations back that I immediately added to my TBR; this was one of those books, and it did not disappoint!
This one gets most of its stars (I'd give it a 4-4.5) for the consistent plot twists thrown into the storyline. I fell prey to every kind of assumption the author was likely hoping that readers would fall prey to, so when the twists hit, my eyes got big, my jaw dropped, and I felt like an idiot having made all the assumptions I had. (And then I of course went back to the beginning to rifle through chapters and review the previous information in an entirely new light.)
This book has SO much plot and just enough character that it kept me utterly interested until the very end. As an added nugget, if you're a bit of a horror fan (think Stephen King's <i>Misery</i>), you'll appreciate the nod and will entirely eat this up.
So! To the brief lists:
What I Loved:
This one gets most of its stars (I'd give it a 4-4.5) for the consistent plot twists thrown into the storyline. I fell prey to every kind of assumption the author was likely hoping that readers would fall prey to, so when the twists hit, my eyes got big, my jaw dropped, and I felt like an idiot having made all the assumptions I had. (And then I of course went back to the beginning to rifle through chapters and review the previous information in an entirely new light.)
This book has SO much plot and just enough character that it kept me utterly interested until the very end. As an added nugget, if you're a bit of a horror fan (think Stephen King's <i>Misery</i>), you'll appreciate the nod and will entirely eat this up.
So! To the brief lists:
What I Loved:
- The twists, and not just one huge one but a handful that kept me having to rethink the story and characters that I thought I'd come to know fairly well
- The psychological aspects (a main character who is a therapist and another character who eavesdrops and diagnoses all said therapist's clients)
- The nod to Stephen King's <i>Misery</i> (as well as <i>The West Wing</i> references that came at perfect moments)
- The fast pace (entirely bingeable!)
What I Didn't Love:
- I wish the story had a been a little bit longer just because I wanted more (more twists, more backstories, more sordid details into other characters' lives), but for it being under 300 pages and such a great read, this is really more of a compliment to the author than a complaint!
Content Warnings:
Minor: child abuse, cursing, death of a parent, dementia, grief, thoughts of infidelity, medical content, sexism, sexual content, violence
Moderate: mental illness, stalking
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Stalking
Minor: Child abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Dementia, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Sexism, Sexual content, and Violence
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
moonlit_paperbacks's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Kidnapping
Moderate: Medical trauma and Stalking
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
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