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pagesplotsandpints's Reviews (2.1k)
<b>Read Completed 7/9/24 |</b> 4 - 4.25 stars
This was a BookTok recommendation finally gone right! I really enjoyed this thriller and it was just what I needed to have a break from the many popcorn thrillers that are popular now (even from authors who didn't use to be so popcorn-y). The beginning was a little bit slower paced for me, but it had an underlying feeling of dread and creepiness that I really, really enjoyed. This was a very solid read for me and it really could have gone above and beyond by having just one more connection in the end, but I still enjoyed the read. I really appreciated going in blind, and I won't have major spoilers here, but if you're okay knowing a little about the book, proceed:
After Aaron's wife is killed in a random shooting, he feels slightly haunted by her ghost and goes on a question to uncover a mystery -- a series of cold cases -- that his wife has been investigating. He finds pieces of her past that he didn't even know about, and things that she specifically lied to him about, but he ends up going down the rabbit hole to see what exactly he didn't know about his wife and why she was looking into these cases of murdered girls.
This was definitely a slow burn thriller -- I guess it's actually supposed to be horror, but it's like a horror thriller -- that had some really neat literary devices and motifs that I loved picking up on. The authors uses the title "come with me" in several different ways and each time it popped up, I got chills. There's a lot of use of the color red that made the book vivid and movie-like. I love when that comes effortlessly and I don't feel like I'm in high school English class. Even though it wasn't like it at all, it kind of had a Sixth Sense vibe. There was just something about it that gave me the feeling of that dread creeping in... and that a ghost could turn up at any moment.
The mystery was really fun to unravel. I actually really liked that Aaron was totally and outsider to this. Allison had already done a lot of research, but he didn't know anything about it, so he picks up where she left off as best as he can. He's finding out what she was even investigating in the first place. I liked that it wasn't a detective, but he was still figuring out clues, and it wasn't the person so closely tied to everything either. It allowed for further digging and also detachment.
This does have a slightly paranormal theme to it that I also enjoyed and didn't know if it was going to be paranormal or not. Aaron believes that Allison is lightly haunting him -- lights turning on, feelings of someone else in the room, etc. It's not scary, but it's lightly creepy and gives a nice, unsettling vibe to it all. There is an explanation and I'm not sure I loved it, but it was also kind of neat. I think the one thing that I really wanted from the ending was for... (minor spoiler and MAJOR spoiler in tags here)Allison's death to be somehow connected. It never seemed to be, but I guess I wanted that to tie back in somehow -- she was investigating something there, someone knew her, she wanted herself to get killed, there was some reason why she tried to put herself in harm's way -- but there wasn't. It was just a senseless act, and maybe that made it even more sad. But it did spur things into action without us knowing it of Aaron wanting to pick up her investigation to then be with Allison in the afterlife. Eh eh eh, it was okay. I'm so-so on how I feel about that, but the author definitely did foreshadow all of this and include clues along the way. We just thought it was Allison's ghost and not Aaron's.
I am definitely glad I read this and this will probably be in my top books of the year in some capacity. It was just super refreshing to take a break from the vibe of other thrillers, and I don't usually get along with horror, so I'm just really happy I enjoyed this one.
This was a BookTok recommendation finally gone right! I really enjoyed this thriller and it was just what I needed to have a break from the many popcorn thrillers that are popular now (even from authors who didn't use to be so popcorn-y). The beginning was a little bit slower paced for me, but it had an underlying feeling of dread and creepiness that I really, really enjoyed. This was a very solid read for me and it really could have gone above and beyond by having just one more connection in the end, but I still enjoyed the read. I really appreciated going in blind, and I won't have major spoilers here, but if you're okay knowing a little about the book, proceed:
After Aaron's wife is killed in a random shooting, he feels slightly haunted by her ghost and goes on a question to uncover a mystery -- a series of cold cases -- that his wife has been investigating. He finds pieces of her past that he didn't even know about, and things that she specifically lied to him about, but he ends up going down the rabbit hole to see what exactly he didn't know about his wife and why she was looking into these cases of murdered girls.
This was definitely a slow burn thriller -- I guess it's actually supposed to be horror, but it's like a horror thriller -- that had some really neat literary devices and motifs that I loved picking up on. The authors uses the title "come with me" in several different ways and each time it popped up, I got chills. There's a lot of use of the color red that made the book vivid and movie-like. I love when that comes effortlessly and I don't feel like I'm in high school English class. Even though it wasn't like it at all, it kind of had a Sixth Sense vibe. There was just something about it that gave me the feeling of that dread creeping in... and that a ghost could turn up at any moment.
The mystery was really fun to unravel. I actually really liked that Aaron was totally and outsider to this. Allison had already done a lot of research, but he didn't know anything about it, so he picks up where she left off as best as he can. He's finding out what she was even investigating in the first place. I liked that it wasn't a detective, but he was still figuring out clues, and it wasn't the person so closely tied to everything either. It allowed for further digging and also detachment.
This does have a slightly paranormal theme to it that I also enjoyed and didn't know if it was going to be paranormal or not. Aaron believes that Allison is lightly haunting him -- lights turning on, feelings of someone else in the room, etc. It's not scary, but it's lightly creepy and gives a nice, unsettling vibe to it all. There is an explanation and I'm not sure I loved it, but it was also kind of neat. I think the one thing that I really wanted from the ending was for... (minor spoiler and MAJOR spoiler in tags here)
I am definitely glad I read this and this will probably be in my top books of the year in some capacity. It was just super refreshing to take a break from the vibe of other thrillers, and I don't usually get along with horror, so I'm just really happy I enjoyed this one.
<b>Read Completed 7/7/24 |</b> 4 stars
I've been wanting to pick this up forever because it's a baseball romance and it did not disappoint on either account! It was full of enough baseball -- and accurate baseball -- to really get connected to it as a fan of the sport, and it also wasn't too much that non-baseball fans would feel lost or overwhelmed by it. My only *minor* complaint was that it was a fake team when the author was going to reference several real ones anyway. I guess maybe that's because if you do watch the sport, maybe it would be distracting to fictionalize a whole team? I guess it was distracting either way.
I also really liked the romance here! It wasn't my favorite trope, since the book starts off with Daphne heckling Chris at a home game and then they end up messaging on Instagram.... but she forgot to tell him she was the heckler. Then when they meet in real life, she's set up to interview him as the heckler and can't see to make the two meet in the middle, starting off the relationship with a concealed identity. I don't hate this trope or even dislike it like a bunch of other reviewers seem to (in general - this book seems to have pretty good feedback!) but I didn't really want it for *this* story in particular. I loved the chemistry between Daphne and Chris, and I loved that she became the sideline reporter to constantly keep them close and have her involved with the baseball side of everything too. I think I just didn't love combining that trope with this particular setting.
This wasn't overly comedic -- would I call it a romcom? Probably not -- but it was light, breezy, and lovely. There are some serious moments in there but the book is overall a feel-good romance read! I really loved the whole vibe and it was just the perfect summer romance for me.
I really loved Daphne and Chris individually as well as together! They have their own POVs, but it's still in third person. The chapters do switch back and forth to keep things from one perspective and then the other. Usually I prefer romances in third person but this was an exception where I didn't even really notice and didn't mind because I liked how it was written! The chemistry was great and the spicy scenes were very well done, when sometimes spicy scenes can really ruin the vibe.
I was super happy with this read and everything about it! It wasn't quite 5 star material for me but it's one of the best romances I've read all year.
I've been wanting to pick this up forever because it's a baseball romance and it did not disappoint on either account! It was full of enough baseball -- and accurate baseball -- to really get connected to it as a fan of the sport, and it also wasn't too much that non-baseball fans would feel lost or overwhelmed by it. My only *minor* complaint was that it was a fake team when the author was going to reference several real ones anyway. I guess maybe that's because if you do watch the sport, maybe it would be distracting to fictionalize a whole team? I guess it was distracting either way.
I also really liked the romance here! It wasn't my favorite trope, since the book starts off with Daphne heckling Chris at a home game and then they end up messaging on Instagram.... but she forgot to tell him she was the heckler. Then when they meet in real life, she's set up to interview him as the heckler and can't see to make the two meet in the middle, starting off the relationship with a concealed identity. I don't hate this trope or even dislike it like a bunch of other reviewers seem to (in general - this book seems to have pretty good feedback!) but I didn't really want it for *this* story in particular. I loved the chemistry between Daphne and Chris, and I loved that she became the sideline reporter to constantly keep them close and have her involved with the baseball side of everything too. I think I just didn't love combining that trope with this particular setting.
This wasn't overly comedic -- would I call it a romcom? Probably not -- but it was light, breezy, and lovely. There are some serious moments in there but the book is overall a feel-good romance read! I really loved the whole vibe and it was just the perfect summer romance for me.
I really loved Daphne and Chris individually as well as together! They have their own POVs, but it's still in third person. The chapters do switch back and forth to keep things from one perspective and then the other. Usually I prefer romances in third person but this was an exception where I didn't even really notice and didn't mind because I liked how it was written! The chemistry was great and the spicy scenes were very well done, when sometimes spicy scenes can really ruin the vibe.
I was super happy with this read and everything about it! It wasn't quite 5 star material for me but it's one of the best romances I've read all year.
<b>Read Completed 7/5/24 |</b> 3 stars
This was a little different than what I was expecting — the cover looks like it promises some humor and it was maybe a little quirkier but it wasn’t humorous. I did enjoy the read but it was really a little blah for me. I almost DNFed at about 20%, but I figured I’d keep going to see what happened.
Hannah herself was just kind of lost and latched onto this serial killer, and somehow they ended up falling in love, or what Hannah thinks is love. I’m no therapist but there was definitely some void she was trying to feel, or feelings she was trying to feel, by becoming obsessed with n accused serial killer and then being romantically involved with him.
There was a little twist in the end, which wasn’t wildly surprising, but I enjoyed the final jab at the end as we see the characters after it’s all over. That saved the book a little bit for me to keep things dark.
I’m always interested in a quirky thriller. This just fell a little flat but I’d probably be interested enough to see something else from this author in a similar style.
This was a little different than what I was expecting — the cover looks like it promises some humor and it was maybe a little quirkier but it wasn’t humorous. I did enjoy the read but it was really a little blah for me. I almost DNFed at about 20%, but I figured I’d keep going to see what happened.
Hannah herself was just kind of lost and latched onto this serial killer, and somehow they ended up falling in love, or what Hannah thinks is love. I’m no therapist but there was definitely some void she was trying to feel, or feelings she was trying to feel, by becoming obsessed with n accused serial killer and then being romantically involved with him.
There was a little twist in the end, which wasn’t wildly surprising, but I enjoyed the final jab at the end as we see the characters after it’s all over. That saved the book a little bit for me to keep things dark.
I’m always interested in a quirky thriller. This just fell a little flat but I’d probably be interested enough to see something else from this author in a similar style.
<b>Read Completed 7/4/24 |</b> 4 stars
This was a fun read! I'm kind of liking this new trend of authors revising some of their older works and reintroducing them. I think it's great marketing and so helpful to connect with readers who fell in love with their books in their later works, and it provides an opportunity for the authors to update some of their older books to improve in areas that they may change now that they've been writing for a long time.
Sarah Adams is usually a hit for me but I've had some serious misses, so my confidence was shaken. I wasn't sure how this was going to go, but this was just an adorable, sweet romance. It wasn't trying too hard and it had some really fun vibes. Evie's relationship with her parents is very Gilmore Girls and I loved the single dad relationship as well. I really appreciated the disability rep, and I always have a soft spot for service dogs!
I really liked how everything went in this book. There is a sort of third act break-up and it does have a little miscommunication, but it's in a logical way, not a stupid way. I really liked the chemistry between the two main characters and I loved the feeling of family that developed here as well.
This was just a very good feel-good romance! I'm excited to read its companion when its updated version is released. I think I'll wait until then.
This was a fun read! I'm kind of liking this new trend of authors revising some of their older works and reintroducing them. I think it's great marketing and so helpful to connect with readers who fell in love with their books in their later works, and it provides an opportunity for the authors to update some of their older books to improve in areas that they may change now that they've been writing for a long time.
Sarah Adams is usually a hit for me but I've had some serious misses, so my confidence was shaken. I wasn't sure how this was going to go, but this was just an adorable, sweet romance. It wasn't trying too hard and it had some really fun vibes. Evie's relationship with her parents is very Gilmore Girls and I loved the single dad relationship as well. I really appreciated the disability rep, and I always have a soft spot for service dogs!
I really liked how everything went in this book. There is a sort of third act break-up and it does have a little miscommunication, but it's in a logical way, not a stupid way. I really liked the chemistry between the two main characters and I loved the feeling of family that developed here as well.
This was just a very good feel-good romance! I'm excited to read its companion when its updated version is released. I think I'll wait until then.
<b>Read Completed 7/4/24 |</b> 3 stars
Any time you mention a funny thriller/horror, I am interested! I loved the concept of the main character being a serial killer and having a humorous undertone to the book, so I knew I had to read this. I wish I had connected with it a bit more, but I enjoyed the concept.
Overall, YOU'D LOOK BETTER AS A GHOST just didn't quite deliver for me. I was hooked right away and the author wasted no time having Claire jump into murders.... and we see her commit multiple murders throughout the book, so that darkness is definitely there! There were a few funny moments with some great comedic timing, but most of what some would call humor I just thought was quirky. When a book is described as funny, especially a dark comedy, I'm hoping to actually laugh a bit more, but there's definitely a levity to this dark concept.
The characters were a bit... insufferable. I think they're supposed to be, especially seeing things from Claire's POV because she also hates every single one of them, but I couldn't stand them. They were all made to be over-the-top and I wanted to avoid hearing them as much as possible. I wish we could have left some of this support group behind and had a bit more focus on developing a plot. There really wasn't much to the plot either -- Claire commits a murder and she feels someone is on her trail. That's about it. I just really lost interest about 30-40% in and the annoying characters had me zoning out sometimes.
By the end, I didn't really care what happened, and I wish I had been more connected. I really, really liked this concept but it just didn't come together enough for me to rate it higher. I'd be willing to try another book from this author, though!
Any time you mention a funny thriller/horror, I am interested! I loved the concept of the main character being a serial killer and having a humorous undertone to the book, so I knew I had to read this. I wish I had connected with it a bit more, but I enjoyed the concept.
Overall, YOU'D LOOK BETTER AS A GHOST just didn't quite deliver for me. I was hooked right away and the author wasted no time having Claire jump into murders.... and we see her commit multiple murders throughout the book, so that darkness is definitely there! There were a few funny moments with some great comedic timing, but most of what some would call humor I just thought was quirky. When a book is described as funny, especially a dark comedy, I'm hoping to actually laugh a bit more, but there's definitely a levity to this dark concept.
The characters were a bit... insufferable. I think they're supposed to be, especially seeing things from Claire's POV because she also hates every single one of them, but I couldn't stand them. They were all made to be over-the-top and I wanted to avoid hearing them as much as possible. I wish we could have left some of this support group behind and had a bit more focus on developing a plot. There really wasn't much to the plot either -- Claire commits a murder and she feels someone is on her trail. That's about it. I just really lost interest about 30-40% in and the annoying characters had me zoning out sometimes.
By the end, I didn't really care what happened, and I wish I had been more connected. I really, really liked this concept but it just didn't come together enough for me to rate it higher. I'd be willing to try another book from this author, though!
<b>Read Completed 7/3/24 |</b> 2 stars
Oof, this was.... disappointing, to put it nicely. There were a few good lines towards the end of the book but this was just not on the same level as THE DEAD ROMANTICS and THE SEVEN YEAR SLIP, both of which were favorites for me in my top reads of the year in previous years. This whole book was just not it for me and it felt like a totally different author. I can appreciate what she was going for here but this just didn't work for me.
A NOVEL LOVE STORY is much more fantasy than Poston's previous two adult romances. This ventures much further into a fantasy aspect than just a touch of magic/scifi/paranormal that we've seen before, and I sorely missed being in the real world. The fictional town that Eileen gets trapped in was sooooo cheesy and it was a little too on-the-nose with all of the bookish things. I think maybe that's just something I'm not enjoying the more that I read? I want to escape into reading, not be reminded about being bookish, having book clubs, etc. But anyway -- Eloraton (why do I hate this name so much) was wildly cheesy and even for a romantic comedy setting, it was a little too much. The burgers were always burned but they covered it up with hot sauce? Why can't they just cook a good burger? It always rained at a certain time? Magic falls? I thought this was supposed to be a romance town, not a fantasy. I guess it can be both, but it didn’t make sense and it wasn’t working for me.
Where this book really suffered, though, was that I had zero interest in the characters. Eileen was insecure, a little immature, and kind of annoying. I really didn’t see much growth from her aside being forced to make decisions on her own because she couldn’t communicate with anyone once she was inside this fictional small town. Anders was so boring? There was zero chemistry between Eileen and Anders, and having them be hate-to-love in the beginning really made everything worse. They spent almost no time together and then somehow they’re falling in love.
I also really could not have cared less about the fictional book characters. Eileen was trying to fix and finish their stories because the author of the books died, leaving the series unfinished, so she spent a lot of time with them… but it had no purpose. The characters were always fictional and it serves no purpose to the actual plot. She didn’t need to fix the town in order to leave (that was her choice), the characters don’t magically come alive in the real world or anything, there’s no final book that happens… so it was just a waste of time on characters who I couldn’t keep straight and didn’t care about because I don’t know this book series and have no idea who the characters are.
The ending did have some good moments. Eileen was kind of stupid that Anders wasn’t fictional (don’t call me on spoilers — you can def see that a mile away) but I did like that there was something more than just that. I did like that she ended up figuring out what SHE wanted apart from everyone else, but I kind of hated that she only did it because she was forced to, basically. And even then, it didn’t feel like a lot of growth.
And lastly, she said “minty” or “mint” in relation to his eyes almost TWENTY-FIVE TIMES. Yes, I counted. I made it a game so it was fun instead of annoying because I was going to lose my mind. There was way too much repetition and I don’t know how all of that made it past an editor. Also repeating black tea and his scents over and over. Look, I’m a candle-maker. I’m all for knowing how characters smell… but it was so repetitive. I get it, his eyes are mint green. I don’t even know what that means either. Like a mint leaf? Like the color mint that’s like a teal-ish blue? Like a candy mint? It’s supposed to be specific but it’s not.
I really, really, really didn’t like this being set in a fictional place. I could have maybe gotten on board with the characters showing up in a real place but they were still not real? I don’t know. I obviously wanted to try it and had hope, but it was just too cheesy and a little too silly for me.
AUDIOBOOK THOUGHTS: I listened to this as an audiobook, borrowed from my local library. Wow, I hated this narrator (Dorothy Dillingham Blue). She had a bit of a southern accent because Eileen was from the south (Georgia), but it was so annoying and her voice was too affected. I just wanted her to talk normally. It was over-the-top and I really did not like her narration. I will be avoiding her in the future if I can. Would it have been different with a different narrator? Quite possibly. I still don’t think I would have loved it but it would have saved some annoyance.
Oof, this was.... disappointing, to put it nicely. There were a few good lines towards the end of the book but this was just not on the same level as THE DEAD ROMANTICS and THE SEVEN YEAR SLIP, both of which were favorites for me in my top reads of the year in previous years. This whole book was just not it for me and it felt like a totally different author. I can appreciate what she was going for here but this just didn't work for me.
A NOVEL LOVE STORY is much more fantasy than Poston's previous two adult romances. This ventures much further into a fantasy aspect than just a touch of magic/scifi/paranormal that we've seen before, and I sorely missed being in the real world. The fictional town that Eileen gets trapped in was sooooo cheesy and it was a little too on-the-nose with all of the bookish things. I think maybe that's just something I'm not enjoying the more that I read? I want to escape into reading, not be reminded about being bookish, having book clubs, etc. But anyway -- Eloraton (why do I hate this name so much) was wildly cheesy and even for a romantic comedy setting, it was a little too much. The burgers were always burned but they covered it up with hot sauce? Why can't they just cook a good burger? It always rained at a certain time? Magic falls? I thought this was supposed to be a romance town, not a fantasy. I guess it can be both, but it didn’t make sense and it wasn’t working for me.
Where this book really suffered, though, was that I had zero interest in the characters. Eileen was insecure, a little immature, and kind of annoying. I really didn’t see much growth from her aside being forced to make decisions on her own because she couldn’t communicate with anyone once she was inside this fictional small town. Anders was so boring? There was zero chemistry between Eileen and Anders, and having them be hate-to-love in the beginning really made everything worse. They spent almost no time together and then somehow they’re falling in love.
I also really could not have cared less about the fictional book characters. Eileen was trying to fix and finish their stories because the author of the books died, leaving the series unfinished, so she spent a lot of time with them… but it had no purpose. The characters were always fictional and it serves no purpose to the actual plot. She didn’t need to fix the town in order to leave (that was her choice), the characters don’t magically come alive in the real world or anything, there’s no final book that happens… so it was just a waste of time on characters who I couldn’t keep straight and didn’t care about because I don’t know this book series and have no idea who the characters are.
The ending did have some good moments. Eileen was kind of stupid that Anders wasn’t fictional (don’t call me on spoilers — you can def see that a mile away) but I did like that there was something more than just that. I did like that she ended up figuring out what SHE wanted apart from everyone else, but I kind of hated that she only did it because she was forced to, basically. And even then, it didn’t feel like a lot of growth.
And lastly, she said “minty” or “mint” in relation to his eyes almost TWENTY-FIVE TIMES. Yes, I counted. I made it a game so it was fun instead of annoying because I was going to lose my mind. There was way too much repetition and I don’t know how all of that made it past an editor. Also repeating black tea and his scents over and over. Look, I’m a candle-maker. I’m all for knowing how characters smell… but it was so repetitive. I get it, his eyes are mint green. I don’t even know what that means either. Like a mint leaf? Like the color mint that’s like a teal-ish blue? Like a candy mint? It’s supposed to be specific but it’s not.
I really, really, really didn’t like this being set in a fictional place. I could have maybe gotten on board with the characters showing up in a real place but they were still not real? I don’t know. I obviously wanted to try it and had hope, but it was just too cheesy and a little too silly for me.
AUDIOBOOK THOUGHTS: I listened to this as an audiobook, borrowed from my local library. Wow, I hated this narrator (Dorothy Dillingham Blue). She had a bit of a southern accent because Eileen was from the south (Georgia), but it was so annoying and her voice was too affected. I just wanted her to talk normally. It was over-the-top and I really did not like her narration. I will be avoiding her in the future if I can. Would it have been different with a different narrator? Quite possibly. I still don’t think I would have loved it but it would have saved some annoyance.
<b>Read Completed 7/2/24 |</b> 2.5 stars
This wasn't a bad read but it was majorly hyped up all over bookstagram / booktok. I knew I probably wouldn't feel the same way but you don't know unless you try. This just wasn't it for me.
The book was fine. It was pretty middle of the road, but I was just bored. There are three main characters who all feel exactly the same and there's not much different about them. It also doesn't help that the audiobook only had one narrator and all of these are in first person POV. They all sounded exactly the same and felt exactly the same. I couldn't keep track of who was telling the story at what time and they all blended together.
The plot for me was pretty blah. We get a little intro how these girls were killed, then they're following their murderer around and haunting him, basically, but this goes on for 70% of the book and then other things start to kick in. It was too little, too late.
The writing was just fine. It felt very average, nothing to wow me or pull me in. The characters didn't have much to them. The plot was okay. This was just a very blah kind of read for me. Oh well.
This wasn't a bad read but it was majorly hyped up all over bookstagram / booktok. I knew I probably wouldn't feel the same way but you don't know unless you try. This just wasn't it for me.
The book was fine. It was pretty middle of the road, but I was just bored. There are three main characters who all feel exactly the same and there's not much different about them. It also doesn't help that the audiobook only had one narrator and all of these are in first person POV. They all sounded exactly the same and felt exactly the same. I couldn't keep track of who was telling the story at what time and they all blended together.
The plot for me was pretty blah. We get a little intro how these girls were killed, then they're following their murderer around and haunting him, basically, but this goes on for 70% of the book and then other things start to kick in. It was too little, too late.
The writing was just fine. It felt very average, nothing to wow me or pull me in. The characters didn't have much to them. The plot was okay. This was just a very blah kind of read for me. Oh well.
<b>Read Completed 7/1/24 |</b> 3.5 stars
I finally picked this up after seeing a bunch of hype and yep... overhyped again (for me). This was a good, solid read but it just wasn't anything close to a 5 star book for me. I've read a lot of books like it that I think have done it better and I really didn't like the ending of the book.
I almost didn't pick this up because the cover just looked very YA and I wasn't in the mood for young adult book (which is silly since I've loved some YA thrillers this year, including THAT'S NOT MY NAME by Megan Lally, which you should also read if you liked this, FYI). It kind of is with Ellie Black being the main focus, 17 when she went miss, 19 having returned, but there are a whole bunch of other POVs that are adult as well. It does kind of feel like it's halfway into YA and halfway into adult and it just doesn't know where it lands.
The characters were just okay. Ellie has been through a lot of trauma so she was hard to connect with, naturally. Chelsey was okay but I didn't really feel like she had a ton of personality to carry the rest of the book. And we don't really get to know anyone else well enough.
I didn't really like the plotting here. The reason for everything is revealed later in the book but it doesn't really connect with the beginning. Parts of the plot just didn't flow well for me and it was decent, but it wasn't going to make this a 5 star thriller for me by far. The twist at the end kind of cheapened some things from earlier.I really didn't like her sister still being alive and being a part of this all like some Stockholm Syndrome thing. Instead of a twist, it just felt like the author was lying to me.
It was a solid read but it wasn't anything that's going to be super memorable for me. Also, check your trigger warnings. I got fairly dark in content, though there aren't really any explicit or overly violent scenes.I really hate reading about abuse and especially sexual abuse of children. I didn't really love that this was the main plot of the book.
I finally picked this up after seeing a bunch of hype and yep... overhyped again (for me). This was a good, solid read but it just wasn't anything close to a 5 star book for me. I've read a lot of books like it that I think have done it better and I really didn't like the ending of the book.
I almost didn't pick this up because the cover just looked very YA and I wasn't in the mood for young adult book (which is silly since I've loved some YA thrillers this year, including THAT'S NOT MY NAME by Megan Lally, which you should also read if you liked this, FYI). It kind of is with Ellie Black being the main focus, 17 when she went miss, 19 having returned, but there are a whole bunch of other POVs that are adult as well. It does kind of feel like it's halfway into YA and halfway into adult and it just doesn't know where it lands.
The characters were just okay. Ellie has been through a lot of trauma so she was hard to connect with, naturally. Chelsey was okay but I didn't really feel like she had a ton of personality to carry the rest of the book. And we don't really get to know anyone else well enough.
I didn't really like the plotting here. The reason for everything is revealed later in the book but it doesn't really connect with the beginning. Parts of the plot just didn't flow well for me and it was decent, but it wasn't going to make this a 5 star thriller for me by far. The twist at the end kind of cheapened some things from earlier.
It was a solid read but it wasn't anything that's going to be super memorable for me. Also, check your trigger warnings. I got fairly dark in content, though there aren't really any explicit or overly violent scenes.
<b>Read Completed 6/30/24 |</b> a generous 3 stars
<b>Do I need to have read Red Rising before this? Or read this first?</b> I would HIGHLY recommend reading RED RISING and GOLDEN SON before reading this. Yes, this is a prequel, but it's about a character who has some surprising reveals in the main series and those were some amazing, impactful moments. Read this after GOLDEN SON!
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I'm not a graphic novel person at all -- it's just not something I've really connected with -- but I really wanted to try this prequel series for the Red Rising saga because... it's Red Rising. Obviously, Pierce Brown did write this, but in this medium, I was really missing his prose and the dialogue was too choppy for my tastes. I just didn't click for me and I didn't really take a lot from it. The character art was kind of weird? It's seemed really shaded and unfinished. I'm sure that was intentional, but I just didn't love the style.
I did appreciate that we got some visuals with the artwork and I really liked the speech bubbles were color-coordinated to each character's color. I also really liked seeing Fitchner and seeing his backstory.
I was expecting to like this but it just didn't really do anything for me. The only reason I liked it was because it was a part of the Red Rising universe, but the plot and the dialogue seemed really choppy.
<b>Do I need to have read Red Rising before this? Or read this first?</b> I would HIGHLY recommend reading RED RISING and GOLDEN SON before reading this. Yes, this is a prequel, but it's about a character who has some surprising reveals in the main series and those were some amazing, impactful moments. Read this after GOLDEN SON!
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I'm not a graphic novel person at all -- it's just not something I've really connected with -- but I really wanted to try this prequel series for the Red Rising saga because... it's Red Rising. Obviously, Pierce Brown did write this, but in this medium, I was really missing his prose and the dialogue was too choppy for my tastes. I just didn't click for me and I didn't really take a lot from it. The character art was kind of weird? It's seemed really shaded and unfinished. I'm sure that was intentional, but I just didn't love the style.
I did appreciate that we got some visuals with the artwork and I really liked the speech bubbles were color-coordinated to each character's color. I also really liked seeing Fitchner and seeing his backstory.
I was expecting to like this but it just didn't really do anything for me. The only reason I liked it was because it was a part of the Red Rising universe, but the plot and the dialogue seemed really choppy.
Read Completed 6/26/24 | 3.75 stars, rounded up for ✨ vibes ✨
This book was one wild ride, and while I couldn't put it down, I also felt like it was incredibly disjointed. I'm sure that's the whole point because Eve's world is constantly being broken down, but it made me feel like I wasn't connected at all to what was going on. This left me with a weird mess of emotions where this book will probably stick with me and yet I really didn't like the writing style at all.
The vibe was AHS Murder House meets I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS meets RABBITS and the whole concept was incredible, really. I was so sucked in and couldn't wait to see what happened next. I love when books poke at Mandela effects and mess with realities, and this was the horror version of it instead of a sci-fi version. The whole book was one trippy ride, like I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS, but again, the horror version of it. (And obviously the ending is not the same.) I also really liked the in-between sections where the book chronicles online forums, police tapes and reports, and other happenings where things like this and the old house were recorded to bring more perspective to all of this as well. That really added something!
That being said, I found it incredibly hard to follow. Or, I shouldn't say that. It wasn't hard to follow, but it was hard to connect with. Again, I know it's kind of supposed to be that way but ALL of the book was so choppy and disjointed. There are some really cool things introduced that don't really go anywhere. We don't really get any answers as to what's going on, but maybe that just leaves you with a memorable concept that will haunt you for the rest of your life.
I'm not sure if I would to round up or round down yet, but I may come back and round this up to 4 stars because this is probably going to haunt me forever... I'm still really disappointed that I didn't like the intentionally confusing writing, though. If it was a little bit tighter and had JUST a touch more flow to it, this would have easily been 4 stars or more.
This is also supposed to be a Netflix show coming soon, and that is going to be AWESOME. I can see this being wildly creepy and incredibly mind-bending, so I can't wait for that, really.
AUDIOBOOK THOUGHTS: I really enjoyed the audiobook narration! I thought both of the audiobook narrators did a very good job and I was definitely entertained by their performance. There's a little musical/noise effect at the end of every in between portion that was fairly annoying, but that's a very small complaint.
This book was one wild ride, and while I couldn't put it down, I also felt like it was incredibly disjointed. I'm sure that's the whole point because Eve's world is constantly being broken down, but it made me feel like I wasn't connected at all to what was going on. This left me with a weird mess of emotions where this book will probably stick with me and yet I really didn't like the writing style at all.
The vibe was AHS Murder House meets I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS meets RABBITS and the whole concept was incredible, really. I was so sucked in and couldn't wait to see what happened next. I love when books poke at Mandela effects and mess with realities, and this was the horror version of it instead of a sci-fi version. The whole book was one trippy ride, like I'M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS, but again, the horror version of it. (And obviously the ending is not the same.) I also really liked the in-between sections where the book chronicles online forums, police tapes and reports, and other happenings where things like this and the old house were recorded to bring more perspective to all of this as well. That really added something!
That being said, I found it incredibly hard to follow. Or, I shouldn't say that. It wasn't hard to follow, but it was hard to connect with. Again, I know it's kind of supposed to be that way but ALL of the book was so choppy and disjointed. There are some really cool things introduced that don't really go anywhere. We don't really get any answers as to what's going on, but maybe that just leaves you with a memorable concept that will haunt you for the rest of your life.
I'm not sure if I would to round up or round down yet, but I may come back and round this up to 4 stars because this is probably going to haunt me forever... I'm still really disappointed that I didn't like the intentionally confusing writing, though. If it was a little bit tighter and had JUST a touch more flow to it, this would have easily been 4 stars or more.
This is also supposed to be a Netflix show coming soon, and that is going to be AWESOME. I can see this being wildly creepy and incredibly mind-bending, so I can't wait for that, really.
AUDIOBOOK THOUGHTS: I really enjoyed the audiobook narration! I thought both of the audiobook narrators did a very good job and I was definitely entertained by their performance. There's a little musical/noise effect at the end of every in between portion that was fairly annoying, but that's a very small complaint.