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_kristinsworld's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
I liked the author’s storytelling but I found the majority of the book to be pretty boring. This was surprising for me since I absolutely loved her debut novel, The Push. This story is a slow burn with a strong beginning but the conclusion just didn’t feel worthy of the buildup. I did enjoy some of the messiness between the main characters though. I would consider this more of a domestic/neighborhood drama than an actual thriller. The most suspenseful part was the very last sentence.
Graphic: Miscarriage
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
bella_cavicchi's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Moderate: Bullying and Sexism
fawns's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Pregnancy
marpaige's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt
lauren_shilling's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Medical content
thatswhatshanread's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
WOW!!! An incredibly fascinating second novel from Ashley Audrain. I was immediately invested in the deep tangle of suburban domesticity between the three families at the helm of this story, and even the fourth family’s insights sprinkled throughout. Audrain commands your attention with every page, every insane detail that feels hot in your hands, like juicy but disturbing neighborhood gossip you’re only so lucky to be privy too. Like you are one of the periphery moms, whispering about only the surface of the twisted, mangled iceberg.
This is as much a novel about marriages and parent-child relationships under pressure as it is a novel of suspense. Which is to say, this isn’t exactly a thriller, but very much so an intense domestic drama that leaves you clutching at your pearls, as they say, as the characters’ lives unravel. A child in a coma, due to mysterious circumstances. His parents, his neighbors, none of them quite who they seem. Rumors everywhere. Lies as abundant as a cup full of sugar.
I throughly enjoyed this one. I loved the intensity, the explicitness, the shock, every character interwoven into another in the most unexpected ways. This is a deliciously spiraling novel that makes you think a whole lot about the lives of those acquaintances around you that may be entirely different from what you only see from the end of the driveway. Or overheard from an open window…
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Domestic abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Abandonment, and Alcohol
mayflower828's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical trauma
kaseymkelley's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Miscarriage
Moderate: Child death, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Suicide, Vomit, and Suicide attempt
jennneely82's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
mysterymom40's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Racism, Medical content, Suicide attempt, and Classism