Natilie

3.5/ 5✮⋆˙

i'd call this book a crime / murder mystery.

i know i just said i guessed the twist and i didn't want to finish it, but alas, i was presently surprised! i wouldn't necessarily call this book a thriller, maybe not until the very end.

i didn't speed through this book, but not because it wasn't gripping i just had a big week

⭐️3.5/5

(i'm redoing a bunch of ratings because i don't know what parasite was in my head when making these decisions)

oh gosh i'm not too sure what to say on this one - i felt quite underwhelmed and almost confused and what seem like plot points chucked in for the ‘shock/intensity' factor - major TW that I foolishly didn't look up before reading.

the main twist yes, was really good and did turn my world on its head and it took a bit of getting used to but it started to make a lot of sense towards the end, and the chapters that were diary entries were sure my favourite. the ending definitely surprised me, and i did grow to like the character of amber.

i chewed through this in 4 hours, i couldn't put it down so i definitely liked it i just didn't LOVE it, if you know what i mean.

3.5/5 ✧･ﾟ

i have finally finished this and i'm not sure entirely how i feel - i think i'm going to give it 3.5 stars for now? i definitely enjoyed it, but the ending was a little... i don't know maybe i wasn't following as closely as i should of?

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╰┈➤ Plot:

This was overall enjoyable, it was YA so I didn't feel a gripe in my stomach (but I did in Five Survive). The stakes didn't feel that high - this is for sure more murder mystery than thriller. It was very addicting though and did not see the first big plot twist coming at all. A lot of the points Pip (the main character) though ‘oh that's suspicious!' - I think a normal person wouldn't have thought that and all. I get that's the point of her character, she ‘overthinks', finds leads and chases them down like a bloodhound. To me, whilst this book discusses some really important topics, I didn't find it thrilling. I also didn't guess who did it, but I was hoping Sal would have a bigger part to play, considering how him and Andie's relationship is pictured?.

I know I've just trashed on the plot so you might be wondering why it's still such a high rating -

╰┈➤ Characters:

All the characters were loveable. Pip is your typical quirky and super intelligent female YA MC. She grows on you, especially her relationship with her family. She started to annoy me in some parts - and she seemed to have a bit of plot armour . Ravi is so incredibly sweet and funny I could picture the flirting in my head.

We didn't see too much of any other characters, but it all felt like typical high school to me.


╰┈➤ World/Setting:

This... was OK. I could kind of picture the different places she was talking about, the places of interest - it wasn't particularly like amazing or adding a sense of dread. Compared to Five Survive, the world didn't feel as vivid. It does the job though.


╰┈➤ Pacing:

This is where the book really shines. Holly Jackson is so good at creating addicting page turners. I couldn't put it down, even if some points frustrated me at times and I cringed at others.

╰┈➤ Enjoyment:

I'm not the target audience for this book, so I didn't expect to give it 5 stars here. However, I did enjoy this book a lot. To me it felt like a fun detective story, I wasn't trying to solve anything because too much information was being thrown my way. The banter between Ravi and Pip is really cute, and I did enjoy reading about her family.

Overall, I would recommend this!

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reading log ˏˋ ♡ ˎˊ

12/05/2024 10:32am ୨ৎ
okay listen i'm at 91% and i did not expect this i thought it was all wrapped up

12/05/2024 8:07am ୨ৎ
good morning everyone - time to finish this book! it's very addicting and i'm invested in the ending, i truly have no idea who's going to be the culprit

11/05/2024 7:34pm ୨ৎ
alright i keep flipping the pages, but with so many ‘suspects' im starting to get lost

11/05/2024 11:58am ୨ৎ
okay so i'm trying to figure out who fits into the everything is not what it seems category and so far my guesses are ravi & cara honestly - just because i've heard so many people rave about the plot twist

10/05/2024 9:12am ୨ৎ
oh this is has racist idiots in it

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pre-reading ˏˋ ♡ ˎˊ

hello! this has been sitting on my shelf for the longest time and I thought I'd finally buy into the hype after absolutely loving five survive - i need to know what all the fuss is about.

may tbr:

ಇ. salt to the sea
ಇ. powerless
ಇ. house of earth and blood
ಇ. everyone in my family has killed someone
ಇ. bride
ಇ. listen for the lie
ಇ. she's not sorry
ಇ. love on the brain
ಇ. the familiar
ಇ. a court of wings and ruin
+ a good girl's guide to murder

please don't hate me for this, i'm DNFing at 34% - rant review incoming

I'll start by saying that I am not the intended audience for this book, it's a YA novel and unfortunately I need to accept that I am no longer part of that category. I really wanted to like this, everyone loves this and the series - I really wanted to be a part of it ):

I just can't justify spending my free time (what little of it I have) trying to trudge through something I don't like. I started reading this almost a week ago and am no where near halfway which is really unusual for me. I just didn't want to pick this up and when I did I got so distracted by other things. Everyone has been saying that it gets better as the series goes on and I wholeheartedly believe you - I just don't have the time or the want to do it ):

let's get into actually WHY I personally didn't like this... ๋⭑☽.