Lydia
We all remember how it felt as a kid when all we wanted to do was play, but EVERYBODY was busy, busy, busy. Fifi just wants to play, but all of her family is busy doing other things, so she and her dog felix come up with a plan.
This book was cute enough, but I didn't like the overall message of manipulating family to spend time with you. I also think it was a good opportunity to have said, oh felix is bored too, I'll play with my dog! The illustrations left a lot to be desired, but it wasn't bad.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC
I swear, Kiersten is the most polarizing author for me. I either give her books a solid 4 star (I RARELY give 5s, so a 4 is excellent for me), or a 1. This was definitely a 1.
The characters were all insufferable, the plot was weak, the different POVs had the dumbest, most unrealistic connection in the end, and the resolution was, frankly, stupid as hell.
I never go into a book thinking I'll dislike it, but sometimes I'm on the fence if I will love it or not. This was one of those books because it's not my typical kind of thriller, but I was very wrong; I LOVED this. It was so full of twists and turns that I didn't want to put it down until the last sentence.
4.5
Let me be very, very clear: there is not a single likeable character in this entire book, and that is not an exaggeration. If you need to like characters in the books you read- RUN. That being said, I loved this. THIS BOOK RIGHT HERE IS A THRILLER! This book is intense and you will not want to put it down.
My only other annoyance is that Rijks does a lot of telling over showing, as well as unneeded descriptions. We don't need to know the color of a character's shirt unless it's relevant (it never is).
SPOILER-ISH
I hated the ending so much. I wanted even worse for Leonie.
Thank you to NetGalley
Holy cow. I have three questions:
1. Was this written by a Middle Schooler?
2. Was this edited by a Middle Schooler?
3. If no to the above, HOW WAS THIS PUBLISHED?!
I'm sorry, I'm usually not harsh in my review, but this book was painfully bad. The author felt the need to detail every tiny little thing, down to the color of the neighbor's toenails. NONE OF THIS MATTERS! This book could've been 200 pages shorter and still told the same story. It felt like I was listening to something written by a child, and even then, they could've done better. I have not disliked a book this strongly in a long, long time. The narrator was awful, too.
True Blood meets The Walking Dead meets Six Feet Under meets Supernatural- that's really the best way I can describe this incredibly original and unique book. I was not expecting to like it as much as I did, aside from the high level of splatterpunk gore that I am not a huge fan of. Thankfully, that mainly came towards the end of the book, and it was essential for the plot so I will give it a pass.
This book was fun, ridiculous, unique, and overall a delight!
Thank you, NetGalley!
I FLEW through this, but maybe for all the wrong reasons. I enjoyed it in the way you enjoy watching a train crash; you just can't look away from the mess. This entire book felt like a satire of a thriller book, but Modglin was completely sincere in her (mediocre) writing.
The first half was slow and full of boring fluff, annoying and harmful stereotypes, grating characters, and predictable plot points. The second half geared up and swerved into ridiculous, unrealistic, and plain dumb. On top of all that, it got so preachy at the end and I was rolling my eyes at Kiersten going into “I'm 14 and this is deep” territory.
What could've saved this book? Take a deep look and realize this writing is satire level and fully take it there. This would have been a fun satire, but since KM took herself too seriously it was not good. Also, THE TITLE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE STORY.
I know this review is a little harsh, but I KNOW Kiersten is a good writer, i've witnessed great books from her! Lately she's been pumping out short books that cater to boostagramers and influensters, and it shows.
Oh, the narrator was great- kudos, Stacy Gonzalez.
Confession time: I have not been on the McFadden train. The past books I've read from her have not hit the mark for me, but I am officially a convert with this book. Holy cow, this was so good. It wasn't even slightly realistic, and I hated every single character, but I did not want to put this down. I am still thinking about it days later, and desperately need to talk about it.
Despite some very obvious plot holes and inconsistencies, I still very highly recommend The Teacher. If you want a twisty, disturbing, edge of your seat ride, this is for you.
Thank you so much to NetGalley for this advanced copy and for finally getting me on board with bookstagram/booktok/booktube darling, Freida McFadden.
I will have to divide my review in two parts: one for the book, and one for the AUDIObook. I've never had to do this before, but the narration by Miranda Raison, Dakota Blue Richards, Joe Jameson, and Pema Monaghan drove me absolutely mad. I will be honest, it wasn't until writing this review did I even realize there were multiple female narrators. The male narrator only comes in once, and god I wish we had gotten more of him. I couldn't tell the difference between any of the characters AT ALL. Not only do the narrators sound exactly the same, none of them do so much as change the pitch of their voice when reading lines for another character, and it is so confusing and absolutely maddening. Typically, narrators change inflection, accents, pitch, etc, but nope! Not these ladies. You can't tell the difference at all and it completely ruined the experience.
Now, on to the book. Ignoring a few very frustrating and obvious plot holes, it is SO GOOD. I was totally hooked and will definitely be reading more from Sara Ochs (provided she has better narrators). THAT ENDING! This is the kind of thriller I like, although it's much better suited for a summer read, so I recommend holding off for warmer weather.
Audiobook: 1.5
Book: 4
I was really let down by All Souls Lost. It started out promising and went downhill fast. This is perfect for people who would love The Dresden Files, but who haven't actually read The Dresden Files (if that makes sense). Basically, it hits all of the same notes, but to a much less satisfying degree. If you haven't read Dresden but think it sounds interesting, read this (or just read Dresden because it's much better). If you loved Dresden, you will be disappointed.
