Ariel
This book had me going all over the place! I was constantly guessing where the story was leading and that was enjoyable in and of itself. I Was into the original route it was taking and the one I thought, but where it ended up going was great too. Although I thought the original twist would've been more interesting and darker, I can't complain. I still very much enjoyed the turn it took. I was reading nonstop because I had to know what was going to happen!
I surprisingly loved this book. I'll tell you why surprisingly.
I surprisingly loved this book because at around the 120ish page mark, I was already thinking of giving it a 3 star. It was interesting, but didn't really capture my attention. I was especially thinking of giving this book a 2 star when the killings started happening because I found things to be easily predictable.
BUT THEN
I read on and well, I was wrong. I was mistaken and glad I was. Yes, I did predict many of the things, but the things that I did not predict made up for what I did and made it worth while. Plus, the things I was right about and guessed correctly, weren't that big in the grand scheme of things. Even though I predicted some parts, I still found myself enjoying the story.
I was truly invested in this story. I felt the anxiety, the fear, the adrenaline rush. When characters died, I didn't just gloss over their death, I really felt for them. While reading, in my mind I felt like I was watching Scream or any other slasher film. That's how I envisioned it and it was great.
The one word I'd use to explain how I felt through the majority of the books is confusion.
While I did finish it in 2 days, that's because I wanted to finally find the answers. The reasons, the motivations, the causes. I never got that.
I guess the main reason I'm disappointed is because I thought the story was going to go for this huge turn and I was finally going to receive all the answers but I didn't. You can't really understand the why, if the characters themselves don't understand the why. That itself may be the whole point, but still, this just wasn't for me. I feel bad giving it a 2 star just because I may not have understood it as much, but now I know I don't like stories being so open ended. If you want concrete answers in your books, this may not be the book for you.
This book is one of the few that truly grossed me out. The murder I was obviously expecting and fine with (weird thing to say) but the incest, rape, abuse, cannibalism, necrophilia, and overall gruesomeness was so much more than I was expecting. I had to stop reading and give myself a little break at times since I was so disgusted.
That isn't why I gave it three stars tough. I gave it three stars because I found the majority of the story pretty boring. The only thing fascinating and intriguing is the family dynamics. I also found it interesting that I didn't know whether to support Michael or be against him, like him or hate him, or feel any sympathy for him. The rest I found a little boring and predictable at times. It was still entertaining and unlike anything I've read leading up to it, but nothing spectacular happened in my opinion.
This book was great in my opinion! From the very first sentence I was hooked and I could not put it down. I mean I read it in one day so that speaks for it self.
I equate reading this book to watching a fast paced, action packed thriller movie.
Part one was excellent. Truly amazing, no complaints. Part two in my opinion was still great but a little obvious and predictable in a few ways. Still, it was pretty damn great and overall I was pleased with how the story ended. I had no idea where this story was going to go or how it was going to end, but, personally, I am very pleased.
The main issue with me, personally, was the writing. I'm not saying it's bad at all, but it was written during the 1950s and obviously, we have changed the way we write. It was a little difficult to understand at times since of course, the language and writing at the time is different than now. Other than that, it was still enjoyable and entertaining.
Honestly, if this book wasn't so short, I probably would have stopped reading, but since it is only 182 pages I decided it's no bother. I wasn't scared, but I was creeped out at times. It's not terrifying in my opinion, but it is very eerie. The ending left me shocked and everything kind of started to make sense to me, which made the book even better because my fear was not being able to understand what was going on.
This book might not scare you, but it definitely will have you creeped out, second guessing, and overthinking things which is probably just as bad. It plays with your mind and that's where the horror begins.
I read this after watching the show and once I finished reading the book, I watched the show again. I have to say that watching the show after reading the book made it more entertaining, at least for me.
This book is crazy in so many ways and one word that sums it all up is: Joe. Joe makes this book. Obviously, because he's the main character and it's in his POV, but what makes this story truly interesting and entertaining IS that we hear from Joe and his thoughts.
The plot is pretty interesting itself, but this book is nothing without Joe. He's such an unreliable narrator and essentially a crazy stalker and serial killer yet you find yourself agreeing, sympathizing, and even liking him at times which makes it even more creepy.
Getting his perspective and view makes this story so much better and I'm glad it was done that way. He truly is an interesting character to pick at and was definitely an interesting character to read.
This book took me a while to really get into. I remember being 2/3 done with the book and thinking, “okay this is interesting and all, but when is it gonna pick up?”
That last third of the book did a pretty good job at picking things up. It went by pretty quick, which is good or bad depending on how you see it, but I started getting sucked in. I'm pretty pleased with the ending and I got to say, it did make me think and leave me wondering.
SMALL SPOILER ABOUT THE SERIAL KILLER!
This book was definitely interesting and amazing. I was glad to hear from the killers POV, it made the book even greater and darker. I was pretty much hooked and I made a goal for myself to finish the other half of the book in a day and in four hours my goal came true.
Towards the end I could not put it down, no matter how late it got. I had to continue reading! Not surprisingly at this point, I loved this book and loved the story and characters.
The only small thing that bothered me were about the serial killer. Parts of his backstory were interesting but other parts seemed basic. It also annoyed me a little at times how he's just this invincible guy that can't feel pain and nothing hurts him. It felt kind of fake to me, like he was a superhero or something and had some type of power. Yes, I found it interesting and entertaining, but it didn't seem too realistic to me.
Once again, this author has amazed me. Right away, the action begins and I wouldn't expect it any other way with Cavanagh.
The plot was interesting and kept me on my toes the whole time. To be honest, I did feel like the story dragged a little in the beginning. It was not much, but since I'm so used to Cavanagh's books being so thrilling and hard to put down, I noticed it slowed a bit. Although, it easily picked back up and I found myself engrossed once again.
Is it just me or is the setting of this book 80% in the courtroom. I feel like, even though I didn't take away a star because I didn't think it seemed fair, that was the main thing that got me a little annoyed at times. I wanted that action, I wanted that thrill, and that was just hard to get when you're stuck in a courtroom. Don't get me wrong, it was still gripping, but just not as the previous books in my opinion. I understand it's a legal thriller and obviously mainly scenes will be in court, but I began to get a little bored. You know the book is worthwhile though, when the great parts manage to override the small issues.
SOMETHING FUN: I just wanted to say this because I found it funny. In my edition of the book on page 325, I found a typo! It didn't bother me and I wasn't annoyed at all, I just thought it was very interesting and made me laugh. Very rare to spot a typo in a finished, edited, and published book. As you now know, not impossible though.
While reading this book I was very intrigued the whole time. That's the main word I'd use to describe how I felt while reading: Intrigued.
It kept me asking questions and wanting to know the answers. This led me to read this book in one day because I needed those answers. I got to say, even though I was interested and thought it was entertaining, I found myself getting a bit bored at times. That may just be me, but this book isn't necessarily “action-packed” which isn't a bad thing, just not what I'm used to at the moment. But I tell you, the ending is what made me give this book 4 stars.
The ending kind of left me speechless. I was just dumbfounded. The main twist made this book for me and made me like it so much more. Yes, I was hooked and slightly amused, but once that twist happened I knew it went from a 3 star to a 4 star. And the very end was also very entertaining and actually made me want a bit more. I can see why this book receives the praise it does.
Every time I think how the hell can Eddie get out of this one, there's no way. Every time I think that he always amazes me and finds a way.
This book is incredible! Another five stars because it is truly deserving. Everything was playing in my head like a TV show that I couldn't stop watching and I loved it. You start the beginning having your assumptions, thinking through things, gathering your ideas and by the end everything is not even close to what it seemed or what you thought was even possible.
Questions are finally answered that leave you satisfied, but wanting more. This is definitely my new favorite series, dare I say, of all time. That's a pretty bold statement, especially early on, but I'm sticking to it.
The moment I read the first sentence I was hooked. I've never been so captivated by a story. To me, reading this book is the equivalent to watching a fast pace, action packed movie you can not take your eyes off of. In this case, I could not take my eyes off the page. I had to know what came next, what twist would happen, how the main character would overcome his situation, and if he even could possibly do it.
This is my first 5 star rating for a fiction book. I do not give them out lightly, but around the half way point I knew this would be 5 stars. I knew I would love the story. I've never read a book quite like this one. I learned that I'm a fan of legal thrillers and I overall loved everything about this book. I can't think of one flaw and I can't give it enough praise. If it isn't obvious already, I'll definitely be reading more books involving Eddie Flynn.
Overall, I enjoyed this book quite a bit. More so than the three previous books I read by this author. I found that I enjoyed the isolation aspect and there being many people. In some of her other books, the house is in a town that while yes, some ways away it's still possible to get to.
In this book not likely. Also, only one or two characters are impacted or in the house during the haunting. This time there was a small group and I liked hearing from everywhere instead of just from the same person or two people. It made it more interesting.
This book was close to a 3.5 to possibly a light 4.
Craven Manor is a bit entertaining but nothing special. The story is interesting, characters are good (Kyle really annoyed me though), and I overall liked the book.
One thing that I really liked was how it kept me going back and forth on who and what to believe. How the ghosts were portrayed I also found pretty cool and though it wasn't that scary at all for me, the ending left me satisfied.
ONE SPOILER!
I gotta say this book caught me by surprise. I'd say that reading the first half of the book was not that intriguing to me. I started the think I'd give it the same rating, or possibly lower, that I gave “The Haunting of Blackwood House” (which I didn't like much) due to similar problems or issues I found. Like I said though, I was pleasantly surprised.
The story and history of the haunt was definitely interesting and I really enjoyed it. My favorite part was how the “ghost” was portrayed as more of a zombie like creature, which caught me off guard. I really liked that, it was different from what I have read and I thought it was nice twist. The very end was also pretty sweet. While I wasn't feeling it towards the beginning, I found myself slowly enjoying the story as it went on and when the ending came, I was satisfied.
I was originally going to give this book three stars. Mainly because I was so used to reading quick, action packed thrillers that I didn't like the slow pace of this novel. I realized that that wasn't fair though.
While this book did take quite a while for things to finally start rolling and I did get bored at times, I realized it was necessary. It was necessary to build the back story, learn the history, and to set up the events that were to come. I saw the value in that and so once I understood it, I wasn't so against the somewhat slow build.
Throughout the book I swore that I had already figured out the plot twists and was just reading to verify what I already knew. Boy I was wrong. Everything I thought I knew I was proven wrong on. Now that is amazing. I was not expecting that at all and it definitely made the book more interesting and enjoyable. While there were a few things I found out on my own, if it wasn't for the major twists that I swore I knew but didn't, I would've gave this book a lower review.
This is my first Karin Slaughter book and it will definitely not be my last. Within the first few pages the action was already starting and I loved that! There were so many twists that left me shocked and parts that made me physically flinch. This book was so disturbing in a good way (if that even exists). Overall, this book was great. Very close to a five star.
This book just didn't do it for me. I wasn't annoyed with the characters or the writing or the plot, I just wasn't as “scared” as I wanted to be or thought I would be. In fact, I laughed way more throughout the book than actually felt eerie, which is funny when reading a horror novel. Not laughed because it was bad, but I found many parts truly funny. I can see the appeal, but for me I guess my expectations were too high. I still plan on reading some of the authors other works and see how they compare. If you want an interesting and entertaining story I recommend it, but if you want to truly get scared or creeped out there are better options.
Again, this book was entertaining. The only thing that annoyed me this time was Daemon. Yes, we know he's protective and all, but damn what's with all the macho man, alpha male shit. It's ridiculous.
Of course there was some in the previous books, but this one just made me have enough. It bothered me so much how he is so demanding, aggressive, possessive, controlling, and I'm sure lots more I'm missing. I fail to see how that is attractive.
He always says things like “don't even look at her”, “don't touch her”, “don't speak to her”, like he owns Katy. Yea, he loves her but come on. Another example is when Archer wanted to help carry Katy to her room because she was weak, and Daemon wouldn't even allow that. Like seriously, he's trying to help, are you really that insecure and worried about your masculinity that you won't let another man help you out? So what if he's touching your girlfriend, he's carrying her, not groping her.
There are many more examples of this that just angered me. Kind of glad I just have one more book left because I don't know how much more of this I can take.
This book is the first book ever to piss me off. I did not finish it. I couldn't.
I pushed and pushed and only got to page 220 and decided it wasn't worth it.
The main character annoyed me the most. He is so freaking stupid. His actions, his decisions, most things he does it's like he doesn't think or try to understand. I've never gotten so annoyed and angry by a character or book before.
I truly wished I liked this book since it's something I'm very much into, but that just wasn't the case.