Adam SP

To be honest, I went into this not expecting much, and at first I was intrigued, but not hooked.

That intrigue turned into complete and utter devotion to what was to come next.

Overall, I highly rate this book. If you've read things like Without Remorse (Tom Clancy,) you'll enjoy this as a much more evolved, and realistic thriller.

CW: abuse, suicide

This was a hard read. The raw realness of what Louise writes about is happening, all the time, around us, and so many women suffer.

The overarching theme is domestic violence, with a sprinkling of child abuse and suicide.

It's really, bloody hard. But Louise does an amazing job giving the main character her complete and utter deserved dignity and peace.

The book starts abrupt, then just fascinating. It's not entirely gripping, initially, but fascinating, and you know something is just around the corner.

Then things start to really happen, and the warning bells are going.

Then they really ramp up! And damn, I literally couldn't put it down.

The main douche canoe needed far more comeuppance. I think that's the only thing that I could draw as a negative: he got off too lightly, and deserved far worse.

Thank you Louise, great book!

This was a hard book to read. There needs to be a CW/TW regarding the themes: rape, manipulation, abuse, death.

The book itself wasn't hard to read, and I think Amanda has done an incredible job for her second book. It is engaging, tantalising, gripping, and very well structured.

But the themes. My word. Some people have claimed it's too predictable, or that there's no feeling in the actions of some of the characters.

I disagree.

This book, scarily, imitates what people go through in real life, with regards to child abuse, emotional manipulation, rape, how awful people are with judgement, and how terribly victims are put to blame for the abuse they receive.

Yes, some parts you could see coming, just like any outsider can. But the big difference here is that you feel the character's adrenalin, emotion, conditioning, which completely blinds a person. For years.

I found this book hard, because the story is just so real. The themes are presented raw, and powerful.

If you can stomach them, I definately recommend having a read.

To be fair, I really struggled to decide between 3 and 4 stars.

If you could break it down into categories/aspects, I think it'd average 4, hence the decision.

This novella is fascinating. At first you don't realise the character is descending into so sort of mental decline, and the loss of grammar is jarring, but then it all clicks.

I have many questions. Don't read this if you want to get to the end and feel complete. You won't. My imagination is performing acrobatics, and I'm enjoying it.

I feel that this is a very polarising bit of literature, and you'll either be enthralled, or absolutely hate it.

It's short, at only 169 pages, so worth the time.

I originally read part one of this book in high school, for English, and my 14 year old self hated it.

Reading it now, this is an incredible work of literature.

No, it's not clean. It's not beautifully edited and powerfully structured. It's, at times, a hot mess. But that ties in so well with the protagonist's state of mind, and the world around them.

Don't go into this book expecting anything glorifying, or even an overly happy ending.

George tells it how it is, and it's damned messy.

Excellent read.

Absolutely brilliant read!

Although you can tell that it's not Larsson, as he did have a very peculiar way of writing, Lagercrantz has done an absolutely superb job here.

The story is rich, the pace fast, the vision clear.

I have to be upfront in that Laurie Platts is my grandfather, and my review may be biased.

This is a fascinating view into the founding and formation of Cathcart, and the Manaro region.

It is unfortunate that the Traditional Owners of this country are so absent from this research, and when they are mentioned, it is not in an accurate light. Given as to when this was originally written and published, it is somewhat understandable, albeit still upsetting.

Thank you Pardy for a fascinating read, and may you continue to rest in peace.

Given when it was written, the technical predictions and ideas are, as usual, excellent!

But, the hypersexualisation is just absurdly over the top; it detracts from the story.

The story is also a bit all over the place. A vast array of footnotes and explanations, but so much of it all just bouncing around.

It's still Ghost in the Shell, and I did enjoy it, but it could have been much better...

What a nostalgic ride!

This addaption seemed to be an excellent reimagination of the originals, with my two eldest kids (11 and 9) and I all thoroughly enjoying it.

Completed the book in just over 24 hours. Gripping, thrilling, intriguing.

Such an intimate and true depiction of outback Australia; the slang, discord, and the sheer honesty of the scenery.

The mannerisms of different characters. The inner monologue of Chandler.

So Aussie.

Brilliant book.

Very well written, but extremely messed up.

Crime, violence (grotesque), thrilling, at times horror, and heartache.