Kay

Mediocre/slow/meh characters

Revisado: 04-23-25

I’m obviously in the minority on this one! I am not entirely sure why this book received so many high ratings. It’s mediocre and average at best. Honestly, I didn’t care about any of the characters and found it a slog to get through. I did not find it gripping, suspenseful, or tense. I did not think it was “full of twists” either. There are so many questionable choices/actions that defies probability or rational logic (especially the ending and relationship with Rob and Gwen). The romance is always so lame to me in books like this. Perhaps I was in the wrong mood or mindset for this on, considering how many raved about it.

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Narration made all the difference

Revisado: 04-14-25

I had the Kindle version of this and had trouble getting into it. I wound up getting the audio version and that made all the difference! It was dual narrated and very well done. The spoken Spanish dialect really brought out the authenticity of the story that I was unable to grasp in the written form. There were aspects of the novel that I really enjoyed, but ultimately was still a little underwhelmed. It’s fairly predictable and the ending was quite far fetched. There is a lack of information regarding Rodolfo and Beatriz’s relationship and he plays a very small role in the novel, only appearing twice. Juana is another underdeveloped character considering her ridiculous “last act”. It seems the novel would’ve preferred to have been geared more toward the romance aspect exclusively. However, I wouldn’t say it was very “romantic”. It wasn’t a total dud, but only because I opted for the audio.

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Surprising twist!

Revisado: 04-14-25

This one really surprised me. I thought it was totally going in a different direction entirely. The twist was definitely appreciated. I loved all the Hitchcock references and the idea of a themed hotel. This was a nice little mystery centered around a group of “friends”, none of which are all that nice. We learn about their past and present throughout the novel. It’s a bit slow at times, but still interesting enough to keep reading (or in my case, listening). I love when the ending is wrapped up and all questions are answered. The narration was well done.

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Narration SUCKS

Revisado: 03-08-25

Shame - unfortunately, I guess I’m done with this series :-/

Well, this is another series that I absolutely love on audio. However, I was so disappointed in the new narrator ☹️It just wasn’t the same😭Ralph Cosham was the GOAT, then Robert Bathurst won my heart. I fear Jean Brassard will not hold a candle to the previous narrators. There was absolutely no distinguishing voices between characters. It’s just not the same. It’s weird how attached you get with a narrator in a series. I have several that are strictly audiobooks solely because of the narration. God forbid Jay Snyder is not the narrator for Mark Greaney’s the “Gray Man”. My audio world will have crumbled if so. The story was fine. The possibility of contaminating our water system hits close to home. I still found myself getting distracted from time to time. I was not as riveted as I should’ve been. I’m sure that’s just because of my disappointment regarding the narrator. If you normally read her stories, then this will be sure to please.

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Exceptional performance

Revisado: 03-06-25

I adore this series and have almost all the book on Audible. This is one of those series where the narration is so spectacular that I will only listen to them. Once again Flavia De Luce encounters death. This time in her own home! I love how an eleven year old still believes in Santa and is trying to set a trap to catch him. She is such precocious child with an extremely curious nature. It is nice to see a more childish side to her. I enjoyed another excellent adventure with Flavia and still look forward to more!

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Insufferable, ignorant, desperate MC

Revisado: 03-04-25

I found the two completely different character POVs confusing. Tom and Daisy (w/ additional characters) and Sydney and Jake (w/ additional characters). The two stories didn’t seem connected.
Eventually it comes together, but took too long for me. Sydney was absolutely insufferable. She was stupid and desperate. I despised all her inner dialogue. I did like the ending. It was a pretty good twist. It seems like McFadden is hit or miss for me and has never been outstanding (IMO). I am dumbfounded by all the glowing reviews. Aside from the ending coming together, this story is beyond annoying. It is possible that I am too hard to please and my expectations are just too high. Unfortunately, I would not recommend this book to anyone I know.

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Unexpected-Purple Prose-Grief

Revisado: 02-12-25

Wow - there is so much to say about this novel! I will never be able to compose my feelings or thoughts about it properly. First off…this is DEFINITELY NOT anything I would normally pick up! I don’t even know why I did TBH. It could’ve been the amazing cover art because I most certainly had no idea what I was getting myself into. This is a story about; love, loss, grief, anxiety, and bullies. It is a story about the tormented and painful intensity some teenagers experience through the emotions coursing throughout them in their day to day lives. It is about the inner turmoil of loving someone so fiercely and exploring your own sexuality. It’s just so much! The writing was so beautifully written in purple prose that flowed so smoothly you don’t want to stop reading. Andrew and Thomas were likable and believable characters. I do wish Andrew’s sister, Dove, would’ve had been a tad more “present” in the book. It is so easy to spoil this one, that I’ll stop here. I also felt the ending was just a tiny bit rushed. I can’t believe I even read this book, much less giving it such a high rating! I guess sometimes you just never know which story will latch onto you and take you for an unexpected adventure.

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esto le resultó útil a 3 personas

Entering enough although not great

Revisado: 02-09-25

This was…interesting. Maggie was a mostly likable character, at least from the outside. Once you get into her head and her “meddlesome ways”, not so much. “Meddlesome” is such an understatement. You can definitely sympathize with her wanting desperately to “belong” someplace with people that love and care about her. She found that special place within the walls of the Royal Karnak. The arrival of new guests Otto and his mother (Tess) really brings out the worst in both characters. I honestly was never fond of Otto. I’m sure that’s because the author had already endeared Maggie in my heart. The worst of her “meddling” deeds have yet to be done. There were times when I got annoyed and tired of the back and forth. It became so stupid, childish, unnecessary, and extreme. It didn’t make sense to me that you would ultimately harm people you cared about just to get back at a child - regardless of how evil he might be. I did have some suspicions/predictions here and there of the eventual outcome. I think the author did a good job with the last few chapters, where everything comes together.

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Nothing horror related here!

Revisado: 02-09-25

OMG-WTAF-SMDH🙄
What a colossal waste of time! This book was sooo damn stupid. I don’t know why I didn’t just give up. I kept thinking that maybe there would be something that would make it partially worthwhile. There was NOT! It was a weak attempt at trying to be a horror novel. The opportunity to make an atmospheric hotel setting was completely lost. In all honesty, I can’t figure out why she even tried so hard to make this setting important. It really didn’t serve any purpose, it went nowhere. I thought maybe the spook and creep factor would be introduced and built upon at the hotel…NOPE! The dynamics of the friendships were nothing special. The constant, repetitive, boring dialogue wore thin…quickly. The reappearance of Julie didn’t even really stand out as unique or celebratory for that matter. Things didn’t even SLIGHTLY pick up until closer to the end and by that time I had already lost interest. I just could not understand how no one was truly concerned about Julie’s odd behavior, much less mental health, considering she just reappears after two years with no explanation. Asking “what’s wrong with her” behind her back isn’t really compassionate…considering! The ending pissed me off more than the entire book honestly. Was I supposed to get philosophical and go back to look for metaphors? I don’t have time for that nor is that what I want in a “horror” story. Such a disappointment 🫤

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Big start/slow middle/stupid ending

Revisado: 01-26-25

This started off with a bang and I had high hopes for a nonstop paranormal, haunted house, thriller/mystery. Unfortunately, I did not get any of that out of the story. I slowly lost interest around 1/3 of the way into the story. I found the pacing was thrown off with meandering dialogue that became mundane. I found the MC, Sarah, was insipid, weak, and annoying. Her workplace environment was harsh, but juvenile. I’m not sure the extent of her ridicule was necessary for the progression of the story and really didn’t add anything to it. I realize she has had some big trauma, which maybe could’ve been laid out better in a more comprehensive manner. Perhaps then I would’ve been more sympathetic and understanding of her passive tendencies. I was intrigued with The Midnight Man in the beginning and was settling in for some good creepy fun. However, his dialogue was so juvenile it was ridiculous and hard to continue to take seriously. There were a lot of characters, some of which didn’t seem relevant or necessary to the story, which took away from the flow leading to the mystery/suspense. Considering this is apparently a first in a series, some of these introductions and small irrelevant characters may be playing a larger role in book number twoElliot was my favorite character and I wish he had a bigger role in the story. The ending was just the stupidest I think I’ve ever read! Forget about trying to solve this “mystery”, because it is impossible…literally impossible! I also took issue with the “twist” referring to the original murder/slaughter of the family. It came out of nowhere, just like the villain (TMM). It made no sense to me to reveal this at the end, when it was meaningless. Maybe this too will have more relevance in book number two. I won’t be reading that one, but I certainly hope Sarah grows stronger and has a backbone. It looks like she may at least have a love interest going for her.

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