Reviews with content warning for Abandonment - The Blue Hour

I ended up feeling disappointed with this one. I feel like Grace is an interesting concept for a villain but I was personally frustrated that there were so many allusions to her being ace or aroace or aro and the author really skirted around the terms and just made her an obsessive killer. I thought that was kinda boring. It was a decent thriller and mystery but I found Becker dying in the end to be such a bummer. It was an interesting setting for the story and I enjoyed the themes of isolating and what we owe each other. I found how everyone treated Grace for being ugly very very interesting.

Content Warnings

drpthy's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Content Warnings

harleyglynn's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

3.0

"Makes me angry still. To have a place tainted like that... It's another violation on top of the original one. It happens all the time - you go walking somewhere, or swimming or running - whatever it is, your thing, the thing you enjoy - you go to a place, and it's beautiful and unspoiled, and you are doing that thing you love, and then someone - not always a man, I suppose, but usually a man - comes along and transforms it into an ugly place. And you never feel safe there again. And you are never the same again. The place is changed and you are changed, and neither for the better."

I struggled with this one. The mystery kept me interested, but I was disappointed in a lot of it, especially the ending. I also had a hard time with the relationships between the characters. I personally didn't find any of them believable.

Content Warnings

avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

While there were certainly mysteries! One was pretty easy to figure out, but the rest I didn't see coming.

Wow, did I HATE that ending, however! I mean what happened?! It's like a cliffhanger, but there's no sequel. I dislike it when books have an ambiguous ending.

The characters were also highly unlikable, I couldn't even find one of them likable. I understand characters having flaws, but none of them seemed to be decent people.

Overall, the book was meh and would have been so much better if at least some of the characters were likable.

Narrator Rating: 4.25 stars

The narrator did an excellent job, just not as talented as others I've heard.

Content Warnings

abernathy_33's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

paronomaniac's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really like Paula Hawkins and, while this isn’t my favourite of her books, she does a great job exploring themes of loneliness, love and caregiving that almost creep up on you as you read. And even when I figured out the who in the whodunnit part of the book, these themes and ideas made me want to keep reading and delve more into the characters.

Content Warnings

More...