Reviews with content warning for Animal death - The Society for Soulless Girls

Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

The Society for Soulless Girls by Laura Steven

95 reviews

fin_pilot's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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katsylver's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.0

Full disclosure: I very nearly DNF'd this book about halfway through. Decided to keep at it and by the end I kind of wish I'd stopped when I initially wanted to.

The slow build of this one is mindnumbingly slow. For all of the otherworldly weirdness the characters experience, the story itself is dull.

It's meant to be a reimagining of the Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde. The author examines society's abhorence of women's anger and the measures taken to supress and villify it. This premise is so appealing. I was looking forward to this commentary in the setting of dark academia.

Not only did it fall flat, every interesting plot piece was handled so hamfistedly that I was left with the sense of wasted time.

What a bummer.

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adalieslittlelibrary's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I’m kind of waffling between 3.5 and 3.75. Overall, I really enjoyed it. It was vibey and had a decent dark academia setting for fall. I thought some of the philosophical musings were intriguing. I really liked the beginning. The middle was fine, but the ending felt rushed? I think? I don’t know, it kind of just wrapped up and left me feeling like something was missing. Overall, it was a good spooky season read. It kind of made me think of the show Wednesday, so if you liked that show, give it a try.

The one part I absolutely hated was

killing the cat. It honestly almost made me put down the book.

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dontreadthelastpage1989's review against another edition

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dark funny inspiring mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

it took me 3 months to finish this book but to put that in context, i was in a really long reading slump before that so this actually made me want to read again and got me out of it! i really wanted to know what would happen and how it ended and i would've liked to have so much more of it!! i loved the writing style most, also the themes of the book like female rage made it very interesting and the sapphic subplot was enjoyable as well! i thought the author really had a way with words, which i find is more rare than you'd think. this is definitely a book that would deserve more hype imo given the topic and prose!

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dutchyreads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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rachtmh's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - Just like Lauren Steven’s masterpiece ‘Every exquisite thing’, this book should be read by all. Women to feel empowered and others to learn!

Murder mystery, Academia, Gothic literature, Possession, Female rage and Sapphic/Asexual/Neurodiversity rep, plus so much more! What more could you need in a book.

Lauren Stevens work has fast become among my favourites with her incredible insights and history on the treatment and expectations of women woven into fantasy and mystery.

I myself turned into a bit of a Sherlock reading this book, constantly desperate to use every little bit of information we were fed to try and solve everything before the eventual reveal.

The characters and relationships are so real and natural and the setting is so darkly romantic and ominous.

Truly an outstanding read.

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coralcrab77's review

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.75

i like the story, but not the execution. felt it was really slow and anticlimactic. i found myself distracted several times.
i also agreed with a lot of other reviewers regarding the ending. it felt disjointed from the rest of the story.
also very much disliked

the animal killing (even though she ended up surviving)

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itstheesilvie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

A wonderful sapphic retelling! Loved the enemies to friends to lovers plot line. I also liked the way the author tied in some of the societal issues women face everyday, and have faced since the beginning of time. It made the supernatural parts of this story more compelling. The writing style kept me engaged, switching from character perspective is a win for me.

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fanboyriot's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

♡ Mystery

♡ Spooky Vibes

♡ Dark Academia

I loved the vibe of this book, the spooky atmosphere was set so well. And the formatting design was so beautiful. Especially with the UK cover it was really so pretty.

The mysterious vibe of the school and an atmosphere that drew me in like the north tower, having said that, the characters came off a bit annoying several times. One minute they were roommates and starting out on the wrong foot, then they were sharing secrets, then they were back to rude misunderstandings, it was so back and forth. By the end I was over them but it did improve and they were a lot better.

The lore of this school and the rituals were kinda nice to read, it was mysterious and interesting but also easy to read and enjoyable to play around with theories. While the plot of this got more and more ridiculous by the end it was super entertaining to read.

Spice Level: n/a

Angst Level: 💧(1/5)

POV: Duel, First Person

Release Date: 07, July 2022

Rep: Lesbian (? Main Character), Demisexual (Main Character), LGBTQIA+ (Main and Side Characters)

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librarymouse's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This was not what I was expecting from a book advertised as a retelling of Jekyll and Hyde, but it was immensely enjoyable.

the society soulless girls not being at the root of the deaths preceding and during the events of the novel was also not what I was expecting, but I really appreciated the twist. The dark academia society with engraved name plaques for the new girls who performed the ritual is a strange touch, but fits the setting. One thing that also felt odd is the headmistress not reading the investigation notebook before she burned it. However, I do understand her not wanting to learn about atrocities she may have committed and the horror she thought the murdered student might of felt for her. Lottie and Alice are adorable together and I love the bloody and devoted relationship that evolved from their semi-mutual animosity. The council of horrific old white men experimenting on their peers and the young women they're supposed to be mentoring feels a bit too true to life, but I like how it tied together the frayed ends of the storytelling. The ghost of the nun was also a nice touch, guiding Lottie through the task she already wanted to do and helping her solve the mystery. One thing I would critique is the repeated reference to Lottie not being asexual with her newfound attraction to Alice. Asexuality is an umbrella term, and if she's only attracted to Alice, she may still be able to identify with a term under the umbrella.

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