Scan barcode
A review by pagesplotsandpints
Here Lies a Vengeful Bitch by Codie Crowley
2.75
<b>Read Completed 8/23/24 |</b> 2.75 stars
The cover and title of this book were *chef's kiss* perfection, and I wish I had loved the story as much. Sadly, this was just super "eh" for me and I was never super invested in our main character, the plot, or even the concept of being a ghost.
What bothered me the most about the whole ghostly concept was that it just didn't make sense. It gets explained later on that the ghosts are corporeal and basically function as nearly living breathing creatures with some supernatural abilities, but I wanted to be all in on being a spirit. I wanted the struggles of not being able to communicate with some people, some omniscient spying, some haunting... not hanging out and stuffing your face at the diner. So how exactly did that work? She's dead but she can still eat? There's a difference between having a body and like, functioning as a human. Just be left for dead but survived then, and not actually dead, because it *barely* made a difference that she actually died, minus the revenge.
I was also really disappointed in the characters. Our main character Annie was just okay for me. Most of the other characters were so unnecessary, especially the ghosts. Sam played very little purpose besides being a boy ghost. The other ghoulies were just annoying. The best friend was barely a part of the book (for a reason, but still). The ex-boyfriend and cronies were horrible, the mom was horrible. I just really didn't like anyone and it made it hard to get invested in everything.
I did like the whole idea of this but the way it played out just didn't really work for me. Annie doesn't even realize she's dead until like 40-45% in and it takes FOREVER. Let's have some fun with it and stop being so dense! I also really didn't like the reveal of the killer (SO OVERDONE) and the reasons why they were the killer. It just didn't hit enough for me and was a weak explanation.
If I hadn't made it so far, I probably would have DNFed because I was a little unhappy with it, but I made it too far and wanted to see where it went. I was hoping this would be a hit but... oh well.
The cover and title of this book were *chef's kiss* perfection, and I wish I had loved the story as much. Sadly, this was just super "eh" for me and I was never super invested in our main character, the plot, or even the concept of being a ghost.
What bothered me the most about the whole ghostly concept was that it just didn't make sense. It gets explained later on that the ghosts are corporeal and basically function as nearly living breathing creatures with some supernatural abilities, but I wanted to be all in on being a spirit. I wanted the struggles of not being able to communicate with some people, some omniscient spying, some haunting... not hanging out and stuffing your face at the diner. So how exactly did that work? She's dead but she can still eat? There's a difference between having a body and like, functioning as a human. Just be left for dead but survived then, and not actually dead, because it *barely* made a difference that she actually died, minus the revenge.
I was also really disappointed in the characters. Our main character Annie was just okay for me. Most of the other characters were so unnecessary, especially the ghosts. Sam played very little purpose besides being a boy ghost. The other ghoulies were just annoying. The best friend was barely a part of the book (for a reason, but still). The ex-boyfriend and cronies were horrible, the mom was horrible. I just really didn't like anyone and it made it hard to get invested in everything.
I did like the whole idea of this but the way it played out just didn't really work for me. Annie doesn't even realize she's dead until like 40-45% in and it takes FOREVER. Let's have some fun with it and stop being so dense! I also really didn't like the reveal of the killer (SO OVERDONE) and the reasons why they were the killer. It just didn't hit enough for me and was a weak explanation.
If I hadn't made it so far, I probably would have DNFed because I was a little unhappy with it, but I made it too far and wanted to see where it went. I was hoping this would be a hit but... oh well.