thatdecembergirl's reviews
399 reviews

Narration quite fine. The prose is enjoyable. And as a non-European/American, I wonder were the clothing pieces of that time correctly explained or stated in this book?

I loved Asking for It because Pace’s discussion of rape fantasies, speaking through the voice of Vivienne’s therapist, was unapologetically honest.

Didn't think I'd finish this fast. Gerritsen is good at what she does. The dialogues flow nicely and interesting, and actually move the plot forward. I like it that the romance didn't become too much. It feels just right. And the medical input is impeccable; as expected from a doctor herself.

A nice read on crime investigation. Not perfect, but truly enjoyable. Would like it better if Himekawa and Kikuta's relationship wasn't this... uh, blurry and vague and feels like abandoned.

I'm at fault for expecting more. How the story narrated is OK. The flow between sentences is smooth and coherent (which makes me actually wanted to give it two stars, as tokens of appreciation). The plot and the story, though... oh dear Lord. Maybe I'm truly at fault for expecting more from something that's clearly written to satiate the sexual thirst of its readers, but IT'S 90% SEX SCENES. The plot (thin as a slice of ham as it is) develops way too slow, the conflicts never really reach culminating point and feel halfhearted―written just for the sake of 'putting conflicts'. One or two potential subplots are littered around but are never picked up, let alone meet resolution. Spent more than a month for this book (which has less than 300 pages; it shouldn't be a big deal in normal circumstances) because most of the time I just... couldn't proceed further after a few paragraphs.

If the author intended to make a book with a bunch of unlikable characters with no distinct personality and individuality at all who fail to make the readers sympathize with what they are going through, then CONGRATULATIONS!!! Teresa Driscoll, you succeeded big time.

Honestly, I don't even care for them all. There are no character arc, no personal growth, no clear personality traits whatsoever that make me want to root for particular person. Nothing. Not even Ella the protagonist. Not even Anna the missing girl. Not even Sarah the 'psychologically-tortured-with-guilt friend'. AND DON'T GET ME STARTED WITH HOW THE STORY ENDS. The 'breadcrumb of clues' are never really there, just one goddamn scene out of obligation's sake so that the readers couldn't really scream in protest about how the possibility of that person being the real culprit is never been established. Every build ups are for naught, and it feels that the reason Driscoll choosing a completely different person as the real culprit is just so she could produce and play the Heeeey-It's-A-Plot-Twist!!! card out of nowhere.

So, yeah. Two stars. One star is my appreciation for making this hollow story readable―y'know, the way it didn't get me ~hooked~ on reading but I still could keep going―and the other one is my wishful thinking that she actually DID intend to make all her characters in this book frustratingly unlikable.

The book is creepy as fvck and contains LOADS of information on biology. Rather a slow burner. Getting interesting (and oh fvcking creepy and uncomfortable) from its latter half. Kinda a hard read because of all its scientific explanation and all. Personal rating: 3.5 out of 5 but unfortunately Goodreads doesn't support half rating.

The protagonist feels much like the Taylor Swift of detective investigator. Oh the drama. Eeeeeeeeeeeveryone hates her. Her bosses. Her colleagues. Her families. Her neighbors. EVERYONE. Even she gets tailed by paparazzi spreading gossips and nasty rumors and candid pictures when she's just a former disgraced attorney turned cop.. I just don't buy it.. like, really? This is what Western people do? Is this what British people do? If it is, then.. are you guys OK? Like, do you set your priorities right? Way too much hate and fucks are thrown at her that she basically has nobody professional enough to respect her at work without spitting insults or conducting nasty behavior. No one behaves like a civilized adult in getting along professionally here. But at the same time, no matter how 'miserable' her life has become, I really cannot sympathize with Avery Black because she's either having a shitty anger/mood management or wallowing in a self-pity party. Kinda wanted to give the book one more star because the sentences are quite easy to follow, but then... NAH.

It's a short story but I guess it could still be shorter than this. I don't suppose there was really a need for that amount of victims. But the conclusive part is enjoyable enough and for once I didn't cringe at too many sentences (although in retrospect, the length of the story miiiiight contribute big time). I wonder if Stephen King's depiction of kids' mind and how their head forms thoughts (especially when they are under ten years old) is accurate enough, but even I myself don't really remember what was going on in my head when I was six or five.. so I guess I'd never know.

The idea is worth one Black Mirror episode, but the story lacks... foundation. It's never clear or given a single hint why the app is made, who made the app, or who Xavier is. Everything feels like a middle chunk of a cake without any defining edges. If you're looking for a fun, quick, everything-is-up-to-your-imagination (mind the reference) reading then this could be an option for you. Other than that, it doesn't offer much.