Anonymous
- 640
- reviews
- 274
- helpful votes
- 726
- ratings
-
It Will End Like This
- By: Kyra Leigh
- Narrated by: Justis Bolding, Victoria Villarreal
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Charlotte lost her mother six months ago, and still no one will tell her exactly what happened the day she mysteriously died. They say her heart stopped, but Charlotte knows deep down that there's more to the story. The only person who gets it is Charlotte's sister, Maddi. Maddi agrees - people’s hearts don’t just stop. There are too many questions left unanswered for the girls to move on.
-
-
Fantastic Psychological thriller
- By Tanner Bradford on 01-05-22
- It Will End Like This
- By: Kyra Leigh
- Narrated by: Justis Bolding, Victoria Villarreal
Disappointing
Reviewed: 07-10-24
I’ve been obsessed with Lizzie Borden since I was ten years old. Having read every book, seen every movie/miniseries and staying overnight at the murder house, I was eager to read IT WILL END LIKE THIS.
Since I’m sympathetic to Lizzie she what may have been her motives for the murders, I was disappointed to like neither Charlotte nor Maddi. Charlotte behaved like her grief was a license to treat others poorly, everyone except her beloved sister. Maddi didn’t have much of a personality other than her devotion to her sister. Whether the teens were right to fear their dad and his fiancée or whether they were clinically paranoid or a little of both hinges upon the reliability of the narrators.
I think several (obvious) plot points were supposed to be twists, but they couldn’t have been more obvious.
Both audiobook narrators sounded so similar they were interchangeable.
Overall, IT WILL END LIKE THIS is disappointing.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Someone like You
- By: Sarah Dessen
- Narrated by: Rebecca Soler
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The world is a terrible place not to have a best friend. Scarlett was always the strong one, but now it’s Hailey’s turn. In the wake of Scarlett’s boyfriend's death and learning she’s pregnant, Scarlett needs a friend more than ever.
-
-
A bit dated
- By Pink Amy on 07-09-24
- Someone like You
- By: Sarah Dessen
- Narrated by: Rebecca Soler
A bit dated
Reviewed: 07-09-24
Halley has always been the follower to best friend Scarlett's leadership. Now Scarlett's boyfriend is dead and she's pregnant, so for the first time Halley must be the strong one.
Halley's therapist mother considers herself such an expert on adolescent behavior she's written two books on the perfect relationship with her daughter. Too bad Halley feels so crushed beneath her mother's expectations of perfection that she pulls away. I felt for Halley and understood her very mild rebellion. I wished her mother had been more the mom she claimed to be. I liked Scarlett empathized with her precarious situation. I didn't think Dessen's portrayal of Scarlett's almost abortion was accurate, as clinics don't do abortions on mom's insistence and take care to assure women are certain of their choice and they aren't making it for someone else. The idea of a sixteen-year-old dragged in for a forced abortion isn't legal, though in the end she wasn't forced to go through with the procedure.
Dessen is a hit or miss writer for me. SOMEONE LIKE ME ended on a meh notes. The story stopped without much wrapped up, somewhat open ended which is better without a fizzle out.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Clique Bait
- By: Ann Valett
- Narrated by: Em Eldridge
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Last year her best friend Monica's life was unceremoniously ruined by the most popular students at their high school, so this year Chloe plans to take each and every one of them down. She's traded in her jeans and T-shirts for the latest designer clothes, erased anything on social media that would tie her to Monica (and blow her cover), and carefully figured out how she will befriend the members of the clique, find out their deepest and darkest secrets, and reveal them to the world.
-
-
Maybe MG readers would like, too young for teens
- By Pink Amy on 07-09-24
- Clique Bait
- By: Ann Valett
- Narrated by: Em Eldridge
Maybe MG readers would like, too young for teens
Reviewed: 07-09-24
Chloe plans to take down the popular kids after her best friend Monica is gone. She doesn’t plan on falling for one of the guys.
CLIQUE BAIT started off strong, with Chloe, clearly pained, wearing her heart on the outside. As the plot continued, the story lagged, Chloe became one of the mean kids, and characters became tropes.
The quality of Ann Valett’s writing is the strongest component of CLIQUE BAIT. I never got a feel for why Chloe and Monica were such close friends and the lure of popularity that seem to cause Monica’s personality change. I never got a feel for any part of Monica that made me care she was gone (which means exactly what you think it does).
The ending quick, tidy and unrealistic ending was the weakest part of the story. CLIQUE BAIT isn’t a bad book, it’s just not very good and lacks payoff of satisfaction at the end.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
The Better Sister
- A Novel
- By: Alafair Burke
- Narrated by: Sophie Amoss, Samantha Desz, Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When a prominent Manhattan lawyer is murdered, two estranged sisters - one the dead man’s widow, the other his ex - must set aside mistrust and old resentments...but can they escape their past?
-
-
A better reader, maybe?
- By Frequent Listener on 04-30-19
- The Better Sister
- A Novel
- By: Alafair Burke
- Narrated by: Sophie Amoss, Samantha Desz, Mike Chamberlain
SPOILERS BELOW
Reviewed: 07-08-24
3.5 STARS
THE BETTER SISTER, a plot driven mystery, kept me guessing until the end.
I wished that the main characters would have been fleshed out better, with more personality and complexity.
Many of the parenting decisions Chloe made had me questioning what the heck she was thinking and why she didn’t seek therapy for her Ethan. I understood the hypocrisy of an abused wife leading a feminist magazine with a strong #MeToo background. She felt ashamed and worried about custody of her son/nephew. I didn’t understand why Chloe held herself, her sister and son to a looser standard than she did her mentor.
Chloe had nothing to gain by turning in the evidence Adam had collected and screwing her octogenarian mentor, whom she thought would commit suicide before going to prison. I also don’t understand throwing her lover under the bus as a potential suspect. If Ethan was guilty, and all signs pointed that way, having him get off for a brutal murder didn’t do him any favors. What would happen if he got out and became mad at her.
When Terry was revealed to be the murderer, Chloe isn’t angry that her older sister made her son go through six months in prison and a difficult trial. That’s the opposite of maternal. Why Chloe doesn’t turn in her murderous sister to prison while giving evidence for her mentor’s white collar crimes confounded me.
Based solely on my enjoyment of the book and the court scenes, I’m rating 4 stars.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
The Haters
- By: Robyn Harding
- Narrated by: Megan Tusing, Jess Nahikian
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Camryn Lane is living her dream. After years of struggle and rejection, her first novel has finally been published. Her editor is happy; her teenage daughter is proud; and her boyfriend and friends are all excited for her. She’s on top of the world—until she receives a disturbing message from an unknown sender. Rattled by the accusations she finds there, Camryn swallows the sick feeling in her stomach and resolves to put the missive out of her mind. But when she checks her ratings on a popular book site, she finds a scathing one-star review.
-
-
disappointed ☹️ 2.5 ⭐
- By Jennie skye on 07-03-24
- The Haters
- By: Robyn Harding
- Narrated by: Megan Tusing, Jess Nahikian
Will keep you guessing
Reviewed: 07-07-24
School counselor Camryn Lane has just launched her first book. Let the stalking begin.
Camryn has no shortage of suspects in THE HATERS. A disgruntled writer? A jealous stranger? A student who thinks she can do no wrong? A traumatized student? The daughter she spars with? Her daughter’s boyfriend? Her boyfriend? Her ex? Her ex’s new wife? Her best friend? I even wondered if Camryn could be stalking herself.
THE HATERS is so good in that Camryn is basically a good, yet imperfect person. The list of viable suspects would seem to be an overreaction from any of them, unless Camryn is an unreliable narrator.
Robyn Harding has her finger on the pulse of all that’s wrong with the social media gang mentality. I could point to journalistic articles that cover each of the incidents Camryn experienced.
THE HATERS is a must read for psychological thriller lovers.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Call Me Cockroach
- Based on a True Story
- By: Leigh Byrne
- Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Our prisons and mental hospitals are filled with tragic stories like Tuesday Storm's. Her early childhood was riddled with torturous "games" and violent physical attacks. She was isolated from the rest of her family, locked in an attic with nothing but a bare bed and a bucket for a toilet, and fed just enough to be kept alive. The experts say it's next to impossible to find the soul's light in a dark past like Tuesday's.
-
-
The rest of the story...
- By PJH on 07-11-15
- Call Me Cockroach
- Based on a True Story
- By: Leigh Byrne
- Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
Repetitive
Reviewed: 07-06-24
CALL ME COCKROACH, the follow up to Leigh Byrne’s memoir CALL ME TUESDAY, engaged me less than the first book.
Tuesday’s struggles had me wanting to jump into the pages and scream, “GET THERAPY.” She had no concept of functional relationships and setting boundaries. Chad, her husband, is a controlling bully from their first encounter which made me sad for her and angry that no one suggested it for her. Leigh Byrne and I are nearly the same age, we grew up when therapy and child abuse weren’t in the public vernacular, but by the time we were in our 20s, therapy was readily available to nearly everyone, including those who couldn’t afford it through clinics.
I understood the learned helplessness of abuse survivors was part of Tuesday’s repeated self-defeating choices, but didn’t want to read every step in her slow process.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
The Surrogate Mother
- By: Freida McFadden
- Narrated by: Alyson Krawchuk
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Abby wants a baby more than anything. But after years of failed infertility treatments and adoptions that have fallen through, it seems like motherhood is not in her future. That is, until her personal assistant Monica makes a generous offer that will make all of Abby's dreams come true. But it turns out Monica isn't who she says she is. The woman now carrying Abby's child has an unspeakable secret. And she will stop at nothing to get what she wants.
-
-
Enjoyable and easy to follow
- By jmj on 08-27-22
- The Surrogate Mother
- By: Freida McFadden
- Narrated by: Alyson Krawchuk
That ending
Reviewed: 07-06-24
4.5 STARS
Abby wants a baby so badly she ignores the glaringly obvious red flags when her assistant practically begs to be her surrogate.
I enjoyed THE SURROGATE MOTHER except for the explanation of the perpetrators’ whys, which were over the top nuts.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Call Me Tuesday
- Based on a True Story
- By: Leigh Byrne
- Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At eight years old, Tuesday Storm's childhood is forever lost when the death of her older sister Audrey sends her family spiraling out of control into the darkest of dysfunction. In the wake of the tragedy, Tuesday's mother, distraught and looking for a scapegoat, singles Tuesday out from her siblings to take on the blame for Audrey's death, and then targets her for unspeakable abuse.
-
-
loved it, so glad she shared her story.
- By Olivia Telles on 05-01-16
- Call Me Tuesday
- Based on a True Story
- By: Leigh Byrne
- Narrated by: Allyson Ryan
Uneven
Reviewed: 07-06-24
While CALL ME TUESDAY is a memoir, it often reads like a fiction book. Tuesday is as sympathetic as her parents are maddening. I could relate to much of what she wrote about disclosing and fears of not being believed.
This is the second item I reviewed from this writer. While a few interspersed sentences are quite good Leigh Byrne switches between showing the story from a child’s naive point of view to the wisdom of an adult explaining what’s obvious to the reader.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
The Wife Upstairs
- By: Freida McFadden
- Narrated by: Angie Kane
- Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Victoria Barnett has it all: a great career as a nurse practitioner, a handsome and loving husband, a beautiful home in the suburbs, and a plan to fill it with children. Life is perfect—or so it seems. Then she’s in a terrible accident...and everything falls apart. Now Victoria is unable to walk. She can’t feed or dress herself. She can’t even speak. She is confined to the top floor of her house with 24-hour care.
-
-
Frustratingly stupid female characters
- By Suzanne on 06-14-22
- The Wife Upstairs
- By: Freida McFadden
- Narrated by: Angie Kane
Who can she trust?
Reviewed: 07-05-24
A live in caretaking position with excellent salary and use of a car, when you’re on the verge of being evicted? What more could a young woman want.
Whenever you’re offered a job that seems too good to be true, you’re either overlooking something or a character in a Freida McFadden novel.
THE WIFE UPSTAIRS is a twisty tale. Sylvia isn’t quite certain who to trust and the wrong guess could we deadly.
Unlike most Freida McFadden books, more than one character had redeeming qualities.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
The Inmate
- By: Freida McFadden
- Narrated by: Leslie Howard
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There are three rules Brooke Sullivan must follow as a new nurse practitioner at a men’s maximum-security prison: 1) Treat all prisoners with respect. 2) Never reveal any personal information. 3) Never EVER become too friendly with the inmates. But none of the staff at the prison knows Brooke has already broken the rules. Nobody knows about her intimate connection to Shane Nelson, one of the penitentiary’s most notorious and dangerous inmates.
-
-
Boring and obvious
- By HailtoTheVictors on 07-29-22
- The Inmate
- By: Freida McFadden
- Narrated by: Leslie Howard
Twisty
Reviewed: 07-04-24
My friend has a saying, “too stupid to live”, akin to nomination for the Darwin Awards. Brooke, narrator of THE INMATE, falls into this category. 2+2 never equals 7.
Having been out of high school less than ten years, you’d think she’d recognize more of the characters who happened to go to her school, who knew the father of her son was THE INMATE in question, her ex.
Freida McFadden either doesn’t know what a healthy relationship looks like (which I doubt) or has some reason for never including balanced relationships in her novels. I’m okay with that, but I wouldn’t mind one or two couples who treated their spouses with respect and didn’t control them.
THE INMATE was twisted in all the best ways.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!