The ends were indeed violent.

If you're looking for beautifully written TSH fanfiction, you've come to the right place. Perhaps it's a little glib to reduce this book as living in the shadow of Donna Tart but there's a reason it's marketed that way.

Julian and Paul are both 17 and feel misunderstood by everyone around them. Except each other. They worship each other with the kind of unparalleled toxic obsession young adults can fall into. As someone who's experienced that mutual obsession one too many times, I found it painfully realistic and enthralling. I couldn't put this book down.

And when you're obsessed, you do dumb things. You seek your own morality that justifies your obsessive impulses. You lie to others, because they'll never understand, and you become further enmeshed with your partner in (sometimes literal) crime. This extremely unhealthy dynamic is depicted perfectly.

My favorite part of this was that our third person narration primarily follows Paul's perspective - and Paul sees himself as a shy, gentle, unassuming victim. The narrative emphasizes that Julian is the one in power, to the point where the events appear to be Julian's fault. But we're given enough information to make up our own minds.

I agree with other critical reviews that the ending was rushed. I don't want to spoil anything so I'll only say this: we expected the stick of dynamite to explode, but the fuze fizzled out. But maybe that's realistic too.

Highly recommended if you want to read about two toxic teenagers who (wrongly) think they're smarter and more virtuous than everyone around them. Beautiful prose, pretentious characters, a college setting with chess, entomology, and philosophy. What's not to love?