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anyaemilie 's review for:
These Deadly Games
by Diana Urban
Thank you to Wednesday Books for the ARC
Content warnings:
Spoilers abound, so beware. Major spoilers hidden, so don't read if you don't want to know.
This book was not for me, unfortunately. It was a very quick read, and I was intrigued by the mystery, but I had too many issues with it to fully enjoy it. I found the writing through the first half a bit clunky, especially the dialogue. There was a lot of awkward slang mixed with very flowery, mature-sounding internal dialogue and description from the narrator. It was just weird. It seemed like the author wanted to throw in slang that teenagers might use, but didn't quite get the hang of it. It came off very "How do you do, fellow kids" to me. It very much sounded like an adult acting like a 16-year-old.
Another issue I had was the characters themselves. I didn't like a single one of them. I didn't feel particularly invested in Crystal's story, and I found myself not really caring whether or not her sister lived or died. I wanted to figure out who was behind everything, but I didn't really care what happened to Caelyn. I was more concerned about the why than the what. Side note: I did figure out who was behind everything. About 70% through the book. And I literally NEVER figure out anything like that in mystery/thriller books. So I think that also contributed to the lower rating. 99% of the time I am completely clueless when it comes to the big reveal/twist/unmasking, so this was disappointing for me.
Overall this was just meh for me. The ride was (mostly) entertaining, but the destination wasn't really worth the time.
Content warnings:
Spoiler
accidental death of a child; death by anaphylactic shock (murder); blood; stabbing; torture; anorexia (past, mentioned); drugging; domestic violence/spousal abuse (past, recounted); alcoholism (past, recounted); heart attack (off-page, recounted); several instances of attempted murderSpoilers abound, so beware. Major spoilers hidden, so don't read if you don't want to know.
This book was not for me, unfortunately. It was a very quick read, and I was intrigued by the mystery, but I had too many issues with it to fully enjoy it. I found the writing through the first half a bit clunky, especially the dialogue. There was a lot of awkward slang mixed with very flowery, mature-sounding internal dialogue and description from the narrator. It was just weird. It seemed like the author wanted to throw in slang that teenagers might use, but didn't quite get the hang of it. It came off very "How do you do, fellow kids" to me. It very much sounded like an adult acting like a 16-year-old.
Another issue I had was the characters themselves. I didn't like a single one of them. I didn't feel particularly invested in Crystal's story, and I found myself not really caring whether or not her sister lived or died. I wanted to figure out who was behind everything, but I didn't really care what happened to Caelyn. I was more concerned about the why than the what. Side note: I did figure out who was behind everything. About 70% through the book. And I literally NEVER figure out anything like that in mystery/thriller books. So I think that also contributed to the lower rating. 99% of the time I am completely clueless when it comes to the big reveal/twist/unmasking, so this was disappointing for me.
Spoiler
And the ending wrapped up really quickly. For all the time Crystal spent talking to Dylan/Andrew in the house (that scene seemed really dragged out), the end scene in juvie was super quick and way too neat. "Oh look, I am conveniently mic'ed up and everything you said will exonerate me and confirm my story! Cool." (I'm not an expert on what you're allowed to do while you're in juvie by any means, but of all the things that happened in this book, THAT seemed one of the most unrealistic).Overall this was just meh for me. The ride was (mostly) entertaining, but the destination wasn't really worth the time.