It doesn't feel like I should be allowed to say I enjoyed this book, because it was deeply disturbing. But Kepnes weaves a really engaging narrative with chilling twists, disarmingly charismatic characters, smart commentary about modern media and relationships.

(Still, I don't think I'll be picking up the sequel — this story feels complete here to me.)

content warnings:

Spoiler

toxic relationship, gaslighting, stalking, on-page murders, major character death(s), explicit sexual content, crude language, misogyny, slut-shaming, ableism, mentions of alcoholic parents

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CONVERSION: 11.4 / 15 = 4 stars

Prose: 7 / 10
Characters & Relationships: 9 / 10
Emotional Impact: 7 / 10
Development / Flow: 8 / 10
Setting: 6 / 10

Diversity & Social Themes: N/A
Intellectual Engagement: N/A
Originality / Trope Execution: 4 / 5
Rereadability: 4 / 5
Memorability: 4 / 5

I'll be honest, I bear a little bit of a grudge because this book contains the answer to the question that knocked my team out of the local library's Battle of the Books for sixth graders:

Spoiler

"In which of the four assigned books does the main character feed an apple to Godzilla?" or something along those lines; Godzilla is a dog, but we'd all forgotten that scene

.