Our Kind of Cruelty
By: Araminta Hall
Synopsis
Mike had only known how hard life could be until he met V.
Their relationship lasted through college where they developed a game called
Crave. V would go to a bar and get hit on by other men and then Mike would
stake his claim to her in a strong way. Then when V called it quits Mike was
sure it was just until he held up his end of their plan. Mike finds V again
after accomplishing everything he set out to do but she is engaged to another
man, is this real or is it just another one of their Craves from college?
Characteristics for Thriller
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Story results in he said/she said legal case
based against previous sexual history
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Resolution that leaves you thinking.
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Moves at a fast pace with Mike’s actions to get
V’s attention escalating rapidly.
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Narrative told between memories, flashbacks and
present day.
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Both protagonist and antagonist are well
developed and strong willed. Cursory
characters are fleshed out enough to give them meaning.
Read A-Likes
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Her Name was Rose by Claire Allan
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Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton
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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
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The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
After I read Gone Girl I swore off reading books like it and I had to settle in with some easy reads for awhile. Psychological thrillers are so intense and in the end I find myself thinking, ‘Are their people messed up enough in this world to do something like this?” With that said I think your synopsis was fantastic- I actually put it on my Goodreads list to read after graduation. I appreciate that you gave just enough information to leave me wanting me, and knowing it is a read alike to Gone Girl I can feel a bit more mentally prepared for it.
ReplyDeleteI will warn you after having read both I felt like this was darker than Gone Girl.
DeleteThis sounds like a great book! I really like how you were able to give a good impression of what the story is like without giving away spoilers- I found that to be really hard while writing my annotation. I think thrillers are probably the hardest genre (or at least one of the hardest) to describe without giving anything away,though. It sounds like Gone Girl is a perfect readalike!
ReplyDeleteWow, this sounds creepy! I thought of Gone Girl before I saw your read alike list! I second what Jennifer said about your description giving a short, precise summary but leaving enough hidden to catch my attention. What were your personal thoughts on this book after you read it?
ReplyDeleteIt really stuck with me and kept me thinking. I really liked it but it disturbed me in a way.
DeleteIntriguing! I've seen this story line played out some recently in TV (Criminal Minds and Gossip Girl binging). I haven't seen this author or title before. I have a lot of questions, but think Jennifer, Susan, and Carmen pointed out about your skill in describing the line without betraying who's the good guy.
ReplyDeleteI've not heard of this book or author, but your annotation leaves me intrigued. I've also read two of the read-alikes, Gone Girl and The Silent Patient. I liked that both were vague and the reader did not know what to expect. I also like when the book contains more than one time period. I especially like when there is some kind of creative and unique twist to the story. In this case, it's the aspect of the game they created.
ReplyDeleteThis definitely sounds like a strong Thriller/Suspense title. And it's always nice to offer something from a lesser-known author. I really like to read stand-alones as well so I may have to check this out.
ReplyDeleteI think you got everyone in the comments wanting to read this book! Great summary and characteristics! The readalikes also look spot on! Full points!
ReplyDelete