LTJ’s review of Sundial > Likes and Comments
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You have expressed all of my thoughts too. Excellent review. Thank you much.
Excellent review LTJ! I have zero desire to read this book. All the animal cruelty is unnecessary, and I certainly do not want to read about it. I also was not a big fan of “Needless Street”, so I know now that this book definitely will not work for me. Thank you again for this great review!
Great review! I'm sure I will not read this book.
Awesome review! I wanted to check it out. However, I'll definitely take a hard pass because of the animal cruelty.
@lynne: Thank you so much for the kind words, my friend! I'm glad I could help as yeah, the animal cruelty, puppy farm, puppy experiments, all that wasn't even needed at all in this novel. I felt it could have been a lot better just taking all that out and sticking with the creepiness/witch-like atmosphere.
Happy reading to you as well :-)
I agree entirely! Multiple timelines and multiple POVs made this one a bit of a challenge to read for sure.
@Venteslav: Thank you! You're very welcome as I really appreciate the compliment :-)
@Annie: Thanks for agreeing as I hope your next cup of coffee or tea is amazing :-)
I haven't read this book but have read The Push (which it says is perfect for fans of...). I really liked The Push.
@Rachel: Thank you for the kind words on my review! Yeah, I wanted to read this since it's a new book by her after "The Last House on Needless Street" but this just was a bit all over the place. I felt it was two stories in one book, one that was good, one that was boring and wasn't needed. Awe well!
Thanks for this thoughtful review, @LTJ. I was previously interested in reading this, but honestly now only want to check it out via audiobook (a small downgrade) and had no idea animal cruelty/experiments were part of the story. Especially since you mentioned that wasn’t really necessary in the overall story, audiobook it is. Good review!
@Jannelies: Thank you so much, my friend! Yeah, completely understandable!
@DebbieY: Thank you for the kind words, my friend! Oh for sure, I'm totally surprised she went this route with this novel. Awe well.
@Taylor: Oh yes, for sure! If it was just kept in the present for the majority of the novel and maybe go into the past towards the end, I think that would have been much better. The chapters of the past were so boring and felt out of place. I also didn't like how things kept getting repeated and dragged on. Not a great reading experience but her awesome writing skills salvaged this book from being a 1 in my opinion!
I completely agree with your review. Some fine tuning of the tale could have made it so much better--cutting out extraneous things--because the overall story is creepy and decent.
@Joan: Ah, I see! I'm glad to hear you enjoyed that one :-)
@Kathleen: You're very welcome and thank you for the kind words on my review! I'm curious to hear your thoughts on it when you listen to it as yeah, it gets very graphic with the animal cruelty/experiments, especially with puppies.
@Melissa: Oh yes, for sure! I thought the premise was there to be a super creepy and horrific read but it just fell flat for me. It had some good parts on the creepy side but this could have been better if it was fine-tuned, shorter, and dealt with more of the present instead of way too many chapters on the past.
Great review LTJ!
I’m struggling a bit with this one too in regards to the multiple timelines and when it’s going there when Rob is POV.
I’ll still finish this but I’m not reading it as fast as The Last House on Needless Street which I loved!
@Ginger: Thank you so much for your kind words, my friend! Oh yes, the multiple timelines weren't good for me, I started to dread anything to do with the past and it just wasn't fun. I absolutely LOVED The Last House on Needless Street as Sundial just feels a bit bleh to me.
Thank you for pointing out the triggers in this book. I will not be reading it.
@Stephanie: You're very welcome, my friend! Yeah, I'd definitely stay away from this if it triggers you. I'd never want anyone I know to get triggered by the stuff I found in this novel!
@Sam: Thank you for the kind words on my review! That means a lot to hear :-)
Thanks for the review and the list of triggers.
@Rose: You're very welcome, my friend! Thank you for the compliment as it's my pleasure :-)
Totally agree with your review. I loved The Last House on Needless Street and started Sundial with very high expectations. The Arrowood chapters were unnecessary in my opinion, and I didn't appreciate her narrative choices to depict scientific experiments. In my opinion it had too many elements (ghosts, torture, twisted depiction of science) that were mixed in a weird story.
@Melisa: Thank you for the kind words on my review! I also loved that novel and went in expecting something similar or even better but unfortunately, that wasn't the case. EXACTLY that and very well said, just way too much going on in a novel that felt all over the place!
Thank you for the trigger warnings! I loved The Last House on Needless Street and wanted to read more of her books. However, I deeply despise animal cruelty depictions. They haunt me and hurt me. I can't take that. I guess I won't be reading this one. I hope you continue to warn people of these kinds of triggers. I still am haunted by animal cruelty scenes I've read in other books.
@Vicky: You are very welcome! Same here, I loved The Last House on Needless Street and yeah, I know exactly what you mean about animal cruelty as that's totally understandable.
Oh yes, I definitely will as with any trigger warnings I find in every novel I read, I always mention it first in my reviews so no worries at all :-)
I'm sorry to hear you had to deal with that as that encourages me to keep at it every time since I find trigger warnings like that.
I'm having trouble even getting started with this book. I've tried a few times and it never catches me.
@Onika: Oh yes, I remember that happening to me as well, it just feels flat when compared to The Last House on Needless Street.
LTJ, have you read her new one yet? I've read 3 of hers and they are all strange and oh so different. However, The Last House on Needless Street is a complete masterpiece!
I don't have many triggers, but animal cruelty is a hard no for me. This sounds like another book you read, so I don't have to. ;)
I really like this author. Thank you for this good and complete review!💀
My sentiments exactly about this novel. I also loved "Needless Street" and was super excited to read this. But I too found that it dragged, I really could have done without all the flashbacks that really slowed the story down.
@Nikki: I haven't yet! Took a little break from her due to how disappointing this one was. Yeah, I feel she's not consistent enough but that's okay, I still love her writing style. LoL I think she set the bar VERY high with The Last House on Needless Street since I agree, that is a masterpiece :-)
@Ophelia: Understandable as I know exactly what you mean! LoL oh yes, I got you... skip this one! :-D
@La Loca: Same here as you're very welcome! Thank you for the kind words about my review as that means so much to hear :-)
@Mariga: Great minds think alike! Oh yes, same here, I think The Last House on Needless Street is an amazing read but some of her newer novels have been flat. I'm not a fan at all of novels that drag out and come off as fluff just to pad the page-count. I'd rather it be short, sweet, and to the point and not drawn out, you know?
The flashbacks drove me insane and 100 percent agree, it also took me out of the reading experience!
You ever read "Little Eve"? It's one of her earlier novels, you might like it. It's very dark and super creepy, so creepy I couldn't finish it.
@Mariga: Not yet! I've made note of it as I thank you for the insight, LoL dark and super creepy is definitely up my alley :-)
LTJ, I came here to say..... Sound Looking Glass or whatever her newest one is.... I just finished it. All over the damn place. 5 billion storylines within storylines. Ugh. Hard to follow. I might just give up. These last two were just treacherous to finish. Seriously 😭
@Nikki: Oh wow! LoL damn, I'm sorry to hear that and hope it picks up for you. I'm starting to feel maybe The Last House on Needless Street is the novel that set a standard for her that she might not be able to hit for a while. I hope not since I love her writing but we'll see over time :-)
Amazing review my friend, but I think I’ll give it a swerve as I’ve read quite a bit of animal cruelty in books lately, which, I can just about tolerate (in a fictional book) but not unnecessarily for the shock factor 😠 I’ve never read anything by this author but will definitely read THONS. Hope your next one is better my friend 🤘🏼
@Leeanne: Thank you ever so much as that means a lot to hear! LoL YES, give it a swerve as from what I know about you, I don't think you'd like this one at all. I might come back to her maybe next year but the opportunities she had with me reading her content besides The Last House on Needless Street have been disappointing!
Thank you as I hope your next cup of coffee or tea as well as your next read are amazing :-D \m/
Currently reading and I agree with many of your points. The names kept tripping me up and I find myself substituting Rob for “Robin,” little flashbacks in the beginning of Callie’s childhood immediately after Rob talking about Annie gave me trouble keeping them straight, and the flashbacks of Rob & Jack at Sundial are moving so slow, it feels like nothing is even happening. I’m halfway through though and the book is short so I’ll be finishing but after reading other reviews that initially sparked my interest after forgetting this was on my shelf for about a year, I feel….a little misled lol
I feel like Callie’s chapters have been the most interesting and in a way I wish more of the story was centered around being in her head. Love the nod to Callie at the end of your review here.
Huffy puffy, steam coming out of nose face.
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Jan 20, 2023 11:54PM
Great review LTJ I just took this book out at the library however since you mentioned a lot of animal cruelty it breaks my heart can't do thanks for your review glad I read it before I started this. Happy Reading my friend :)
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You have expressed all of my thoughts too. Excellent review. Thank you much.
Excellent review LTJ! I have zero desire to read this book. All the animal cruelty is unnecessary, and I certainly do not want to read about it. I also was not a big fan of “Needless Street”, so I know now that this book definitely will not work for me. Thank you again for this great review!
Great review! I'm sure I will not read this book.
Awesome review! I wanted to check it out. However, I'll definitely take a hard pass because of the animal cruelty.
@lynne: Thank you so much for the kind words, my friend! I'm glad I could help as yeah, the animal cruelty, puppy farm, puppy experiments, all that wasn't even needed at all in this novel. I felt it could have been a lot better just taking all that out and sticking with the creepiness/witch-like atmosphere.Happy reading to you as well :-)
I agree entirely! Multiple timelines and multiple POVs made this one a bit of a challenge to read for sure.
@Venteslav: Thank you! You're very welcome as I really appreciate the compliment :-)
@Annie: Thanks for agreeing as I hope your next cup of coffee or tea is amazing :-)
I haven't read this book but have read The Push (which it says is perfect for fans of...). I really liked The Push.
@Rachel: Thank you for the kind words on my review! Yeah, I wanted to read this since it's a new book by her after "The Last House on Needless Street" but this just was a bit all over the place. I felt it was two stories in one book, one that was good, one that was boring and wasn't needed. Awe well!
Thanks for this thoughtful review, @LTJ. I was previously interested in reading this, but honestly now only want to check it out via audiobook (a small downgrade) and had no idea animal cruelty/experiments were part of the story. Especially since you mentioned that wasn’t really necessary in the overall story, audiobook it is. Good review!
@Jannelies: Thank you so much, my friend! Yeah, completely understandable!
@DebbieY: Thank you for the kind words, my friend! Oh for sure, I'm totally surprised she went this route with this novel. Awe well.
@Taylor: Oh yes, for sure! If it was just kept in the present for the majority of the novel and maybe go into the past towards the end, I think that would have been much better. The chapters of the past were so boring and felt out of place. I also didn't like how things kept getting repeated and dragged on. Not a great reading experience but her awesome writing skills salvaged this book from being a 1 in my opinion!
I completely agree with your review. Some fine tuning of the tale could have made it so much better--cutting out extraneous things--because the overall story is creepy and decent.
@Joan: Ah, I see! I'm glad to hear you enjoyed that one :-)
@Kathleen: You're very welcome and thank you for the kind words on my review! I'm curious to hear your thoughts on it when you listen to it as yeah, it gets very graphic with the animal cruelty/experiments, especially with puppies.
@Melissa: Oh yes, for sure! I thought the premise was there to be a super creepy and horrific read but it just fell flat for me. It had some good parts on the creepy side but this could have been better if it was fine-tuned, shorter, and dealt with more of the present instead of way too many chapters on the past.
Great review LTJ!I’m struggling a bit with this one too in regards to the multiple timelines and when it’s going there when Rob is POV.
I’ll still finish this but I’m not reading it as fast as The Last House on Needless Street which I loved!
@Ginger: Thank you so much for your kind words, my friend! Oh yes, the multiple timelines weren't good for me, I started to dread anything to do with the past and it just wasn't fun. I absolutely LOVED The Last House on Needless Street as Sundial just feels a bit bleh to me.
Thank you for pointing out the triggers in this book. I will not be reading it.
@Stephanie: You're very welcome, my friend! Yeah, I'd definitely stay away from this if it triggers you. I'd never want anyone I know to get triggered by the stuff I found in this novel!
@Sam: Thank you for the kind words on my review! That means a lot to hear :-)
Thanks for the review and the list of triggers.
@Rose: You're very welcome, my friend! Thank you for the compliment as it's my pleasure :-)
Totally agree with your review. I loved The Last House on Needless Street and started Sundial with very high expectations. The Arrowood chapters were unnecessary in my opinion, and I didn't appreciate her narrative choices to depict scientific experiments. In my opinion it had too many elements (ghosts, torture, twisted depiction of science) that were mixed in a weird story.
@Melisa: Thank you for the kind words on my review! I also loved that novel and went in expecting something similar or even better but unfortunately, that wasn't the case. EXACTLY that and very well said, just way too much going on in a novel that felt all over the place!
Thank you for the trigger warnings! I loved The Last House on Needless Street and wanted to read more of her books. However, I deeply despise animal cruelty depictions. They haunt me and hurt me. I can't take that. I guess I won't be reading this one. I hope you continue to warn people of these kinds of triggers. I still am haunted by animal cruelty scenes I've read in other books.
@Vicky: You are very welcome! Same here, I loved The Last House on Needless Street and yeah, I know exactly what you mean about animal cruelty as that's totally understandable.Oh yes, I definitely will as with any trigger warnings I find in every novel I read, I always mention it first in my reviews so no worries at all :-)
I'm sorry to hear you had to deal with that as that encourages me to keep at it every time since I find trigger warnings like that.
I'm having trouble even getting started with this book. I've tried a few times and it never catches me.
@Onika: Oh yes, I remember that happening to me as well, it just feels flat when compared to The Last House on Needless Street.
LTJ, have you read her new one yet? I've read 3 of hers and they are all strange and oh so different. However, The Last House on Needless Street is a complete masterpiece!
I don't have many triggers, but animal cruelty is a hard no for me. This sounds like another book you read, so I don't have to. ;)
I really like this author. Thank you for this good and complete review!💀
My sentiments exactly about this novel. I also loved "Needless Street" and was super excited to read this. But I too found that it dragged, I really could have done without all the flashbacks that really slowed the story down.
@Nikki: I haven't yet! Took a little break from her due to how disappointing this one was. Yeah, I feel she's not consistent enough but that's okay, I still love her writing style. LoL I think she set the bar VERY high with The Last House on Needless Street since I agree, that is a masterpiece :-)
@Ophelia: Understandable as I know exactly what you mean! LoL oh yes, I got you... skip this one! :-D
@La Loca: Same here as you're very welcome! Thank you for the kind words about my review as that means so much to hear :-)
@Mariga: Great minds think alike! Oh yes, same here, I think The Last House on Needless Street is an amazing read but some of her newer novels have been flat. I'm not a fan at all of novels that drag out and come off as fluff just to pad the page-count. I'd rather it be short, sweet, and to the point and not drawn out, you know?The flashbacks drove me insane and 100 percent agree, it also took me out of the reading experience!
You ever read "Little Eve"? It's one of her earlier novels, you might like it. It's very dark and super creepy, so creepy I couldn't finish it.
@Mariga: Not yet! I've made note of it as I thank you for the insight, LoL dark and super creepy is definitely up my alley :-)
LTJ, I came here to say..... Sound Looking Glass or whatever her newest one is.... I just finished it. All over the damn place. 5 billion storylines within storylines. Ugh. Hard to follow. I might just give up. These last two were just treacherous to finish. Seriously 😭
@Nikki: Oh wow! LoL damn, I'm sorry to hear that and hope it picks up for you. I'm starting to feel maybe The Last House on Needless Street is the novel that set a standard for her that she might not be able to hit for a while. I hope not since I love her writing but we'll see over time :-)
Amazing review my friend, but I think I’ll give it a swerve as I’ve read quite a bit of animal cruelty in books lately, which, I can just about tolerate (in a fictional book) but not unnecessarily for the shock factor 😠 I’ve never read anything by this author but will definitely read THONS. Hope your next one is better my friend 🤘🏼
@Leeanne: Thank you ever so much as that means a lot to hear! LoL YES, give it a swerve as from what I know about you, I don't think you'd like this one at all. I might come back to her maybe next year but the opportunities she had with me reading her content besides The Last House on Needless Street have been disappointing!Thank you as I hope your next cup of coffee or tea as well as your next read are amazing :-D \m/
Currently reading and I agree with many of your points. The names kept tripping me up and I find myself substituting Rob for “Robin,” little flashbacks in the beginning of Callie’s childhood immediately after Rob talking about Annie gave me trouble keeping them straight, and the flashbacks of Rob & Jack at Sundial are moving so slow, it feels like nothing is even happening. I’m halfway through though and the book is short so I’ll be finishing but after reading other reviews that initially sparked my interest after forgetting this was on my shelf for about a year, I feel….a little misled lolI feel like Callie’s chapters have been the most interesting and in a way I wish more of the story was centered around being in her head. Love the nod to Callie at the end of your review here.
Huffy puffy, steam coming out of nose face.