Unspeakable Things:A book review

I picked up this book in an attempt to complete my PopSugar Challenge 2020. This book was in the challenge named ‘A book published in 2020’. I don’t remember whether I read the blurb before picking this book as I made the to-read list so long ago. But better late than never right! This is the review of “Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey”.

I don’t usually read horror or books that are set in the real world beyond romance, I mean why read about horrible things when there’s enough horror in the real world already.

The book started on a really high note, struggled in the middle and rushed in the end. It built up an excellent premise, but the suspense was at its all-time high in the first few chapters and then it slowed down. I was really curious about the events of the book when I read the authors note, and the preface definitely pulled me towards reading the book. But as the book progressed, the main plot of the book somehow felt lost in all the details.

This book continuously reminded me of the The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling again and again, I don’t know if this is a common view. Maybe it’s because all books set-in small-town America sound and feel the same to me. There is a common notion at the start of these books that nothing can happen in small towns but it’s not actually true. The cases feel the same, they have the same tone and incidents are so similar that they could have been talking about the same things. Honestly, it is these books that discourage me from ever visiting America or applying for colleges in America, but then what do I know sitting hundreds of miles away in a city far removed for the American narrative.

I don’t remember being thirteen anymore but if I found out someone was kidnapping young boys; I would not think about catching the pedophile. RIP Cassie but I am different. But then living with parents who throw sex parties and make the children bartend is not exactly a normal childhood is it. Living in constant fear that your father might molest you is not normal either. Or maybe I am just privileged, but the thing is I shouldn’t be and this should be normal. This book really should come with a trigger warning.

The ending of the book felt lackluster. We go through the whole motion of suspecting different people and the villain turns out to be the most obvious and unimaginative person anyway. Not to mention 90% of the book was either filled with mundane worries, long list of suspects and only in the last few chapters something happened. And when it does, it ends too fast.

The book is also so homophobic. There is one gay character, who is the first person they suspect. There is the reinforcement of the idea that being raped makes people queer which is so cringey and more importantly dangerous. Cassie firmly believes that her teacher(read the one gay character) is innocent, but that’s jackshit anyway.

All the characters in the book need counselling. And some people need to be sent to prison. Fast. Everyone felt like a caricature of what they could be, or what they are supposed to be. The author just tried too hard, and the characters instead of becoming complex became something that you couldn’t relate to. Like the feeling you get when you know someone is fake but you couldn’t exactly pinpoint why.

One thing that I do appreciate about the book is the acknowledgement that the main character didn’t really understand everything that was going on due to her age coloring her perspective. The fall of childhood heroes when you realize that the person you were worshiping is not at all the person you thought they were is something that is aptly portrayed here.

But damn the casual sexism, the abuse, the homophobia, the reinforced gender roles and the trauma in this book was a big turn off for me. This book was uncomfortable. Not because it taught you something or made you realize your faults and challenged your perspective. No. No. This book was uncomfortable for the shake of being so. It was just cringey.

If you haven’t figured by now, well in clear words I didn’t like the book. Nope. Not at all.

Would I recommend it? Nope. I am pretty sure there are other books written on this topic, go read those and leave this one alone.

If you like this book, do not attack me, this is my personal view. But man! what a mess this book is.

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