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Little Monsters

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I loved LOVED the writing! Kara has this ability to make everything sound so poetic, despite the subject matter. I mean, she could probably make a grocery list sound like the next modern mystery. And the way she crafted the whole story is impressive, because she managed to hide everything in plain sight. I had NO clue what the hell was going on! I had to stop several times, with a big “WHAT EVEN” on my face. And everything is unravelled so artfully and, most of all, it makes sense. Once I got to the end, I wanted to slap myself, because “oh my gOD IT WAS THERE WHY DIDN’T I SEE IT”. The book has multiple themes such as family, sibling rivalry and ambition and family dynamics and dysfunction. I also love the art we get via the character of Abby. All the characters are well portrayed and feel authentic. The men are less likeable than the women as some are certainly narcissistic although whilst Adam is judgy, he is also amusing in his non pc world and is also charismatic. The female characters are capable and resilient. I also like the strong context of 2016 with THAT looming election which is woven cleverly into the storytelling. The unfolding drama contains wit and humour, it’s smart, a little bit dark on occasions and the different perspectives flow smoothly and keep the focus. As the party draws near so the drama escalates, the tension builds and erupts at the celebrations.

I didn’t start writing Little Monsters until the spring of 2020, but I always knew I would set the book in the months leading up to the 2016 election as I found the uneasy mood of the country riveting. It was a time when you could practically feel the ground shifting beneath your feet, although most people I know, me included, did not correctly anticipate how. I also love the subversive idea that the readers know more about what will happen next than the characters. Told through gorgeous prose that brings to live these flawed characters and the vivid Cape Cod setting alike, Adrienne Brodeur retells a timeless tale in a modern coat of paint. Connections to Cain and Abel go deeper than the obvious name-references, but weave into the character dynamics seamlessly. It combines themes the familiar themes of jealousy, narcissism, infidelity, pride and a desperate need to be seen by their sole parent, with ones that weren’t present in the original story. Capitalism, the lingering grief over a mother lost too soon, and the family inheritance of mental- and physical health. Maybe we were meant to find each other today. Maybe we’re the Not Okay Girls, and we’re supposed to save each other.” Her Dad has a wife, Ashley, a step-son, Andrew, and a younger daughter, Lauren. Kacey is simply thrust into their family. It's not necessarily comfortable at first, but overall she's grateful to have a more secure environment. It's definitely a change for her.

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Little Monsters drew me in first by its cover, second by the synopsis, and lastly by the author's storytelling and beautiful writing style. I adore Family Fiction, the more complicated the better. This is described as being drawn from the biblical tale of "Cain and Abel" and perhaps there are hints of it here and there, but this story definitely stands on its own. I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Kara Thomas, and the publisher, Delacorte Press, for this opportunity. With this intricate story, Brodeur reaches the heights scaled in her nonfiction work." — Publisher's Weekly (starred review) Obviously, there are some truly evil people in the world but for the most part, I think humans are like any other animal—at their most aggressive when they’re wounded. Who hasn’t said something horrible to someone they love★ As a writer, I want to portray the complex gray areas in character. I’m far less interested in heroes and villains than in what’s courageous and corrupt in all of us.

The chapters in Little Monsters alternate between the three Gardners and two other characters, who add depth of field to hidden events in the Gardner’s complicated history. Jenny, the once wild-child and now tamed trophy wife of Ken’s, remains Abby’s best friend, ever since their first year at the Rhode Island School of Design. Jenny is now conflicted over where to place her loyalty, and equally at odds over what she has become. I decided to alternate between the physical book and audiobook. I loved this full cast. I thought it was fantastic. I enjoyed the whole story of this messy, complicated family! It takes place in Cape Cod, which is like one of our favorite places EVER!, In 2016. Adam is a soon to 70 yo father of his adult children, Ken and Abby. Their mother passed away when they were little and they were raised by their father. Dad is an oceanographer with Bipolar. Ken is hoping for a career in politics, married to his wife Jenny, and they have 2 daughters. Abby is an artist and currently single. Abby and Ken used to be close when they were young but things happened between them…and now, there is a tension between them. This family has secrets and circumstances seem to be tearing everyone apart. Told through alternating chapters and characters, you get everyone's side of the story. One secret comes to light during this story and I was so interested in how that would play out. I thought this was a really good family story. If you like slow burn, character driven books about family dynamics, this will be for you. Very good!!

All the ghost stories got it wrong: evil isn’t a spirit or a monster or a ghost. It lives inside regular people, and it doesn’t know the difference between night and day.

I know I’ve beat the dead horse, but if you enjoy books containing dark, high school drama, PLEASE don’t pass this book over. I read the entire thing in a single sitting; it was so entirely compulsive I couldn’t put it down. This was a “my kids were screaming in the car while headed home from vacation so I just put in some ear plugs and kept reading because WE MUST KNOW WHAT HAPPENS” type of book. Highly, HIGHLY recommended to fans of PLL who want a story with a similar feel without the decade long series commitment. Can I get an amen? I can’t wait to discuss this book with other readers because, um, that ending? Yeah. :) An] engaging and neatly plotted novel. . . Little Monsters is so alluring, with its sense of looming familial implosion within a cultural implosion. . . Brodeur is very deliberately examining a small family horror story within a larger political context.” — The New York Times That was when I decided that all the ghost stories got it wrong: evil isn’t a spirit or a monster or a ghost. It lives inside regular people, and it doesn’t know the difference between night and day. The fully realized setting of Wellfleet Woods, halfway between the tip and the elbow of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, launches Adrienne Brodeur’s mesmerizing, modern day saga about a dysfunctional family so cleverly drawn as to make the story’s dynamic relatable and completely understandable. At this, the doctor plastered on the kind of smile a kindergarten teacher might offer an unruly child at the end of a long day. He exhaled audibly and resumed his list of banal recommendations: limit stress, exercise daily, eat a balanced diet. The doctor reviewed Adam’s long history of episodes, noting that he generally cycled once a year, typically in the late spring, with symptoms lasting anywhere from ten to fourteen weeks. “Looks like you’re not too far off your normal schedule,” he said. “We should be able to manage this pharmacologically, no problem. That said, many of my patients benefit from group therapy. Have you considered this option, Dr. Gardner?”

Little Monsters

Kacey is the new girl in town. She is running. from a bad and toxic relationship with her mom. From her old life. From herself. Inspired by David Copperfield, Kingsolver crafts a 21st-century coming-of-age story set in America’s hard-pressed rural South. Kacey is concerned. Even though she enjoys some quiet time, FOMO is real. The next day, Kacey receives the news that Bailey is missing. She just disappeared, gone in the night. Did she run off, was she taken, is she still alive? I have such a fascination with evil teenage girls - how dangerous it can be to be one, getting caught up in obsession, secrets, jealousy, and that deep desire to fit in. The realization of what being one can hold..how easy it can be to be underestimated. To learn how to get what you want. Manipulation. How complex and intense a friendship between teenage girls can be. Just what that can lead to. It can be a nasty thing being a teenage girl. I'd heard a lot about this book from others and everything they said was true. I definitely recommend the audiobook format. It was fantastically narrated. I was so invested in this narrative and characters.

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