All These Bodies

I was very excited to read this book. From the start, I was completely hooked to the story. The suspense was built up well and the plot was pretty solid. Until the end. The supernatural element was added and the story took a huge turn. Personally, the story was so gripping, but it all went downhill in the end. Also, at times the things were repetitive. Because of the ending, the whole story felt hazy, it left me with more questions than answers. I felt that the story was very stretched, for the most part, the potential lead for the killings and the main character's conversations were going in circles which felt unnecessary. If the author would have changed the ending, the book would have been a hit. Because she did a great job with the base story plot and her writing style made me read more. My biggest question is: Did the story ever conclude? There wasn't any conclusion as such.

Book: "All These Bodies"Author: Kendare BlakeOverall Rating: 💫💫💫💫Spook Rating: 💫💫💫Yayy:🦋 The bright side of having a heavy cold is that you cannot get through more than three pages at once, thus getting to relish the reading experience for longer than usual! Not even for a second did I think, "Oh, this is getting boring now." This book had me turning pages like a squirrel jumping branches in search of its favourite walnut. Well, squirrels know the difference.🦋 When it's horror, the first thing that truly pulls you in is the narration. A ghost story has to be told quietly. Calmly. Passively. That's what this book nails. Apart from the honest and fast-paced writing, what really incites fear is the way Michael Jensen narrates his version of the entire story; of how he has totally resigned to what he believes is the truth.🦋 The characters are well-developed, original, and believable. I still couldn't say if there was a "negative" character at all since everyone seemed to be trying their best and working on what they believed was the truth.Nayy:🥀 I wish the book had explored the main "antagonist" a little more. We only see him through the eyes of Mary and I don't think that's ever enough. For the brief moment that he shows up at Michael's place, he is HIMSELF and has an incredibly cosmic presence. I absolutely LOVED him (even when he was just mentioned) and wish there were more scenes with him 🙁🥀 The ending seemed kind of abrupt to me. I think I understand the effect the author had intended to bring, but I personally would have felt better had there been some kind of closure.

I read kendares first book when I was 16. “Anna dressed in blood” and that book had me captivated from the first page, that I read it in one sitting and then the following year I read it again in one sitting. So I’m honestly not sure why so many people have rated this so badly. Because the author is amazing at what she does write. Maybe it’s due to the open ended conclusion this book leaves you with. Maybe it’s because people don’t like unsolved mysteries and I guess I can understand that. This book doesn’t reveal all the answers like you hoped it would. But maybe that’s why it’s so addictive. You keep reading in the hope that you will find out the truth on the next page. Only to reach the end and experience that disappointment of “now you will never know.” But I think that’s why this book is secretly a genius. It leaves the decision up to the reader. You make this story what you want it to be. You decide what Michael does at the end. You decide if Marie comes back. Sometimes you don’t need to have all the answers and I think the reason we always want or think we need them is just a flaw with human nature.

Too many unanswered questions, which makes it better, in the end. I honestly thought the grave would be an empty one. The surprise was better.

Things to Know:-Murder and Gore-Quick Read-Less than 300 pagesSynopsis:Summer 1958. A gruesome killer plagues the Midwest, leaving behind a trail of bodies completely drained of blood. Michael Jensen, an aspiring journalist whose father happens to be the town sheriff, never imagined that the Bloodless Murders would come to his backyard. Not until the night the Carlson family was found murdered in their home. Marie Catherine Hale, a diminutive fifteen-year-old, was discovered at the scene—covered in blood. She is the sole suspect in custody. Michael didn’t think that he would be part of the investigation, but he is pulled in when Marie decides that he is the only one she will confess to. As Marie recounts her version of the story, it falls to Michael to find the truth: What really happened the night that the Carlsons were killed? And how did one girl wind up in the middle of all these bodies?Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️All These Bodies started out really promising. I did like Kendare Blake’s writing style and the plot had real promise. I was just left with only questions and no answers to those questions which was quite annoying. It left off in a way that there could be a follow up book, but it could also just end. If there is a follow up I will read it and hope for answers, but this one didn’t live up to my hopes for it.It was a quick read. I finished it in less than a day. I thought Marie’s character was well written and I do hope that we are able to get more answers and closure later on.

The writing in this story had me hooked instantly; I was engrossed for a solid 3/4s of the book. No one can doubt that this author has talent.However, what she apparently does NOT have is an understanding of why people read mystery novels in the first place: chiefly, for closure, something this story lacks in its entirety. "All These Bodies", in an attempt to be edgy and avante garde, invokes whatever the opposite of Checkov's Gun is; none of the frankly fascinating plot points that are introduced are ever explained or even elaborated on. By the end of the story we are lead to understand that this is very obviously the author's point, so I can't call it laziness (even though it certainly feels that way) but what the audience is left with is only a boring, clumsily-handled attempt at social commentary that leaves the reader feeling as though the rug has been yanked out from under them.The markedly few beats of horror in this story are genuinely chilling and fun; there were times when I was grateful to not be alone in my apartment while reading. Unfortunately, these beats were undercut by perhaps the most disappointing and noncommittal ending I've ever witnessed in a work of fiction. Doubtless the lack of closure is appealing to some, so if you're fine with reading something a little different that explains literally none of its otherwise-appealing plot, this book is for you. I personally have rarely felt so cheated by an ending.

This is a historical fiction book about a serial killer in 1958 that’s committing the Bloodless Murders. Police find a fifteen year old girl among the latest victims and she’s unharmed but drenched in blood. This is a story told from an observer’s point of view and the observer becomes friends with one of the accused murderers. At the latest victims’ home, Marie is captured by police when she’s found standing by the bodies. Once she’s in custody, she’ll only talk to the sheriff’s son Michael. Michael tells this story that really leaves more questions than answers. I wanted the mystery to be solidly solved and to know if Marie committed these murders on her own or if she really was being trained by an older man. I can see her being delusional and thinking there’s someone with her or being vague to throw suspicion off of herself. Then the ending…? 3.5 stars for a truly atmospheric experience that made me feel like I had been transported to the late 1950’s and the characters that pulled the tale along!