Member Reviews
Rabbit Hole is a gripping, seductive thriller following an unreliable narrator in noticeable mental decline as the novel progresses. Teddy's sister disappeared as a teenager and the novel opens ten years after the fact, when her father kills himself. Caught up in grief, she finds herself drawn to poke around in the cold case that had obsessed her father for all these years. Alongside enigmatic but slightly shady Mickey, Teddy finds herself 'falling down the rabbit hole' into a mess of secrets and lies which will change the course of her life.
I really struggled to get into this for some reason, so I went off and read another book before coming back to it. And I am so glad that I did, because I actually really loved this novel. It is an engrossing, twisty tale which kept me guessing throughout. The protagonist is strangely likeable, even as she devolves into more immoral behaviour, and I felt that Brody maintained a realistic and enlightening portrayal of mental health in the wake of grief, well-balanced with the tension as events unfold. I highly recommend this to fans of a good thrill of a novel, with a touch of romance and a generous helping of unhinged woman.
I though that this novel would be completely different, I thought it was a thriller but it was more of a dark domestic tale of a woman.
I did enjoy the book, quite difficult to read at times as the content was quite sad but a good book, maybe not for the summer when you want a really nice and light read.
We meet main character Teddy, she has had a dark and not happy life with her sister Angie going missing and something her father, who has just ended his life, could never get over. It transpires that Teddy's father has been on reddit website who are fixated of what happened with Angie.
Teddy finds herself on a path that is fairly dark and disturbing and we get an insight as to Teddy's mental health and its not a nice place to be.
An interesting tale that is one for the dark and gloomy days.
Thanks to Netgalley, Kate Brody and the publishers for allowing me a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.
What a powerful debut this is, from the promising Kate Brody. A decade ago Teddy's sister Angie went missing and, on the tenth anniversary of that fateful day, her father takes his own life. Teddy, now a teacher, becomes more and more obsessed with what has happened and she goes to great lengths to try to uncover the truth, as her life spins out of control. Gripping from start to finish!
Great female character driven novel. When Teddys Dad dies she finds notes relating to her sisters disappearance 10 years ago, which leads to her to start investigating and looking online for information. She finds herself on Reddit missing persons forums and starts to build a picture of what they were really like. This is a dark book with deep characters which I liked. It made me question who and what to trust online and in real life. I liked Teddy as a character as she seemed so real. I also enjoyed the relationship between her and Mickey and felt I really got to know all of them including her Dad and sister although these were all from memories. I will be recommending this book. round up from 4.5 stars
This was a fine enough book I just wish it wasn't mismarketed?? I expected a fun silly conspiracy theory, reddit rabbit hole fast paced thriller which I was SO INTERESTED BY, I would have loved that world explored in a thriller book. But honestly this is more of a character study on grief and dealing with grief which is fine if that's what you're looking for and what you want to read, but sadly it is not what I wanted. I think this book would do much better if they changed the way it is advertised so that people who are actually wanting to read a grief centric book can pick this up and enjoy it!
I thought this book had many great points but I found that what dragged it down was the ending. I thought it was a bit open which I expect with this type of novel but not in the way it was executed, it simply didn’t return to the ideas that were established earlier on in the book, but this is the only gripe I had with this book. I think the book in general was well executed with some beautiful quotes embedded into the story. Overall, I thought this book was really good but it unfortunately just missed the mark because of the ‘weird’ ending.
It is indeed a 'Rabbit Hole' - ten years after Teddy's sister disappears, her father drive off a bridge to his death. As Teddy and her mother go through his things she comes across her father's ten year investigation into her sister's disappearance. At this point, who wouldn't follow up the leads? But as with all rabbit holes, at what point should you stop?
Teddy's desperation is tangible as she struggles to cope with so much loss, reaching out to people via Reddit, stalking potential perpetrators and generally making a mess of things. I was initially frustrated by the ending, but having sat with it for a few days I think it is the right one, life isn't like the movies after all!
Fall down the rabbit hole in this delicious and dark tale. As true crime meets friendship and they explode in the worst possible way.
This debut novel follows Teddy Angstrom after the death of her father on the tenth anniversary of her older sister Angie’s disappearance. Teddy finds notes and information when clearing out her Dad’s office which indicate he has been investigating Angie’s disappearance. This includes a phone and links to a Reddit sub-forum of true crime fans. Teddy soon finds she is also swept up in the mysteries and what follows is a spiral into obsession, grief and the unravelling of Teddy’s life.
I really enjoyed reading Rabbit Hole despite the subject matter and dark aspects to the story. I was down my own rabbit hole of wanting to keep picking it up whenever I had the chance and I finished it in about two days. I am a fan of books with aspects of mixed media so I really liked the use of Reddit true crime forums and found this easy to follow although it is not something I have used.
I also enjoyed Kate Brody’s writing and found this very digestible and easy to follow. I thought this book provided a good exploration of true crime obsessions, the ongoing impact of the disappearance of Teddy’s sister and Teddy’s grief for both her father and sister.
There were some parts of the book which weren’t for me, such as the final scenes with the family pet dog. Although I can see how this did also align with Teddy’s deteriorating mental health and life.
I would recommend Rabbit Hole to readers who also liked Kala and Penance.
I am rating this book a solid 4 stars and I am excited to see what else Kate Brody comes up with after this very strong debut.
Thank you to the publisher, Simon and Schuster UK, Scribner UK for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
One for the armchair detectives, the chronically online generation of the early 2000s. We see a family falling apart after a disaster, our main character’s life devolving into an alcohol-fuelled mess where she is haunted by the past and unable to stop searching for answers that don’t exist. I was unable to put this one down. Thanks Bloomsbury Publishing Plc and Net Galley for the ARC.
Ten years ago Teddy's older sister disappeared. Her father Mark never stopped hoping, never stopped looking. But Teddy wasn't aware of how obsessed and addicted he was until he killed himself. On further investigation, it appears that his main source of material was Reddit, specifically a Reddit community... Teddy's interest is piqued by all this and she swiftly start to fall down the same Rabbit Hole as her father. Spurned on by he boyfriend, estranged half-brother, and Mickey, a guy she meets online...
This is a slow burn of a book. More about obsession and grief than solving a mystery. But, once I had changed my objectives about reading it, I was soon drawn into the story. Another reason for me being sluggish to connect initially could be that I have absolutely no idea about Reddit. What it is, what it does, how you use it. My only brushing with it is that occasionally I get results from there when googling something. That said, I do know about obsession and rabbit holes with things like Twitter so, that helped. Tbh, after reading this book I have no idea to plug that gap in my knowledge!
As far as characters went, I took to Teddy quite easily. It was heartbreaking to see her life unravelling and feeling powerless to help her. It's a bit of a wake-up call for all things internet and, as already mentioned, I am guilty of that too on occasion. Food for thought...
All in all, an impressive debut. I am definitely looking forward to seeing what she serves up next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.
Rabbit Hole
by Kate Brody
The publisher's description says "deliciously dark and twisted" but having read this book without remembering anything about the blurb, I think this does it a complete disservice. This is not a thriller, psychological or otherwise, rather a character study with plenty to unpack about the ways different people process grief, the murkiness of the online true crime world, the sad legacy of those who can't or don't do right by their children and the vulnerability of people who have been damaged by the actions of those who should have been their carers and protectors.
Brody has skillfully created a cast of characters with a multiplicity of flaws and failures. There isn't a single one I can relate to, or recognise from real life, but as repellent as each one is, it's impossible to look away from the choices and decisions they make. It's a long time since I spent so much time yelling at characters as if they were referees making the wrong calls in a crucial tournament.
Did I enjoy reading this? Absolutely not. It brought out the judgemental biatch in me and deeply saddened me for the people who's life this represents. After a strong first 20% it lags, then picks up and then slumps and then dwindles. The ending is open but in a very viscerally real way. That leaves me feeling a bit disappointed, but not from the literary experience, more for the world that has been exposed to me through reading this novel.
I worry that the way this novel is being marketed will lead it to the wrong audience. Fans of Graeme Macrea Burnett would appreciate this one, and as Dante would say "Abandon all hope, ye who enter"
Publication date: 18th January 2024
Thanks to #NetGalley and #bloomsburyuk for the eGalley
I was so excited for this book. I absolutely love going down rabbit holes online. ANYTHING with a slight mystery and I can read forums and watch videos well into the night. A true crime story where there are ppl giving their half baked theories?! Count me in. (There is a line that is crossed IRL with ppl like this but that’s for another time &place)
Herein lies the problem with this book.
It does not deliver this story. It delivers a sad and depressing story about grief, self destructive behaviour and the ways it can manifest. It has scenes that will anger you (terrible treatment of a family pet), scenes that gross you out (why all the sex in a “thriller”?), and very few rabbit holes.
I would love to say I could look past the ways the story was not living up to the hype, but I cannot. I picked it up hoping for one thing and got an entirely different story that I wasn’t in the mood for, and probably will never be. I just don’t enjoy these types of stories, unless they are actual memoirs.
I couldn’t read past 30%
Please find a way to re market
Not as much “mystery/thriller” as this book was billed, and more of a noir/lit fic in my opinion. However, I didn’t mind, as I’m a fan of literary fiction.
I did not get on with the main character in this story and therefore probably wouldn’t read it again.
Powerful deep and disturbing exploration of loss at an early age and repeated trauma and what it can do to a person. Teddy or Theodora has lost a sister, a father, and is in the process of losing a dog. Her life is stalled somewhere and when she turns to help from an unusual contact, unforeseen consequences follow her.
I just don’t get on with mysteries it seems. It was okay but really just didn’t care much about the characters and didn’t think the resolution of the mystery was that great
Tough one to catagorize, I enjoyed the deep and masterful character study but I found this wasn't so much of a mystery/thriller as it was billed.
It is without a doubt skillfully written and has such a dark noir feel to it.
I would think anyone who enjoys a very dark literary book would enjoy it.
(3.75 stars)
I don’t even know what to say about this one, the main character was absolutely TAPPED. she does some very very questionable things and is extremely toxic at times, but I guess it’s showing how things like your sister going missing can affect you. I would say be careful with trigger warnings for this one, if you don’t like books with a darker edge then I’d give this one a miss. The ending also was a bit meh and seemed a bit rushed as if the author didn’t know how to end the book but I enjoyed it up until then!
So going into this book I knew it was going to be two things. Literary and a thriller. In regards to the literary aspect of the book. I really enjoyed the in-depth look into our main character's psyche after her life comes crashing down once again. It feels like an honest and raw portrayal of loss and the self-sabotaging that comes with that loss.
That being said I was expecting a bit more on the thriller side of things. The deep dive into the true crime community, to me, still felt like it was only scratching the surface. I wanted to dive deeper, lose ourselves more into that world, spend more time in the reddit forums etc. but it missed the mark for me I'm afraid.
A great character analysis - I just wanted more thriller!
I loved this, i really enjoyed the writing style it was so beautiful and i really loved the book a lot. Such a good read