five stars in a disturbing way....this was a serious page turner. Things are not as they seem. Constant twists and action. Could not put it down. That being said...not a happy book. Similar to Room. You think things like this are not real, but after reading Jaycee Dugard story, you realize there are children and families living in hiding. ( )

I really don't know how I feel about this book. I found the writing superb, the story is intriguing and totally pulls you in, but the characters are completely horrible people (with two exceptions).

This novel is not for the faint of heart. There's abuse (mental, physical, sexual) throughout. The message at the end seems to be that family is family and should be forgiven no matter what, and um, sorry(not sorry), but no. These adults are terribly abusive to their children and should never be forgiven.

I can't recommend this to anyone, but I did find it completely immersive, though disturbing. I feel like a good sum up is that it's a good book, but please don't read it. ( )

Tengo diez años y llevo toda mi vida en este sótano.
Vivo en la oscuridad con mis padres, mi abuela, mi hermana y mi hermano. Todos están desfigurados por el fuego. Mi hermana lleva una máscara blanca para tapar sus quemaduras, porque papá dice que su cara podría asustarme.
Me gusta mi cactus. Me gusta leer mi libro sobre insectos. Y tocar durante horas el único rayo de sol que se filtra por una rendija del techo. Pero desde que mi hermana tuvo al bebé, todos actúan de forma extraña. Creo que mienten sobre quién es el padre, sobre el hombre grillo que acecha por las noches, sobre lo que sucedió antes de que yo naciera, sobre por qué estamos aquí encerrados.
Por lo menos tengo las luciérnagas. Llegaron hace unos días al sótano y las he guardado en un bote. Como dice mi abuela, no existe criatura más fascinante que aquella que es capaz de crear luz por sí misma. Esa luz me anima a conocer el mundo exterior, a escapar, a descubrir qué sucedió. Lo malo es que aquí todas las puertas están cerradas. Y no sé dónde voy a encontrar una salida...

I have nothing good to say about this book. The ending did not satisfy, just condoned horrific/abusive behavior.
Two stars only because I was compelled to finish the book. ( )

Well. That was.... disturbing. Also, that line about finding hope and light....nope! No hope, no light, no nothing, bleakness and despair. And really really sick and twisted people. It was compelling in spite of that, I got sucked in and kept reading (often in horror) all night. So, well done, but I can't quite say "liked" is a word that applies here. ( )