Cover Image: This Might Hurt

This Might Hurt

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Member Reviews

Unfortunately this is definitely a sophomore slump for Wrobel. The alternating timelines made it kind of confusing towards the front, and I found some of the twists to be pretty predictable. Maybe Wrobel should stick to basing stories of real events.

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Please tell me what I just read?

A book about living in a cult commune. Three completely unreliable narrators. Alternating chapters that took me way too long were not the sisters in present time and flashbacks of the sisters growing up with a strict father. Then an ending that completely pissed me off.

I cannot say too much more without completely spoiling everything in the book. It kept me intrigued to read until the ending. I wanted to know everything, thinking I'd get so many answers at the ending. A happy ending, so to speak. But what the heck?

All of the characters and the secrets and twists that they carry were enough to make this book worth reading. Everything in between is what I didn't care for too terribly much.

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This Might Hurt opens with a dark disturbing scene that held me captive throughout. Told from a place called Wisewood, where it brings all the “troubled/problem” people to hide outside of the grid, This Might Hurt is
told from unreliable POVs, sickening abuse, a cult and a family with hidden secrets. This is not for everyone, but I thoroughly enjoyed this dark book.

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This book was as typical cult/thriller but not as much thrilling elements for me.
It was the typical story about a cult leader with a family member trying to rescue a cult follower.
However, the ending felt a bit rushed and anti-climactic, leaving me without a sense of resolution and with multiple POV it became confusing and without the resolution I was seeking.

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It was an interesting story with clever pot, plot details and fascinating characters. It did keep me entertained through most of the book.

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Oh cults. While everyone loves them, I don't. Two sisters, both in trouble, one in a cult and one drowning in lies. Set on an island, this one was intriguing and also not.

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Who doesn’t love a cult-themed psychological thriller?

About the Book

Natalie hasn’t heard from her sister Kit in more than 6 months. Kit has always been troubled, experiencing high highs and low lows. After her most recent low, she found Wisewood. Set on a private island off the coast of Maine, Wisewood’s guests commit for 6-month stays where they forfeit all contact with the outside world.

During this time, the guests focus on confronting and letting go of their fears. Only through fearlessness can they become their maximized selves. They accomplish this through a variety of secret classes, work, and sessions.

When Natalie receives an email from Wisewood threatening to reveal a secret she kept from Kit, Natalie rushes to Wisewood to confess to her sister. But after arriving, it becomes clear Wisewood won’t let either of them go without a fight. Someone seems to be tailing her and a blizzard may trap them all on the island. Natalie is on a ticking clock to find her sister and help them both escape.

My Thoughts

The book opens on a jaw-dropping chapter, with a scene that seems to show some sort of extreme performance art. From there, the book moves to primarily focus on two sisters, Natalie and Kit. Natalie is meticulous, successful, and lives her life following rigid rules that have helped her to be as successful as she is. It also means she has few close friends. Kit on the other hand is directionless and she often felt a bit lost.

Now, the sisters are reeling from the death of their mother. Despite how different they are, it’s clear to the reader that Kit and Natalie care about one another. Which of course makes Kit’s decision to leave her life (and sister) behind and go to Wisewood, and the email Natalie receives threatening to expose a big secret she kept from Kit, a surprise to the reader.

I was captivated by Wisewood because it seemed so bizarre as an outsider. At the same time, Wrobel did a good job of showing how some people really fall for the methods at Wisewood and others don’t. I want to say more but I think it’s best I don’t spoil what happens at Wisewood and what the goal of the retreat is.

The novel is told in alternating chapters between Kit, Natalie, and an unnamed third woman whose identity later becomes clear. The mysterious narrator’s story is told through flashbacks to a childhood full of physical, mental, and emotional abuse by her father, who instilled a strict training regimen on his daughters.

This is a cleverly crafted story and I found it gripping, particularly the third narrator’s story. The trap set for Natalie proves that the only way for her (and the reader) to escape is by getting through the mysterious Wisewood and finding out its’ secrets. I had several theories about the third narrator and I liked the way that story and twist unfolded.

The overall vibe of the book was straight forward and then the tension was slowly increased until the plot felt so taut it would snap. I loved the slow build, the way the events unfolding from all three perspectives turned more and more twisted. I was riveted and wanted to know what would happen.

A twisted story that explores what it really means to be fearless and the darkness that comes along with finding out.

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“Helplessness is self-invented, a matter of perspective” This book was atmospheric, it was dark and it was twisted. I think that in terms of it being a psychological thriller, it was simultaneously felt fresh and unique in terms of for me I for once actually found the cult leader to be charismatic but with still the familiarity of other formulas you know and love with similar themes. I think at some times the book felt a little more thrilling and twisted than others, but overall it was a really interesting story to unravel.

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I loved Wrobel’s previous book, Darling Rose Gold. This one was not my favorite, unfortunately. Books about cults are typically right up my alley. I was just super underwhelmed by the storyline of this one.

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Stephanie Wrobels second novel is just as outstanding as the first. She does dark and twisty like no one else. You will be flipping page after page until the very end!!

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This one did not land for me, unfortunately. The pacing was messy and the motivations lacking. It was a drag to read.

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I enjoyed this! For about 50% I thought the camp director was the older sister, but maybe that was the point? So at times that got confusing for me. I thought it was unique. I definitely wanted more closure at the end!!

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This was good. Thank you NetGalley for providing a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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I had a number of issues with this book, the main one being there was no point to it at all. The premise made absolutely no sense to me, and tried and ultimately failed to create a cult like atmosphere. Nothing really surprised me or had any thrilling elements. The ending was dark but also very abrupt and lacklustre. Unfortunately this was just another on that wasn’t for me.

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I’m not sure what to say about this book, aside from the fact that I didn’t like it.

It’s dark and twisted, but not in the riveting way of a great thriller. This is morbid, with a whole lot of child abuse scenes to wade through. While I (eventually) understood the point of these scenes, we didn’t need to drown in it. A little goes on a long way.

The story execution is convoluted, with unnamed narrators and multiple timelines to figure out.

None of the characters are likable.

I couldn’t find anything to latch onto here that made this reading experience at all enjoyable.

I gave up at the 50% mark.

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I adored Wrobel's previous book, but THIS MIGHT HURT didn't deliver as well for me. There were suspenseful moments, but I just couldn't connect with the characters.

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This is perfect for spooky season. It starts out with a character you can't decide if you're going to love or hate and a secret that is going to be told. Throw in a creepy retreat where something is not right and you have the great set up for a thriller!

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I wanted to love this, and the story really captivated me at first, but unfortunately it didn't keep my attention. It's a story about sisters, and a story about cults, although it takes a long time for the reader to get to that point. The ending felt a little rushed and I was left with more questions than answers.

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This one was okay. It didn't blow me away, and for a book about a cult, I wasn't super engaged. It wasn't particularly "thrilling," but it was engaging enough to keep me reading and keep me interested. It's another take on the sister story where one of them is in a cult, and I feel like I've read a lot of those lately - this one didn't feel especially original. I feel like when I read a book about a cult, I want to be shocked and appalled and if not scared, then nervous. This one didn't do that. I did think the circumstances surrounding the genesis of the cult were interesting, and I liked the weird Houdini aspect, but it didn't wow me. Interesting enough though, so it's a 3-star for me.

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For a book about a cult this was not particularly thrilling. The 2/3 were especially slow. While I found the cult leader's childhood to be interesting and the ending section to be enjoyable, the rest of it didn't really appeal.

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