Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

65 reviews

streberkatze's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This book was a gripping read from the first page all the way to the end. It was challenging at times because of the cruelty and brutality the protagonists had to endure, especially knowing that similar things took place in over many places across the U.S. Both the character development and the way the haints shaped the story were done brilliantly.

Although the question what happened to the caught haints after Robbie freed them sadly remained unaddressed.

The only thing that kept me from giving this book five stars is the at times very slow pace of the story, which has more to do with my own reading preferences and less with the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Racism, Torture, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, and Murder

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

Minor: Slavery, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

thrillofthepage's review

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Confinement, Racial slurs, Rape, Slavery, Physical abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Racism, Torture, and Violence

hughesie's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Confinement

Moderate: Murder, Police brutality, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Racial slurs, Torture, Bullying, Rape, Death of parent, Violence, Death, Grief, Hate crime, and Pedophilia

Minor: Antisemitism, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, and Sexual assault

gwenswoons's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Whew. This was an agonizing, devastating, painful read. But the storytelling and the world-building is unlike anything I’ve ever read, I think. My Dad has been obsessed with Tananarive Due for the last several months - reading absolutely every word she’s written - and I read this since it was the first one he read and started telling me about a while ago. It’s astonishing by every measure: gorgeous writing, unflinchingly  in the telling of history, a vivid point of view all the time. Every possible content warning for this - it is a novel about the Jim Crow south, and the violence and terror permeates every moment. If you have the mental space and the fortitude, it is profoundly worth reading. I listened on audio (truly excellent narration by Joniece Abbott-Pratt), and I had to take big breaks and listen to/read lighter stuff - it’s scary and deeply heavy. I kept thinking it was like if Stephen King (à la The Institute, in the most possible parallel to me) seriously knew how to write (literary fiction), had a real reason for telling the story he was telling, was actually able to inhabit other perspectives. This story is loosely based on/inspired by part of Due’s family history, which includes an uncle who was killed at a similar (real/not fictional) institution in Jim Crow Florida. Anyway - I am grateful to have finished this - emotionally wrecked - but will be thinking about it for a long time and hope you will take the time to read this novel or other works of Tananarive Due’s.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, Gun violence, Body horror, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Slavery, Child death, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Blood, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Child abuse, Colonisation, Medical trauma, Body shaming, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Abandonment, Bullying, Cancer, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Medical content, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Torture, Trafficking, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Classism, and Death

kyleighwhitsell's review

dark sad tense slow-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual violence and Sexual assault

ashtheaudiomancer's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This is my first Tananarive Due book, and everything I've heard about her writing has, if anything, been underplayed.  This is about a "reform school" that is a thinly veiled death camp where boys are sent for minor and/or imagined infractions, and many never get out. It's also haunted, and young Robbie's ability to communicate with ghosts might be his only chance of escaping. Not for the faint of heart, but essential reading for understanding one of the most unforgivable avenues of racism.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racial slurs, Hate crime, Child death, and Racism

Moderate: Abandonment, Sexism, Slavery, Police brutality, and Sexual assault

Minor: Terminal illness

Most of the content warnings you can infer from the description, but just be aware they are very much part of the story and you will not be able to skim over them.

delilahblues's review

dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This book is a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award this year and I definitely see why. This is not my first experience with Due, so it wasn’t surprising for this book to be so good. I love the writing style as well as the story itself.
The story is about a young man who is sent to a boys school for a minor crime. Once there, he begins to see ghosts and finds out about the dark history of the school. It is a duel perspective book with most of the story told between the young boy and his older sister who is willing to do whatever it takes to rescue her brother. 
I’m not typically a fan of multiple perspectives in books bc they can often be disjointed, but Due’s writing style makes it easier to follow. 
All in all, I cannot recommend this book (or really *any* of her books) enough. This book is hyped for a reason. Be sure to check trigger warnings before diving in though! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Torture, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Sexual assault, Violence, Confinement, Grief, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Racism

brittonmc1221's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Racism, Rape, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Violence, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Torture, Murder, Death, Child abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, and Physical abuse

thehmkane's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

A very good and important book. While I enjoyed Due's prose, I felt like the pacing took much of the urgency out of the story - the climax moves at a good clip, though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Genocide, Abandonment, Bullying, Torture, Hate crime, Gore, Racism, Animal death, Classism, Death of parent, Blood, Terminal illness, Grief, Police brutality, Child abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Emotional abuse, Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Antisemitism, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Trafficking, Medical content, Rape, Sexism, Animal cruelty, Slavery, Violence, Sexual harassment, and Pedophilia

cbrigs99's review

dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This was such a phenomenal read that I anticipate becoming a classic in the near future. Due is a masterful storyteller that reminds me much of Toni Morrison, and does an exquisite job telling such a painful and gut wrenching story. The characters are all incredibly complex, and Due is able to evoke such strong emotions of shame, revulsion, sadness and love all in the span of this story. I felt all the emotions while reading this book, and anticipate thinking of this one for a long time after finishing. I fail to quite capture the magnificence of this novel, but all I can say is: this should be required reading for everybody. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Child abuse

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault