609 reviews for:

We Can Never Leave This Place

Eric LaRocca

3.46 AVERAGE

ieemee's review

2.75

challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

---

I read this book because it was recommended to me by a YouTuber as one of their favourites. I honestly didn’t get the hype. 

bez9918's review

5.0

---

The imagery in this is intense and it’s coupled with a story that is littered with using imagination to deal with trauma. I don’t recommend this for the faint of heart but for those wanting to read an intense story in a child processing war when it’s brought to her doorstep, this would be the book to read.

csongi's review against another edition

5.0

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Sexual assault, Blood, Death of parent

Moderate: Incest

peckd's review

4.5

challenging dark sad

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail

Arachnophobia

valtherizzle's review

3.0

dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

maggi__'s review

2.5

tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

bellahtrix's review

3.25

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

nithya_natalya's review

3.0

dark tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

---

I loved You've Lost a Lot of Blood by the same author, so I had high hopes for this, but it didn't resonate as much as I wanted it to. I was very disconnected from the main character and the stakes of the story. It felt too much like a parable or lesson, rather than something more human and messy. Lots of sewage and dirt and rotting gore, which I did like. But there was something distant about this novella. I think also in the context of Palestine, it felt weird to be reading something that was using war as a backdrop or metaphor. It felt like the war was just a prop that lacked specificity or political context, which didn't sit right with me. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Excrement, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail

celle_094's review against another edition

3.0

dark tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

n1ghtm0th's review

3.0

dark fast-paced