Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

23 reviews

bohemianzoe's review against another edition

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4.0

heavy read. disturbing a lot of the times. still, couldn’t put it down. read trigger warnings before reading 

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trunkyprewster's review against another edition

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dark sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Liked the audiobook narrator, Ann Marie Lee. 

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voxlunae's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

God, this book is just so oppressively dark. I'd seen the show, so I knew what to expect, but there is scarcely a glimmer of light in the whole thing. It's a good, taut mystery, though, focusing on a truly troubled and damaged protagonist. I think the
cutting, especially the words, is a bit heavy-handed and needless
, but maybe that's just because it's triggering for me. It's a hard book to read and to recommend, but it's written well! Ha ha. 

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isabellelle_11's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75


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gwynnfox's review against another edition

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Absolutely disgusted with how sexualized the 13 year old girls are. It's not like the narrator consistently speaks against this sexualization, she even takes part in it, when she speaks of her 13 year old sister's body, calling it perfect. There are times this is basically child porn. 

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ciaranolio's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

A psychological crime thriller about small towns, cycles of abuse, and possibly some of the creepiest family dynamics I've ever read about. Written in a style that took me a while to get into but is widely praised as one of the book's strongest points, I wasn't sure how I felt about this book until about three quarters of the way through. At that point, however, I was absolutely taken by it. Adored the ending, especially a masterful plot twist in the last few pages.

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lilmollyjo0301's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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cateyeschloe's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

My main praise of this book is that it had a really excellent twist ending. The twist, while not wholly surprising, was deeply disturbing in its reveal, and I really enjoyed that aspect. 

The writing is interesting; however, the word “fine” jumps to mind more than any other in regard to the writing style. That being said, the story is definitely compelling. There’s a great mystery and the characters are complex and intriguing. 

Hands down, the thing I grappled with the most about this book is the rampant misogyny throughout, especially internalized in the main character. I feel like tackling misogyny and the way society treats women as a whole is a big part of Gillian Flynn’s writing, in general, but I definitely struggled with it here. 

I think one of the most compelling quotes in the entire book, to me, though is when someone asks:

“Besides, why would a woman do something like that?”

and the response given is:

“Why would a man do something like that?”

The book shines a light on the idea that women can only (and should only) be feminine, soft, vulnerable, submissive, etc. 

Wind Gap has instilled in its citizens that woman are one dimensional creatures who serve their purpose as wife and mother and sister and daughter. Even the main character carries the scars of these ideals with her. 

“… Wind Gap, a town that demands utmost femininity in its fairer sex…”

“‘I don’t mean this to sound cruel… but it seems like a part of your heart can never work if you don’t have kids. Like it will always be shut off.’”

“‘…I mean there’s all this talk these days of God versus science, but it seems like, with babies, both sides agree. The Bible says be fruitful and multiply, and science, well, when it all boils down, that’s what women were made for, right? To bear children.’”

At one point, after a schoolgirl has been forced to do something sexually she did not want to do, a teacher makes her apologize, citing:

“‘Young ladies must be in control of their bodies because boys are not.’”

Everyone in town (including the main character) insists a man must be the killer, that women aren’t often killers, and they seem to imply that this is because women are too physically weak and mentally soft for such things. 

“Women didn’t kill this way, they just didn’t. You could count the list of female serial killers on one hand, and their victims were almost always male…”

Camille is the only character in the book that I truly struggled with. Her internalized misogyny is so prevalent and her version of feminism is so wildly misplaced that it circles all the way back around to putting women down, to the point when she rails:

“‘You’re sexiest. I’m so sick of liberal lefty men practicing sexual discrimination under the guise of protecting women against sexual discrimination…

“‘… And sometimes drunk women aren’t raped; they just make stupid choices - and to say we deserve special treatment when we’re drunk because we’re women, to say we need to be looked after, I find offensive.’”

I could be missing something and be glossing over the bigger picture, but often I find my expectations in a setting such as this to be that the main character, at minimum, has enough character growth to counter statements and ideals such as these by the end of the book. 

Camille doesn’t really make it there, and I find it difficult to hold up a main character  as a beacon of feminism or overcoming the plague of misogyny when she consistently has so many bad, dangerous, and self-deprecating takes. 

And maybe that was never the author’s intention. Maybe Camille isn’t supposed to represent growth to us, maybe she just has to take the beating of misogyny and be an example to us of what can (and does) happen under its influence. 

If that’s the case, then I understand that and can say that writing choice simply wasn’t for me. 

And despite my nit-picky criticisms and overanalyzing, I definitely did enjoy the story and thought it had a very satisfying twist at the end. 

I’d like to give this one another read at some point and digest a little more of its perspective. 

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smixter88's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

5.0

I don't really know how to put my review into words. It's a very intense, dark, and disturbing book. I was unsure I'd be able to finish it. I did not read what this book was about. I saw the cover and one quote on the front of the book. That's what I get for judging a book by the cover. It's a bad habit I have. I put the book down telling myself I wasn't going to finish. In fact I opened another book up and started to read it. While reading the other book, I kept thinking about this one and if justice was served. That's when I found myself reading this book again. Her writing is great. She really knows how to draw you in. Had I known what was in this book, I wouldn't have read it. I can't say that I'd recommend it unless you have absolutely zero triggers because this book is full of them. Almost every page has one. This is her debut novel. What a way to start your career. It's hard for me to rate this book. Did she suck me in? Yes. Did it disturb the hell out of me? 1,000% yes. Did I enjoy the book? Unknown. Will it live rent free in my head for far too long? Yup. I usually have a star rating system, but I can't use that for this book, because by no means does it need to be up on someones TBR. Unless you absolutely can leave your feelings and your stomach at coat check. I'll be rating it based on her writing, her ability to grab my attention, and need more. For that I have to give her five stars. Read at your own risk. Check the trigger warnings and READ what the book is about before you crack it open. 

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ahopper7's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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