Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

The Corset by Laura Purcell

6 reviews

racl's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style and the way it jumped between two wildly different perspectives - a rich debutante and a prisoner who has always known poverty. It kept the mystery alive of whether or not the magic of Ruth's sewing was real

but I didn't like the way it waffled at the end. I preferred the 3 pages we were certain she had no magic and was framed to the last page where it's proved she likely does have power

Still, I liked it. It doesn't go into excessive detail on the torture the seamstresses go through which saves it from being gratuitous in my opinion and keeps the focus on the plot

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Child death, Death, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Suicide, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Racism

Minor: Domestic abuse

librarianjennifer's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent, Child death, Confinement, Death, Grief, Murder, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Torture, and Vomit

bookedbymadeline's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

This was one of my 12 recs from 12 friends and the second Purcell novel I’ve read. I was pulled in right away and didn’t want to put this one down!

The story is told through switching POVs between Ruth and Dorothea. I preferred Ruth to Dorothea, Dorothea’s storyline could be annoying and she doesn’t have as much depth  (her one personality trait is measuring people’s skulls to determine their traits and that constant narrative was irritating, although very Victorian).

The childbirth scene was gross and traumatizing-I had to look away and felt nauseous 🤢 But on that note, Purcell does such a good job with putting you in the novel. Very atmospheric writing and great job building the Victorian backdrop!

The twists were unexpected and well done. Pacing was also well done, as the tension slowly builds throughout as we hear Ruth’s story right alongside Dorothea. I did however feel slightly unsatisfied with the ending, it was a bit abrupt and wish we got an epilogue to wrap things up for Dorothea’s future after that final scene.

Overall an ominous, creeping story in the vein of a Victorian gothic horror story! Purcell is officially a favorite author I’ll be reading more from 💗 I recommend for anyone wanting a gothic historical mystery with complex characters and atmospheric writing (but be wary of the content warnings because it’s very graphic and dark)!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Murder, Medical trauma, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, Pregnancy, Death of parent, Gore, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Racism, Torture, Confinement, Child death, Sexism, Suicide, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Self harm

holliebye's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Vomit, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Torture, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Classism, Terminal illness, and Violence

Minor: Body shaming, Self harm, Suicide, Slavery, and Excrement

kurumipanda's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Blood, Body shaming, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Suicide, Violence, Child death, Grief, Body horror, Bullying, Physical abuse, and Death of parent

Moderate: Gore, Confinement, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, Self harm, and Religious bigotry

beckether's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

4.25

This book was so well-crafted and goodness me so so so dark. There aren't many authors that can truly draw me in to the world they've created but Laura Purcell is one. The setting and the time period were superbly researched and brought to life. The plot makes the book unputdownable! The characters were layered and fully fleshed out, especially those of Ruth and Kate which really stood out for me. I would have given this book 5* as I was completely absorbed in it, but the endings for two of the side characters just didn't sit right with me - I felt like there wasn't enough there to justify their ending. Having said that, the climax of this book did leave many things uncertain, so maybe it wasn't meant to sit quite right. I did enjoy many of the twists and how the ending was left fairly open. Can't wait to read more from this author!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Gore

Minor: Torture