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ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
4.0
In Winnie M. Li's debut novel, Vivian, a young Asian American woman sets out for what she hopes will be a pleasant and relaxing hike on the outskirts of Belfast, Northern Ireland. But not long into the walk she encounters a teenage boy. What happens will change both of their lives forever.
This is a book about rape and its aftermath. The author had a similar experience and the novel is both an honest depiction of what happens, in both the legal sense and in the ramifications for her. Li also imagines the life and thoughts of the boy who rapes Vivian who, as an Irish traveller, lived a marginalized life even before he committed a violent rape. Dark Chapter was well-written and the bravery required to write it is unquestionable, even as the subject matter made it difficult to read at points.
This is a book about rape and its aftermath. The author had a similar experience and the novel is both an honest depiction of what happens, in both the legal sense and in the ramifications for her. Li also imagines the life and thoughts of the boy who rapes Vivian who, as an Irish traveller, lived a marginalized life even before he committed a violent rape. Dark Chapter was well-written and the bravery required to write it is unquestionable, even as the subject matter made it difficult to read at points.
salmonator's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Violence, and Sexual assault
cami19's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
evieslibrary's review
3.5
I will start this review by saying I really admire the authors bravery in talking about her own experience because it must have been so challenging to write a book not only so close to her own experience but with a large part of the book being written from the point of view of a person the same as the one that caused her to have that experience in the first place.
I found the overall writing to be quite chaotic, I think it worked in some ways but didn’t quite hit the spot in others. I liked the constant moving of point of view without signposting, I thought it worked really effectively and I really liked how it gave us both perspectives. However, what didn’t work was the inconsistency of the pacing this led to, at times it felt as though things had been added in as after thoughts.
In reading this one I felt that maybe the author would have been better either writing her own experience only or writing something a lot further removed, I think this one sat on a really weird line between the two and I think this maybe impacted her judgment when writing. I get that it was meant to strong and graphic, but it became repetitive and relentless. I think it also demonised a whole community as appose to one persons actions. It gave a really weird voice to the rapist, at first I thought it might be me being disturbed by his thoughts but after finishing his book I don’t think it was that, I think it was the way it was constructed. She gave enough to give us a back story to him and his actions but then in the present day made him all bad almost rendering the backstory useless. Even elements like him not being able to fully understand the complex questions asked in the trial is something that was touched upon but not with the perspective of how many barriers that creates in life.
One part of this book that really disagreed with me (and stopped me going for 4 stars for the sheer bravery) was the perception that to recover from the ptsd following sexual assault, one must put themselves in vulnerable situations and be okay with it. I understand the notion that in society women should be able to go out in the dark on their own in a place where they know nobody and don’t speak the language, but in reality it’s just not the case so I don’t think putting that in the book as a measure of progress was great messaging from the author
Overall I do think this book was really brave, I think what it was trying to do was really brave but I think maybe being so close to it impacted some of the aspects of the story which resulted in things that weren’t executed so well, which would have been okay in a non fiction but in a fiction just doesnt feel right. I think this book was just so relentless that it would make it really hard to recommend it to anybody however the author has told her story in a few articles and she articulates herself, her story and the difficulty in reporting rape so well.
I found the overall writing to be quite chaotic, I think it worked in some ways but didn’t quite hit the spot in others. I liked the constant moving of point of view without signposting, I thought it worked really effectively and I really liked how it gave us both perspectives. However, what didn’t work was the inconsistency of the pacing this led to, at times it felt as though things had been added in as after thoughts.
In reading this one I felt that maybe the author would have been better either writing her own experience only or writing something a lot further removed, I think this one sat on a really weird line between the two and I think this maybe impacted her judgment when writing. I get that it was meant to strong and graphic, but it became repetitive and relentless. I think it also demonised a whole community as appose to one persons actions. It gave a really weird voice to the rapist, at first I thought it might be me being disturbed by his thoughts but after finishing his book I don’t think it was that, I think it was the way it was constructed. She gave enough to give us a back story to him and his actions but then in the present day made him all bad almost rendering the backstory useless. Even elements like him not being able to fully understand the complex questions asked in the trial is something that was touched upon but not with the perspective of how many barriers that creates in life.
One part of this book that really disagreed with me (and stopped me going for 4 stars for the sheer bravery) was the perception that to recover from the ptsd following sexual assault, one must put themselves in vulnerable situations and be okay with it. I understand the notion that in society women should be able to go out in the dark on their own in a place where they know nobody and don’t speak the language, but in reality it’s just not the case so I don’t think putting that in the book as a measure of progress was great messaging from the author
Overall I do think this book was really brave, I think what it was trying to do was really brave but I think maybe being so close to it impacted some of the aspects of the story which resulted in things that weren’t executed so well, which would have been okay in a non fiction but in a fiction just doesnt feel right. I think this book was just so relentless that it would make it really hard to recommend it to anybody however the author has told her story in a few articles and she articulates herself, her story and the difficulty in reporting rape so well.
broccsi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I want to burn this guy (maybe I expected more female rage and am now dissapointed that we didn't get a revange story)
wendoxford's review against another edition
4.0
Whilst I felt some of the writing was flawed, the rage this book engenders overpowers any note of criticism. This is the story of a rape from perspective of victim and assailant. Although this is fiction, it is, in essence, a re-telling of what did happen to the author. The fact that she can show the upbringing of the rapist and his violent, alcohol fuelled brutal childhood brimming with emotional deprivation, as a parallel narrative throughout the unfolding of the harrowing events, makes it all the more powerful.
It is a very harrowing read from so many perspectives. It is difficult not to see it as an indictment of the traveller lifestyle and yet Li has obviously spent time researching and learning, which may have formed a part of her recovery.
A brilliant , poignant collage of trauma.
It is a very harrowing read from so many perspectives. It is difficult not to see it as an indictment of the traveller lifestyle and yet Li has obviously spent time researching and learning, which may have formed a part of her recovery.
A brilliant , poignant collage of trauma.
bgg616's review against another edition
3.0
Although the book descriptions obscure the subject of this book, the blurbs on the back cover reveal that it is about a rape. Vivian Tan, a Harvard graduate in her late 20's works in London, in a job related to the film industry. She is invited to Belfast to the 10th anniversary of the Peace Accord. After all of the meetings, she decides to go for a hike in a park near West Belfast where she crosses paths with a 15-year-old Traveler Johnny Sweeney and suffers a violent sexual assault.
The author suffered a sexual assault herself. I am not sure who this book is for except perhaps as part of her own healing process. I rushed through the second half although I was tempted to discard it - not because I don't take the topic of such violence seriously but because it was relentless.
It is always tricky to write about characters who are members of marginalized communities and who are often stereotyped as criminals, thugs, thieves, and worse. Li consulted with several organizations representing the Traveler community. Yet despite this, I believe readers cannot walk away from this book seeing Johnny's crimes as the aberrations of an individual sociopath. Rather I believe they will reinforce prior stereotypes they've had of Travelers or if this is an unfamiliar community to them, they will finish the book with negative impressions of the community, and not just of Johnny.
Trigger warning The details of the assault are long and very violent. The police interviews and trial repeat them again. I honestly cannot recommend this book to anyone.
The author suffered a sexual assault herself. I am not sure who this book is for except perhaps as part of her own healing process. I rushed through the second half although I was tempted to discard it - not because I don't take the topic of such violence seriously but because it was relentless.
It is always tricky to write about characters who are members of marginalized communities and who are often stereotyped as criminals, thugs, thieves, and worse. Li consulted with several organizations representing the Traveler community. Yet despite this, I believe readers cannot walk away from this book seeing Johnny's crimes as the aberrations of an individual sociopath. Rather I believe they will reinforce prior stereotypes they've had of Travelers or if this is an unfamiliar community to them, they will finish the book with negative impressions of the community, and not just of Johnny.
Trigger warning The details of the assault are long and very violent. The police interviews and trial repeat them again. I honestly cannot recommend this book to anyone.
ameliaveganreader's review against another edition
5.0
I won this book in a giveaway and when it finally arrived and I started reading,it seemed confusing,I didn't expect it to be written in two POVs, but it soon became clear to me that this way the story would uncover in two different perspectives and display all the terrifying things that goes in minds of rapists and how destructive it is for the victim to live everyday after the assault. I really wanted to finish this book as soon as possible,it was too hard for me to read, I would put it down and do something else to calm myself and then come back to it the next day. But today I said I would finish it and I did,and I'm so proud of the author that she could put part of her life into words and allow us to read about it. I still have several unanswered questions and I'm not happy the way it ended,but that's what life is,right? You can't always be happy about it,but you can keep on living no matter what happens.
theprintedgirl's review against another edition
4.0
Actual rating: 4.5 stars
Dark Chapter tells the story of Vivian a 29 year old women who gets raped on a hike in Belfast.
What makes this story so exceptional is that she also tells the story of the boy who did it in his own words. She shows all the differences between the two characters by writing in a completely different way when she switches between them. She writes in their own accents and you truly see the differences in their education just in the way they talk. The story goes from when they were both young to several years after the crime. I found myself holding my breath at several moments in this book. I had to cover the rest of the page with my hand at some points because my eyes kept going forward because I so desperately needed to know how it would end for her. I was rooting for her and feeling for her the entire book.
To write such a brave story as a debut novel is an exceptional thing to do. So I do believe that this is a very important book and definitely a must read. It gave me a lot of life lessons and changed the way I look at certain things and feel about them. I do feel like this is one of the most important books I’m going to read this year, and maybe even in the next couple of years.
“Do I regret it? Regret’s one of them words they’re always trying to hammer into you from the outside. Another trick to make you feel bad about yourself, because you’re a tinker and you’re dirt. Only, regret don’t mean nothing to me.”
Dark Chapter tells the story of Vivian a 29 year old women who gets raped on a hike in Belfast.
What makes this story so exceptional is that she also tells the story of the boy who did it in his own words. She shows all the differences between the two characters by writing in a completely different way when she switches between them. She writes in their own accents and you truly see the differences in their education just in the way they talk. The story goes from when they were both young to several years after the crime. I found myself holding my breath at several moments in this book. I had to cover the rest of the page with my hand at some points because my eyes kept going forward because I so desperately needed to know how it would end for her. I was rooting for her and feeling for her the entire book.
To write such a brave story as a debut novel is an exceptional thing to do. So I do believe that this is a very important book and definitely a must read. It gave me a lot of life lessons and changed the way I look at certain things and feel about them. I do feel like this is one of the most important books I’m going to read this year, and maybe even in the next couple of years.