Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Girls by Emma Cline

82 reviews

cboll's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad fast-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

samflowerv6's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

gritty and disturbing which is what the author was going for. accurate representation of attention seeking behaviors in young girls and how that can impact their relationships with men.

“That was part of being a girl--you were resigned to whatever feedback you'd get. If you got mad, you were crazy, and if you didn't react, you were a bitch. The only thing you could do was smile from the corner they'd backed you into. Implicate yourself in the joke even if the joke was always on you.” 

“That was our mistake, I think. One of many mistakes. To believe that boys were acting with a logic that we could someday understand. To believe that their actions had any meaning beyond thoughtless impulse. We were like conspiracy theorists, seeing portent and intention in every detail, wishing desperately that we mattered enough to be the object of planning and speculation. But they were just boys. Silly and young and straightforward; they weren't hiding anything.” 

“So much of desire, at that age, was a willful act. Trying so hard to slur the rough, disappointing edges of boys into the shape of someone we could love. We spoke of our desperate need for them with rote and familiar words, like we were reading lines from a play. Later I would see this: how impersonal and grasping our love was, pinging around the universe, hoping for a host to give form to our wishes.” 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Death, Drug use, Hate crime, Torture, Violence, and Murder

Children in bad living conditions was so bad

gigizerlotti's review against another edition

dark reflective 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

3.25

very okay book. i enjoyed the setting and time lines, but not the most interesting or profound book. very teenage. enjoyable read because language is very simple, but not memorable or impressive in any way. would recommend to non readers or something like that. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Drug use, Rape, Murder, and Sexual harassment

anb2300's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, and Toxic friendship

beanith's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad 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

2.0

A seven figure advance on a book where nothing happens in the most excruciatingly boring way possible. I can't scrub this pretentiousness away.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Sexual violence

lamplight's review against another edition

i was kind of lukewarm on this book excited to get to the good parts but then had to encounter an extremely graphic scene of child sexual abuse and now i really don't want to read anymore.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

harperhoney's review against another edition

Honestly it grossed me out to listen to these sort of passé/nostalgic descriptions of pedophilia and child sexual abuse. Fictionalized and told from the perspective of the victim in hindsight after 30-40 years. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Trafficking, and Murder

bri_fabiano's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-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? It's complicated

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Rape, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Child abuse

lavieenrose's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-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

1.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol

saowahreads's review against another edition

dark 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? It's complicated

4.75

i thought this was a really good easy beach read. knew about the manson family prior so it was interesting to see emma cline build on the existing murders. i enjoyed the author’s writing style i thought it was really easy to read and understand. in conclusion i really enjoyed this book  

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Drug use, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Drug abuse, and Alcohol

Minor: Child abuse, Child death, and Blood