Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

JOHN DIES AT THE END by Jason Pargin

17 reviews

simplythegirl's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious tense

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

2.75

Definitely  hasn't  aged well. The racist slurs are really off putting I know it was a different  time back in 2007 but it's still uncomfortable especially  since I listened to the audiobook. The book is really tense and the descriptions are great. I do wish there were more female characters it's  pretty lame the women get shafted. I really love the funny moments but I think the characters are overdone and stereotypical. Is that the point? The characters are like stereotypical white guys. It's also off putting that the african american people get shafted too. Not to mention the only presumanly latina character is hypersexualized

and thrown away never to be seen again when romance with a main character doesn't work out.

. Robert one of the few African American characters is the stereotypical drug dealer type and

who is involved with ending the world and "Morgan Freeman" an African American detective/cop of course dies early on.  Then a journalist dies. The only survivors are the white characters obviously.  Yes lots of characters die in general but not even one survivor is a person of color? Come on

One of the characters was in the special education  class and casually called the r word repeatedly. Her health is made fun of too. Women are higly sexualized with little to no personality. 
The representation in this book is terrible. Some good things in the book but it is definitely annoying and gross.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gun violence, and Violence

Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Cursing, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder

acwhite's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious 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

3.75

I first read this book around 2010 & had fond memories of the thrilling fever dream it is. So revisiting it in 2022 I was surprised to find my brain had edited out some choice language. I had no recollection of the excessive use of r*tard and occasional drops of the n word and f*g. Some of this language can be attributed to the book starting as a blog in the early 2000s but it still put a slight stain on the reread for me. 

I’m rating it so middling for the aforementioned language but also because the pacing was rough. Again I think we can blame the blog origins, the whole business seems like three novellas in a trench coat masquerading as a full novel. But I still came out the end having enjoyed it. 

The last third is the strongest part of the book in my opinion, Amy is a crucial character and “David” having a slightly different tone improved things. 

I have the whole quartet and do intend to read them all. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gore, Racial slurs, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Mental illness, Car accident, and Death of parent

Minor: Rape and Sexual assault

jaydoncornell's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny lighthearted reflective fast-paced

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

2.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Outing, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racism, Abandonment, and Alcohol

entityj's review against another edition

dark funny fast-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? It's complicated

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Excrement

Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Islamophobia, and Alcohol

jstatt's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny fast-paced

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

3.5

This book is simultaneously hilarious and scary. Before reading this I didn't think that someone could mix Lovecraftian Horror and comedy and it come out good, but hey, it works. I highly recommend this if you enjoy a bit of laughs with your horror. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Racial slurs and Dysphoria

remie's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny reflective fast-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? It's complicated

0.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, and Injury/Injury detail

vsnuffles's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious sad fast-paced

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

4.0

I picked this up and didn't get super into it but my brain is like that sometimes. It's generally not an indicator of whether or not I like a book. But I got back into it and really loved it! Real life got in the way a bit but I finally finished it this morning.

This will date the review a bit but there is something deeply cathartic about reading cosmic horror when Omicron is rearing its ugly head and the powers-that-be in our own governments are failing us in sometimes minor and sometimes major ways. Just the huge complexity of these systems is a kind of cosmic horror. At least we aren't dealing with the (all-too-often literal) shit they have to in this book though.

Glad I read it. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, and Excrement

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Mental illness, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , War, and Injury/Injury detail