Reviews tagging 'Chronic illness'

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

7 reviews

bearybooky's review

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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

4.0

Great storytelling. Difficult subject matter. I felt satisfied with the redemption. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Antisemitism, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Death of parent, Terminal illness, War, Fire/Fire injury, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Grief, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, Sexual content, Violence, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Hate crime, Racism, Alcohol, Blood, Chronic illness, Pedophilia, and Rape

louisekf's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

 I’m a big fan of William Kent Krueger’s Cork O’Connor series, but for some reason, I hadn’t read one of his standalone novels until now. The River We Remember has us back in 1958 in a small town in southern Minnesota. 

 

When a local man is found dead in the local river, it sets off a chain of events. Lots of people had good reason to dislike Jimmy Quinn, a wealthy landowner, so there are plenty of possible suspects. However, one man is the focus of much of the suspicion, Noah Bluestone, a Native American, who also had the temerity to bring home a Japanese wife at the end of World War II. So there’s plenty of racism and prejudice among the townsfolk. Sheriff Brody Dern tries to keep things under control. He’s a war hero with dark secrets that he keeps inside. Krueger writes great characters, including the two already mentioned, a woman lawyer, a newspaper man, the diner owner and her young teen son, and more. Over the course of the book, secrets and personal histories come to light. 

 

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read a review copy of this book, although I was rather late to it. I bounced between the ARC and the published audiobook, courtesy of my public library. The narrator, C.J. Wilson, did a terrific job with the various voices and accents. All opinions are my own. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Murder, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Grief, Death, and Racism

Minor: Alcohol, Chronic illness, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, and Animal cruelty

amandalachelle's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Grief, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Animal death, Sexual content, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Infidelity, Murder, Rape, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Incest, Torture, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, Gun violence, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Suicide, and War

shawnna_reads2's review against another edition

mysterious sad tense slow-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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Violence, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Child abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, and Sexual assault

kimveach's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I should have loved this book.  And according to Goodreads, many people have.  This book has everything I look for in a literary mystery - compelling themes, interesting characters, dilemmas with no easy solution, etc.  However, I found myself feeling like reading it was a chore.  I can't explain it, and I expect most people to enjoy it.  However, I won't be reading more from this author.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Blood, Chronic illness, Death, Dysphoria, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Confinement, Alcoholism, Bullying, Colonisation, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Vomit, Child abuse, Death of parent, Gore, Hate crime, Medical content, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Violence, War, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Incest, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Addiction, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Medical trauma, and Mental illness

noladawnreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Gun violence

Moderate: Incest, Rape, Infidelity, and Violence

Minor: Animal cruelty, Adult/minor relationship, and Chronic illness

serendipitysbooks's review

emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

 The River We Remember is a literary historical mystery, which opens on Decoration Day (the former name of Memorial Day) in 1958 when the body of Jimmy Quinn, a wealthy landowner, is discovered in the Alabaster River.

The book features so many elements which I have come to expect from William Kent Krueger.

The natural environment of Minnesota features strongly and is lovingly depicted.

There is an indigenous character, indigenous beliefs and knowledge are valued and given space, and the wrongs done to indigenous communities recognised and acknowledged. Some characters do exhibit racial prejudice and hate but the protagonist and other characters push back against it.

The male protagonist has a strong moral centre and hews close to traditional values. He may have his flaws and regrets and be battling demons but he tries hard to be loyal and fair, to be upstanding and to do the right thing.

Krueger’s writing is too-notch as always. He can do quiet contemplative scenes as well as faster paced, action-packed ones. He drops in plenty of foreshadowing to keep the reader turning pages to find out exactly what is going to happen. He excels at nuance and compassion, particularly when it comes to his characters. In this book war-related PTSD features prominently.

Small town community vibes are captured perfectly. There are lots of decent caring people in Jewel but the town also a darker side, and that isn’t neglected. There are definite trigger warnings and Storygraph is a great place to check them out before reading.

It seems William Kent Krueger can do no wrong in my eyes. I’ve loved everything I’ve read from him so far and this book was no exception.
 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Racism, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Child abuse and Rape

Minor: Chronic illness