Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

8 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. 

---

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

kimreads14's review

emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

2.5

Unfortunately, this wasn’t a great match 🫤 while I can understand the appeal of this book for some, it didn’t work out for me. 

Here are a few reasons why: 
- Sheriff Brody: I thought he was the least interesting character of them all, and he’s pretty much the leading “voice”. There are a few narrators in the book, but Brody’s voice is the one that comes up the most often. 
The books concentrate on the idea that everyone has secrets and that these secrets are likely to come and bite you in the “derrière”.  Yet, Brody’s main secret

his affair with his SISTER IN LAW

is discovered by Evangeline and… well nothing happens??? I mean seriously? I get that Evangeline herself has a big secret but… yeah no I’m sorry it doesn’t work for me

- The pacing: jeez was this book long… I even have a progress note that says “Things are happening and yet it feels like nothing is happening.” I only thought the pacing improved when Charlie took over part of the narration.

Honestly, the only reason I kept going with this book was Charlie and her chapters. Scott’s were ok but Charlie was the real start in this book. 

A few points to explain why I still gave it 2.5 ⭐️:
- Charlie: see above
- The fact that regardless of pacing and my hate for Brody this book still offers a good setting and discussion of American society in the 50s and the state of mind regarding the fall out of the two World Wars. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Incest, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Mental illness, Murder, Racism, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Death, Alcoholism, Cursing, Pedophilia, Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, War, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Violence

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

---

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

astoriareader's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

SYNOPSIS

• It is Memorial Day 1958 in Black Earth County in Jewel, Minnesota. Jimmy Quinn, a wealthy landowner, is found dead in the Alabaster River with a shotgun wound. 
• Sheriff Brody Dern is investigating. Before an autopsy is done, the town’s residents are already assuming the Quinn was killed by Noah Bluestone, a local Dakota Sioux Indian. Noah is also married to Kyoko, a Ngasaki native.

MY THOUGHTS

• This is my first novel by Krueger, and I hope to read more by him. He’s very talented. 
• There are a lot of characters, and I did find it hard to keep them all straight in the first half of the book.
• Many tough topics are discussed in this book. I would recommend checking out trigger warnings.
• Krueger shows the strong prejudice and racism against Noah & Kyoko, as well as the hatred among the community from WWII against Asians.
• This is a slow burn with complex characters & dysfunctional families. Historical fiction. Starts maybe a little slowly, but picks up about a third of the way.
• Also, I loved the addition of Hector and Fuji 🐶🐶

TL;DR: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️historical fiction. complex characters + dysfunctional families. check out trigger warnings, as this covers some tough subjects.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Racism, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Incest, Death, Racial slurs, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, War, and Cursing

Minor: Cancer, Suicidal thoughts, Animal cruelty, Pregnancy, Infidelity, Infertility, Vomit, and Terminal illness

laheath's review

emotional mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

Tragic story of murder in a small town with beautifully written descriptions, flawed characters, and subplots that don't detract from the main plot.  The unfortunate prejudice of post-WWII Americans is prevalent.  There were so many characters battling their own demons, but they were easy to keep track of since they were so interesting.  A tense mystery with several twists.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Racism, Sexual violence, and Death

Minor: Suicide attempt, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Rape, Incest, and War

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.

---

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

brittonmc1221's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Colonisation, Gun violence, Terminal illness, War, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicide attempt

awebofstories's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Murder, Racism, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Blood, Death, Sexual assault, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Animal cruelty, War, and Infidelity