Reviews tagging 'Body shaming'

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid

98 reviews

emmague89's review

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

lindseyrenee's review

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Pedophilia, Blood, Cannibalism, and Alcohol

fi_reads_books's review

challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

4.5

I loved this book. PLEASE check the content warnings before you read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Eating disorder, Gore, Vomit, Cannibalism, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Xenophobia

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

savvy999's review

challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.25

With grotesque, lush imagery and a twist that sends stones to the bottom of your stomach, Juniper and Thorn manages to grip the reader tightly and pull them into the depths, compiling a cornucopia of trauma but with a powerfully executed and emotional ending. Not for the faint of heart. Please read the content warnings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

lybrarie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This was one of my most anticipated books this year, and it definitely didn’t disappoint. I really enjoyed reading this book, as much as you can enjoy a book about abuse. It was horrific and dark and gruesome but I am very glad I have read it. I continue to love Ava Reid’s writing and I am very excited to see more from her. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Vomit, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

carigillette's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Gore, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Vomit, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual harassment

rebeccajost's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

fromjuliereads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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

**Thank you to HarperCollins Canada for an advanced e-copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.**

I felt so unsure reading this book but I ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would - if enjoy is even the right word. I have so many thoughts and it will be difficult to put them into words. But I flew through this book so much faster than I thought I could!

This book was a mash up of so many things - horror, slight body horror, influence from gothic romance, and Brothers Grimm classic fairytales. And it somehow worked so incredibly well to bring this story together!
The characters were so well written - realistically flawed and some are so realistically evil. While I saw one twist coming, the reveal was done so well. And the other twists were fantastic. As things kept unravelling, I was completely on the edge of my seat waiting to see how things would end up for the characters. The ending was realistic and everything I wanted from the ending of this kind of novel.

I don't think this could really be compared to anything or recommended based on someone liking a specific genre, but it is such a unique and interesting read from anything else I have read recently. If the premise entices you, I highly recommend checking it out - but read all of the trigger warnings first!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, and Grief

There are paragraphs detailing a dream where a character harms themself;

Cannibalism is in the story in terms of characters dying and other characters eating their organs