Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

How to Kill Your Family: A Novel by Bella Mackie

31 reviews

stindex's review against another edition

lighthearted slow-paced

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

1.0

The author makes me sad. They’ve apparently tried to push all the things they hate into this book and it just makes this feel like a boomer whining about basically everything. For a ”feminist” main character the mc sure spent a lot of time hating on women in a very pick me -girlish style. Body shaming was also very present whenever describing anyone else but the mc or their love interest. The premise was great but the book is an absolute train wreck from the start.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Stalking, Sexual content, Abandonment, Sexism, Misogyny, Death of parent, Infidelity, Fatphobia, Death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Bullying, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Torture, Confinement, Car accident, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Grief, and Terminal illness

esv_'s review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Abandonment, Murder, Death of parent, and Child death

Moderate: Cursing, Classism, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Cancer, Violence, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Terminal illness, Infidelity, and Blood

Minor: Stalking, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Eating disorder, Sexism, Suicide, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Incest, and Mental illness

ursa_arlo's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

2.5

What irritates me most about this novel is that Grace has very little she fights for, except the death of her family. She hates everything equally, bringing everything and everyone down around her with overdone sarcasm that makes it hard to get a read on what she does care about. If you stand for nothing, what will you fall for? It makes her an intolerable MC and not in a 'character you love to hate' way. 

I did enjoy the first half of the book; it was interesting to read about how the murders took place, but there was no clear message to the book. Clearly, it was a not a feminist statement, nor did it make a clear statement about Grace becoming more like her father than she'd wanted. Although, I did not mind the twist as much, it was badly foreshadowed and muddied the message of the book even further. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Body shaming, Sexual content, Death, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Misogyny, Car accident, and Abandonment

Moderate: Grief, Eating disorder, Alcohol, Infidelity, Drug use, Drug abuse, Confinement, and Alcoholism

Minor: Miscarriage

junglejelly's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

The beginning and end of the book are great but I found the middle to be formulaic with the same structure

this is how I killed X member of the family

. I enjoyed the start and finale immensely with the writing being so captivating and entertaining.

The ending is definitely a satisfying one and one I will remember for a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Terminal illness

Minor: Sexism, Fatphobia, Bullying, Drug use, and Infidelity

eleanorryd's review against another edition

dark funny reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Really enjoyed this until the last 50 pages or so. Was so ready for it to be a 4,5 star read but the ending really ruined it for me. I don't know what I was hoping for or expecting but certainly not this. Semi-spoiler but the ending gives

the low-key lazy "I opened my eyes and realised it was all a dream"

vibes.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Stalking, Murder, and Violence

Minor: Eating disorder, Alcoholism, Drug use, Sexism, Alcohol, Cancer, and Injury/Injury detail

taleofabibliophile's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual content, Cursing, and Death

Moderate: Classism, Sexism, Cancer, Infidelity, Misogyny, Drug use, and Eating disorder

Minor: Domestic abuse, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual harassment

robin_reads's review against another edition

dark funny tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated

3.0

The first third was really good, the next part dragged on forever and the last bit was pretty interesting and a plot twist I didn't quite expect.
Pretty sure the ending is left this vague because there will be a sequel? Who knows.

The audiobook narrator for Grace's part made me furious at times. They would take a breath or swallow in the middle of the sentence, take odd breaks and so on. It was really annoying. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Violence, Murder, and Child death

Moderate: Gaslighting, Sexism, Eating disorder, Torture, and Terminal illness

holliesatchell's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Abandonment, Alcohol, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Incest, Sexual content, Death of parent, Drug use, Murder, Grief, Misogyny, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Violence

crows_in_a_trenchcoat's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

1.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Incest and Sexism

yafi's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Death, Cursing, Murder, and Confinement

Moderate: Abandonment, Grief, Misogyny, Blood, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Cancer, Car accident, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexism, and Toxic relationship