Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Cilka's Journey by Heather Morris

11 reviews

junoxx's review against another edition

dark sad 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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Rape, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Antisemitism, Xenophobia, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide attempt, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy

mightyfrenchbookworm's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-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? No

2.75

Je me sentirais mal de dénigrer un roman FICTIF inspiré d'un personnage réel sur le terrible vécu des gens ayant été emprisonnés dans les gulags. La trame de fond était intéressante. Ceci dit, l'écriture de l'autrice était très mid. En écriture on entend souvent parler de "show, don't tell". À mon avis, l'autrice, bien qu'elle ait parlé de désespoir, n'a pas su me faire ressentir ce désespoir dans ses écrits. Certains éléments étaient "garochés" et aurait pu être nettement mieux développés. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Medical content, Rape, Blood, Deportation, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Murder, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Infertility

monarchkisses's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring medium-paced

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

3.5

the main character grapples with a lot of moral quandaries surrounding what they had to do to survive. the story shows them carrying that guilt while still finding ways to move forward. i think many of us carry guilt in the way cilka does. over things we can’t change and maybe we had to do them to survive but still struggle to accept. i found the story very moving because of this relationship to grief and shame, and also there is just so much love between the people in this book. it made me cry like a little baby at many a part. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Rape, Xenophobia, War, and Injury/Injury detail

noomlum's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Medical content, Pregnancy, Rape, War, Physical abuse, and Suicide attempt

dayingst's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Slavery, Violence, Grief, Rape, Hate crime, Medical content, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death

dwjnv's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, War, Murder, Sexual harassment, Torture, and Toxic friendship

tinytrashqueen's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Suicide attempt, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Grief, Gore, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Death, Medical trauma, Blood, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Infertility, Hate crime, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Child death, Medical content, Body horror, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Police brutality, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, and Rape

bookish_bobbie's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Sexual assault, and War

Moderate: Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death

Minor: Addiction, Antisemitism, Confinement, and Miscarriage

bandysbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-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? No

4.0

I read the Tattooist of Auschwitz earlier this year and was impressed with it. Historical Fiction is one of my favorite genres, so when I saw that Heather Morris was writing the story of one of the side characters, Cilka, I knew I had to read it. I'm glad I did.

Cilka's Journey was brutal, more brutal than The Tattooist of Auschwitz if you can believe it. While the Tattooist centers on love and keeping hope alive, Cilka's Journey is more about the absolute depths humans will go to to survive atrocities. It is not at all an easy read, particularly as a woman, but understanding this type of history is necessary.

Possible Spoiler for The Tattooist & Cilka's Journey

 
Cilka is the victim of extreme sexual abuse and repeated rapes. In Auschwitz, she uses her beauty and wits to form a relationship with two high-ranking Nazis in the camps. She is derided by other prisoners for sleeping with the enemy, but in reality her choice is to be passed around and raped by all of the guards or to allow one or two of them to think she has a special relationship with them....and only have to tolerate one person raping her in trade for her safety and occasional favors for friends. She survives Auschwitz, but then is accused by the Russians of being a whore for the Nazis. She is then transported to a Russian Gulag in Siberia where she is to be punished. Again, she is faced with the choice of being raped by many guards, likely in violent manners or to accept rape by a single guard if she can form a relationship with him. She chooses the later and tricks a guard into falling in love with her. In all of these instances, it is clearly horrific for her, but the choice is black and white....accept violent gang rapes by whatever guard wants to have her or form a relationship with a single evil person and tolerate rape by him to ensure protection for oneself and ones friends. In looking into the historical person named Cilka, there were prisoner accounts that were quite mixed. Many people hated her for what they perceive as the choices she made, but many more talked about how she used her power over the Nazis and Russian guards to get extra food, medicine, and favorable treatment for some of the other prisoners. No one can be judged for the decisions that they have to make in these extraordinarily horrific circumstances and though you may think you'd never willingly sleep with an enemy, victims of rape who protect themselves in this way should not be judged. What Cilka survived is remarkable.

After finishing this book, I felt so many emotions that I don't know if I can adequately survive them. I never considered that there could be a worse thing than surviving a Nazi concentration camp...but this story makes it clear that the end of the Nazis wasn't a neat and tidy end for all of their victims. As with most historical fiction, I learned a bit more about a subject that I thought I was fairly well-versed in. 

All in all, this story is one of the hardest I've had to read, but it's also necessary. Sexual violence is unfortunately used over and over again as a tool of war. We must not keep silent about it. We must fight back against it and share these stories of brave, tough women who make it through.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Racial slurs, Rape, Child death, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Death, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and War

Extra Important: I've included every single trigger warning for sexual violence that is possible. Please, take them seriously. This book touches on a lot of horrific things, but is especially heavy on rape and sexual violence. If it is in anyway triggering for you, know that violent rape is actually portrayed on page.

lacey_wi's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Medical content, Murder, War, Violence, Sexual harassment, Excrement, Antisemitism, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Rape, Death of parent, Death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Genocide, and Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Drug use, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury