Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing by Eimear McBride

11 reviews

afranke2016's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

The book was great. The writing can be difficult to read at times. The plot wasn't my cup of tea but I see why people like it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Death, Cancer, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Rape, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Infidelity, Incest, Homophobia, Grief, and Child abuse

leilorenzo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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? Yes

4.75

This is the most heartbreaking book I've ever read.
It is also necessary.
It's difficult to call it beautiful when it took so long to get through given the dmany breaks needed scattered throughout in order to... You know, still feel ok.
The narration is from the girl's perspective, some kind of "stream of thought", except it is full of breaking points, repetitions and quite nonsensical, so the girl's stream of thought is something else entirely, and it reflects, I believe, how broken she feels.
It is a trigger warning in itself, so be mindful of that. Very graphic many times.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Cancer, Sexual harassment, Child death, Violence, Terminal illness, Blood, Rape, Physical abuse, and Death

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Grief, and Suicide

ezravarley's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.0

listen to the audiobook!!!! i struggle to read prose that’s broken up and styled in the way this book is, so listening to it gave me the full harrowing devastating experience of taking in this story. absolutely crushing story of abuse. don’t expect to finish this and feel good! that’s my cup of tea though and i loved how irish it was so good rating from me 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicide, Bullying, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Medical trauma, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Grief, Incest, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, and Vomit

_rowan_'s review

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Ableism, Addiction, Bullying, Gore, Incest, Cancer, Rape, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Medical content, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Infidelity, Suicide, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, and Violence

hannah_bookworm's review

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Grief, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Death, Rape, Sexual violence, Medical trauma, Alcohol, and Vomit

frank_patrol's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.25

it took me 2 months to read this book, i had a reading slump half way through it, but it’s also quite difficult to read, not impossible and like you get the main point of each part but it may take a while to actually realise what’s going on 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Rape, Grief, Sexual content, and Sexual assault

chiara_dose's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Body horror, Sexual assault, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

and_abigail's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

unrateable. very sad and depressing and dark dark dark but well written?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Incest, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

tabitha_isabelle's review

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Medical content, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

richthegreat's review

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Okay, wow. Firstly the book is insanely well written, think stream of consciousness in Irish. It is quite a challenge and I think Eimear is clearly a gifted writer. 
I love stream of consciousness writing, and for me this book did not disappoint, her writing is absolutely stunning, but you have to like that sort of thing. If you can't manage Woolf, or Joyce then don't bother here, as McBride is even more.
That is where my praise ends, this book is pure violence and I would have never read it had I known. There is so much rape, and hate and incest and trauma. The book is trauma, only read it if you are prepared. I have nothing to say that is positive about the plot it is essentially just trauma being passively and actively inflicted on the main character, by herself, others and the catholic church.

For me I can't separate the content from the stunning prose, I found the book so triggering and upsetting that no amount of excellent writing can make up for it. I cannot emphasise enough that you MUST be extremely careful if you undertake to read this book.

Personally if I never read another book about a person getting abused and then engaging in horrendous self hate I will be just fine. I know this stuff happens, and I understand the human capacity to inflict pain on ourselves and others, but I can't read about it anymore, not on this scale. 
I am happy to be challenged on my view of this, I appreciate as a man I may not understand the full authenticity of the lead characters emotions.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Rape, Self harm, Child abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Grief, and Incest