Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield

26 reviews

jmitchell20's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

Slow to start. Plot doesn't really pick up until half way through. Then the separate threads start to intertwine and it gets more interesting. Bit of magical realism too which I enjoyed. 
 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Grief, and Child death

yaizacanopoli's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Child death, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Sexism, Animal death, Misogyny, and Alcohol

Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

pumpkinpie4me's review

3.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Racism, and Rape

peytonktracy's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book is about story telling and rivers. And it truly does feel like you are being told a story, from the minute you start, it feels like you just curl up to listen. And just like when you are being told a story, sometimes it meanders like a river does and you might wonder where it’s headed or why it curves like this, but you always find where it’s going. And the ending is so immensely satisfying in every way. I loved the characters and how well developed they all were, I loved exploring their reactions to several key plot elements over time, and seeing how their stories connected and blended and diverged and moved. This was absolutely masterful and I loved it to pieces.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Blood, Domestic abuse, Rape, Violence, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Alcohol, and Bullying

This book centers around multiple parents and their relationships to children and the losses or changes in those relationships - it is truly what this hinged upon. Several sets of parents lose a children in several of the narratives, so that’s my big warning. Everything else is in passing in the narratives and not at the focus and very rarely described in great detail.

abattleofmice's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious relaxing slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Physical abuse and Sexual assault

evanslikestoread's review

adventurous mysterious slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Racism, and Physical abuse

Minor: Rape

booksandmo's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Stalking

jenn_bookstitcher's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

k_bb's review

mysterious 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? No

2.5

Although the book had potential, it was generally long-winded and overdone. The climax was synthetic considering how long the book built up to it. The denouement was excessive and there was at least one chapter too many. There were many problematic references to "river-gypsies" that I hoped would resolve themselves in some way with the author explicitly revealing the ignorance and discrimination of the term, but it was never addressed. Not really worth the read, in my opinion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Child death and Kidnapping

Minor: Rape

lizzie24601's review

adventurous mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Kidnapping

Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Murder, and Physical abuse

Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Violence