Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

21 reviews

lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

4.0

I picked this up as a fun, classic read for Halloween this year.
"Frankenstein" is the classic story written by Mary Shelley. In an effort to find immortality, Dr. Victor Frankenstein spends his adolescence seeking education in the sciences. Once he reaches adulthood, he attempts his own experiments to bring something to life. When he succeeds, he is horrified by the abomination he created, and he runs away from it. Feeling abandoned and slighted by its creator, the monster seeks revenge, and causes havoc to Frankenstein's life.
This book really epitomizes the idea that monsters are created, not born. The monster in this novel did not want to kill or cause harm, and it initially attempted to help the people it encountered. Only after the people realized what he looked like, did they become scared of the monster and run away. At its core, the monster had a good heart, but the world turned its back on it.
Even after Frankenstein saw the destruction the monster caused, he did not do enough to appease the monster. The monster wanted a woman companion and asked Frankenstein to create one for it. This only further highlights that the monster was just lonely. Sometimes it only takes one person to show kindness and change a person's entire perspective on life.
This was a very approachable classic, and fairly easy to read. I also think the themes and lessons it presents are elements that today's world needs a refresher on.
I highly recommend this novel, especially this time of year! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child death, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Murder

laurenkgrace's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Murder, Medical content, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, and Abandonment

Moderate: Grief, Classism, Child death, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Blood, and Violence

akane_readsyt's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad fast-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Murder, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Grief, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child death, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Confinement, Body horror, Stalking, Gore, Blood, Incest, and Suicide

Minor: Animal death

leeyongjin's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Child death, and Medical content

lucinotlucy's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Death, Grief, Murder, Mental illness, Stalking, Abandonment, Child death, and Violence

kristinetp's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

Would I read it again? No. HOWEVER.....

 The themes of this book really stick with me. Reading through Victor's and the creatures relationship knowing that it is reflective of the struggle of motherhood made it a much more interesting read. I think there is a lot to take away about struggling with regret and resentment as a parent figure, specifically as a mother figure. There is a lot to take away about being the offspring in that kind of dynamic. Mary Shelley was really ahead of her time for exploring these themes and especially in this way, being the catalyst for science fiction as a genre, which has become male dominated. 

Good vs Evil is another theme that felt prevalent to me as well. Are people inherently good or evil? Are people born wicked or do they have wicked thrust upon them? 

There were a lot of things I liked and a lot of things I didn't like. I think some things were really dragged out, but I can see how playing the long game like that really gives in to the fact that depression can be all consuming.

Overall, I'm glad to have revisited this book and to find that I still really resonate with the themes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Toxic relationship, Grief, Mental illness, Death, and Suicidal thoughts

ilmariel's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Gore, Abandonment, Body horror, Death, Classism, Emotional abuse, Grief, Medical content, Murder, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

ran_sophia's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? N/A

2.0

After reading the book, I didn't know exactly what to think about it. There is a good style of writing and storytelling. But that's all. The characters have no development and the story is only half captivating. I didn't feel interested in the story or the characters at all. That it was supposed to be a Gothic novel, so I expected it to be scary in some way. But that was not the case at all. The story dragged on, the narration was slow, and at times it seemed to be stuck.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Body horror, Abandonment, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Confinement, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Xenophobia, Violence, Incest, Racism, Toxic friendship, Murder, and Hate crime

Minor: Gun violence, Colonisation, and Child death

recycled_personalities's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny reflective 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

4.5

It was a pretty good novel and I do recommend that you read it. The plot was a lot more complicated than I anticipated but it was still a good read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Medical content, Physical abuse, Suicide, Grief, Incest, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Toxic friendship, Murder, and Suicidal thoughts

emmagreenwood's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence