Reviews tagging 'Rape'

House of Salt And Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

8 reviews

kotletka_polina's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

That was a pretty wild run. 
It was a bit slow in the beginning but as the story progressed it grew on me and the last 150 pages I read in one sitting. 
I think the world building lacked explanation so it was a little confusing. A huge part of the plot is a mystery and I believe the reader should also be able to guess the twist while reading; however I don’t think it’s possible to fully guess it here because of the confusing world building and lack of complete information.
But I liked this book a lot. It felt like fever dream in the best way possible and I fell in love with the love interest. The second half of the book was really intense and it was hard to put down the book. 
Not sure what to expect from the sequel. I’m excited but also kinda scared.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Rape, Miscarriage, Child death, Classism, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Minor: Blood and Vomit

lizzie_beth98's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Gore, Murder, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Grief, Pregnancy, and Death

Moderate: Miscarriage, Rape, Infidelity, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Vomit, Alcohol, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Medical content

nevaraven's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

There's nothing quite insane as this book. I thought it was just an ordinary fantasy, fairytale retelling but then things got WILD. It's so crazy and random that it makes sense. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gore, Body horror, Death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Animal death

Minor: Sexual content and Rape

This is not a book to read if you suffer from paranoia or derealization. The mc is made to doubt reality and overall being driven to madness is a major theme in the book.

tays_books's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Blood, Death, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Grief, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Death of parent, Self harm, and Miscarriage

Minor: Domestic abuse, Vomit, Rape, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Adult/minor relationship

ahaugen23's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.5

It is dark - I mean you can probably tell from “sorrows” in the title that it will be sad, but it also gets kinda gross and def needs a TW for sexual assault. The world is great, and the mystery is well crafted.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Murder, Pregnancy, Violence, Body horror, Child death, Grief, and Vomit

Moderate: Rape

econcomics's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad fast-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

4.75

Really good, but really sad and emotional book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Terminal illness, Torture, and Violence

jojo_'s review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pregnancy, Blood, Gore, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content

slimy's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-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

2.25

I feel like this book is just so close to being a great YA fantasy that I would have loved at 12/13. There’s one scene that I talk about below that is SERIOUSLY out of place, but mostly this book felt unfocused and scattered.
There’s a romance that’s supposed to grab your interest in the early chapters that just disappears halfway into the book when a new romantic interest is introduced. There’s no explanation to this world’s government structure and thusly the MC’s family’s place in it. It’s an underdeveloped mystery that doesn’t really get resolved or avenged. The bad stuff happens, and then the people who did the bad things just… go back to where they came from… with no punishment, accountability, or remorse. 

There are some really cute parts that I think reflect the sweeter, lighter side of YA, like innocent romances and the relationships between sisters. The MC is very relatable and reflects her age well.

I would place this book firmly in YA, with the exception of one seriously out of place scene that I don’t believe is age appropriate or fits the book.
* TW r@p£ and SA*
There’s one scene at the end, which marks the final climactic push before we wind into falling action. The stepmother (uncharacteristically and unconvincingly) has a change of heart and tries to undo a deal she’s wagered with a demon/devil (he’s confusing, I don’t know). The way that she makes this deal is by offering up herself to be pretty brutally raped in front of her two eldest step-daughters. The demon/devil then LITERALLY rapes her into a pile of bones. When I read this scene I literally had to take like 10 minutes to understand what was actually happening. Literally no precedence for this sort of content within this book or with its intended audience. Really really out of place. That should have been caught by content editors, beta readers, etc. It does not have a place in the book and only serves to shock/alarm the reader without furthering the plot or providing resolution. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Rape, and Murder