Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage

31 reviews

lucyyybee's review

medium-paced

2.5

Super disappointed in this book. The title, reviews and cover art really convinced me this would be good. I can’t imagine someone actually finding this book horrifying or thrilling. Several times I believed the book was finally getting creepy but it always went back to underwhelming. “You’ll be desperate to discuss the ending once you’ve recovered from the shock of it.” WHAT? I was shocked at how boring it was. I was hoping the end would have a major twist or insane explanation of the rest of the book. Don’t judge a book by its cover, this is truly the definition of anticlimactic. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Emotional abuse, Blood, Violence, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, and Mental illness

amaranth_wytch's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Medical content, Mental illness, Chronic illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Self harm, Sexual content, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Grief, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Cursing, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Child abuse

khowey's review against another edition

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Incest

mlynn2004's review

challenging dark tense medium-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

1.5

If the author truly wants to continue writing horror, she is going to have to figure out how to reign in her overwhelming ableism. I think— I hope— what she was attempting to do is destabilize the reader’s sense of reality: an admittedly effective way to incite horror. But in actuality, the most horrifying about this book is the nagging concern that the author is either compassionless, uninformed or hell-bent on pathologizing a seemingly neurodivergent and obviously traumatized child. 

Under the circumstances of the plot, this could have been a challenging an honest look at parenting through generational trauma, but instead the author chooses to demonize a child that is clearly suffering, even while presenting good reason for that suffering. It is a baffling choice.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Ableism, and Blood

Moderate: Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child abuse

kirahaycock21's review

dark emotional sad tense medium-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

3.75

This book was a little slow for me… I had to stop about halfway through and read two other books, then come back to it. But it was a really interesting book; it had me questioning the main characters motives and mental stability. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Cursing, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Grief, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, Racial slurs, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Sexual violence, Alcohol, Confinement, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Vomit, Blood, Self harm, and Toxic relationship

theimposter's review against another edition

The mom’s preoccupation with her illness was triggering and the mental illness coring for the child was irritating as if Autism/BPD/RSD made her want to kill her mom

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Gaslighting, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Self harm

roxfoxreads89's review

dark emotional tense fast-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

2.5

Oddly enough, I hated the “psychopathic” child the least of all main characters. Suzette and her desperation for Alex was practically unbearable. Alex was just a gaslighting asshat. 

I was also annoyed by the psychologist diagnosing her with either “psychopathy” or “sociopathy” which are not an actual diagnosis. Anti-social personality disorder wasn’t even mentioned.

Maybe the point is that Suzette was just as bad. She also wanted Alex all to herself. Whatever Hannah’s issues, she got them from her. However, I was actually rooting for Hannah because Suzette was so irritating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Abandonment, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Sexual content and Child abuse

hazle_363's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

This book was compelling but I was anxious the whole time I read it

I didn’t like the open ending, I wanted to have Janna’s brain explored a bit more and a resolve to whether her and her mom would reconcile

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Excrement, Domestic abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Cursing, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Self harm, Blood, Violence, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Grief, Gore, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Body horror

ericaburns1's review

challenging dark emotional tense 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

3.0

Disappointing ending. Almost wish there was a sequel. Too many loose ends. Big drama and complicated feelings from both Suzette and Hanna kept me hooked and shocked. The book goes back and forth from mother’s to daughter’s pov. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Gaslighting, Grief, Chronic illness, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Blood, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cursing, and Medical content

Minor: Child abuse and Death

Mentions of possession/demons/witches

aliterarygoodtime's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense fast-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Mental illness, and Fire/Fire injury