Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

A Crane Among Wolves by June Hur

19 reviews

bookscatcoffee's review

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

This book was way more than I anticipated in the best way possible.  I had to google so much, but I learned a great deal.  Through all of that, the author kept the plot moving at a brisk pace.  I loved the main characters!  And the writing is really good.  “You will not always be the wisest, nor the strongest, nor the bravest. That is why we need friends. They will guide you down the right path, no matter how dark it grows.“. Definitely good messages for our times as well.    “When one is able to differentiate good from evil, it is impossible to accept the way things are.”  Definitely worth reading!  5 stars 

Historical fiction set in Korea featuring Korean characters 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Physical abuse, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Rape

mysterymom40's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, and Murder

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Pedophilia, Self harm, and Pregnancy

kaneebli's review

dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Misogyny, Sexism, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

a1exander's review

adventurous slow-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: Death, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, and Pregnancy

filipateodoro's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

It was darker and more violent than what I had anticipated, which I liked. Basically, this was not a 5 star read because I didn't love the way descriptions were handled. In some scenes I felt a bit lost and had to go back to recap where things were taking place, or in what positon characters were in a room. I found that travel between locations got a bit awkward too, I didn't feel like the author was giving the reader a good sense of how far away/near the locales were (maybe a map would've helped?). This was probably done to keep the narrative tight and moving along, but it made it harder for me to be immersed in the story. If the writing had dedicated a bit more space to describing the settings, the story and world would have felt a lot more atmospheric and rich, and this would have benefited the mystery plot.

In any case, it was a good time and I'm probably going to be reading the author's other work. The nerd in me loved that the author included the bibliography she used for research at the end. I'll probably look at some of those in the future.

EDIT: Forgot to add that there were a lot of korean terms that I had to look up on Wikipedia, even as someone who consumes south korean media and entertainment, for example the names for different ranks/types of palace maids/servants. Would've REALLY appreciated it if a clarification on these had been accessible (Keep in mind I read this on an ereader).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Sexism, Murder, and Abandonment

Minor: Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, and Pregnancy

spellbindingtomes's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, and Classism

kenny_2288's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

I struggled to get into this book for the first 100 pages or so, but then it picked up and became more worth the read.
By the end, I enjoyed the journey of the two main characters, even if  it took me awhile to warm up to Iseul. 

I think the book struggled balancing the inner turmoil of its two main characters, the murder mystery, & coup storyline, so the story often felt imbalanced or awkwardly paced. Most of the time I felt like the murder mystery seemed rather unimportant in light of other things going on in the story, but the mystery itself could have used some more development.

Occasionally I felt like the story got bogged down in some nitty gritty historical facts or irrelevant characters who were only ever mentioned but not seen, and I think this problem would be fixed if the book was a bit longer and had more time to flesh these parts out. Similarly, the supporting characters were nice enough, but I wished I had gotten more time with them to explore their personalities and really care deeply about them. As is, they’re a bit flat, and one in particular, Woonsik, feels especially disappointing because he comes off as more of a spring board for plot/characterization motivation rather than a fully developed character in his own right (which is a shame, cause he does have a lot of heart to him). I just wish the book was able to accommodate a further dive into his character.

I grew to appreciate the romance of this story, but again, at first I struggled to buy into it in comparison to the incredibly pressing and dark subject matter of the rest of the story. However, romance didn’t ever seem over the top or too out of character and I was glad it remained rather limited as befitting of the rest of the story. This story is a historical fiction & drama book first, romance second, so if you’re hoping for a heavily romantic book, this ain’t it.


Overall, a good read and I’m glad I pushed through my lackluster impression at the beginning. This book is a good example of historical fiction that doesn’t shy away or dilute the horror of history. The story is often bleak but not without hope, and while it doesn’t necessarily have a “and they lived happily ever after ending,” I think it is better for the more realistic ending (which still felt satisfying).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

221bpinkst's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Minor: Cursing, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Blood, Stalking, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

amyteurhour's review

3.75

Content warning: murder, kidnapping, rape, torture, blood, violence, death of a parent, death of a child, physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexism, sexual violence, imprisonment, pregnancy, miscarriage, suicide, suicidal thoughts

There's a content warning list at the beginning of the book provided by the author which I appreciated. This is really dark. Maybe it's because I recently read Burial Rites by Hannah Kent, but I found myself getting similar vibes from the two. Things start out kind of slow, and I found Iseul to be a bit frustrating at first (but I think that was kind of Hur's point). 

If you're going to check this out, I'd recommend listening to the audiobook narrated by Greg Chun and Michelle H. Lee; I enjoyed their performances and listening helped me visualize what was happening. If you've watched historical k-dramas and are a fan of the political intrigue-y shows, then I think you would enjoy this book.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy

ciarazard's review

adventurous fast-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? No

3.5

I recently read this book in just 4-5 hours, losing sleep in the process. Despite my eagerness, however, I have a couple of qualms that prevented it from becoming the 4⭐ I initially predicted.

The characters lacked depth and development, making it difficult to care for them. I expected more from Iseul, our heroine who supposedly had a bad and spoiled personality growing up. Her character development felt forced and unsatisfactory, leaving me unconvinced that she was able to redeem herself. What did Daehyun, the prince, see in her? I certainly couldn't see anything. 

Suyeon, the kidnapped sister, also felt like a bland character. I wished the book had expounded more on their life before their parents died, showing Suyeon as the perfect daughter suffocating under societal expectations of women during the Joseon era. Confucianism placed men at the head of the family and society, relegating women to subordinate roles. Women were expected to follow their fathers, husbands, and sons without question, had no access to formal education or scholarly pursuits, and had very little say in choosing partners. I wanted the book to delve into these aspects more. I wanted Iseul to genuinely care about these issues, but it felt like she only started caring when it affected her personally. 

The latter part of the book, especially the buildup to the coup, was underwhelming. King Yeongsan, based on one of the worst tyrants in Korean history, started off scary and vicious. However, he was barely there halfway through the book, no lines, no viciousness left to him, leaving him practically useless. And the mystery part with the killer? The reveal was anti-climactic. What were all the murders with flowers for? The vengeance motive felt half-assed. 

The author relied heavily on telling rather than showing, which was frustrating given the rich historical backdrop. I couldn't help but want MORE from this story. It had so much potential, and that frustrated me SO MUCH.

That being said, A Crane Among Wolves is still a decent read. The fact that I couldn't put it down speaks volumes about its initial promise and the compelling idea at its core. 

However, the execution fell short, and what started as an engaging read sadly fizzled out by the end. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death, Physical abuse, and Rape