Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

41 reviews

hsieh's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

Kingsolver writes a masterpiece here, a pointed critique of how capitalism fails America and its poorest, through the lens of the struggles of its foster children, the opioid crisis, and how so many people stereotype the rural people of America's forgotten heartland. But Kingsolver is never piteous, never condescending: her characters seek only to be met face to face, understood as full people.

Speaking of, Kingsolver writes characters that could jump off the pages. I cherish, hate and mourn for them like they're my own friends. They're so real I had to double check this wasn't an autobiography. I feel empty now without them.

One of the things I appreciate most about this book, however, is that it never feels like tragedy porn -- a trap I felt books like "A Little Life" sometimes fell into. Each tragedy is crushing, but not without hope; there's always characters on the margins rooting for the protagonist, and his community, to succeed. I only wish their analogues in real life could find the same support.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Racism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

Moderate: Ableism, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Abortion, and Murder

macykey's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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

4.25

This book was excellent. The writing was gorgeous, the story was engrossing. I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but the writing style seemed to change as Demon got older. It made me think the writing was reflecting his aging, which I thought was smart. There were a couple things that didn’t sit right with me or rubbed me the wrong way. I felt the ending was wrapped up too quickly. I saw the interpersonal development coming, but I wish it’d been done sooner. I also felt that some of the traumatic things that happened to Demon were a little more detailed than necessary. And I get people having nicknames, but sometimes they all just got lost in the story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Murder, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Miscarriage, Suicide, Car accident, and Abortion

zoinkie's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Violence, Trafficking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

miaaa_lenaaa's review

dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

‘To be here was to be known.’

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Classism

ouireads's review against another edition

dark reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

superdaintycate's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

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

4.0

This is beautifully written and ultimately a poignant story. That said, it's incredibly painful to read a lot of the naked, laid bare depth of trauma experienced by all of the characters. If you can read with a knot in your gut for pretty much the entire book, definitely do it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Death of parent, Murder, and Abandonment

elizapease's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective 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? Yes

5.0

Barbara Kingsolver's empathetic and insightful writing about the south, appalachia,  and class divides has yet to disappoint. Demon Copperhead is a deeply poignant, touching, and rich story centered around the foster care system, addiction, and poverty. I was blown away by the way Demon, the main character, was written, and I have yet to read any book with such incredible character development. His childlike, inquisitive nature at the beginning of the book gradually evolves as Demon faces trauma, becomes a pre-teen, experiences loss, goes to high school, undergoes addiction, and continues to evolve into his adulthood. This is the some of the most dynamic writing I have ever read. I fell in love with Demon’s character, and felt like I personally knew and grew up alongside him. I found myself laughing aloud at his snarky and mischievous comments, cheering for his wins, and crying (more like violently sobbing) over his losses. If you are not familiar with Appalachian culture, as I am not, you will appreciate this profound and empathetic look at a part of this country that is often overlooked. In it’s essence, this is a book about humanity. This book, and Demon’s character, will stay with me forever. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

pigeon_'s review

emotional 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Racism, Violence, Murder, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Homophobia and Abortion

tigertheory's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

5.0

A really tough read but worth it. Sucks you right in, punches you in the gut and throws you out on the other side with a whole new set of emotions. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Dementia, and Gaslighting

Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Trafficking, Outing, Sexual harassment, and War

bookishpower's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Murder, and Sexual harassment