Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Meredith, Alone by Claire Alexander

11 reviews

savvyrosereads's review against another edition

challenging emotional 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

4.0

Thanks to Libro.fm and the publisher for providing me with a free audio copy!

Rating: 4/5 stars

Meredith has not left her house for over three years, but slowly begins to make progress on the journey to healing with the help of her friends.

This is extremely character-driven literary fiction, and I’m glad I read it on audio because that is usually my preferred format for that genre! I expected a meditation on mental health, and instead got one on friendship, sisterhood, and trauma…which is fine, but not exactly what the synopsis seems to suggest. That said, I found the characters really enjoyable, and Meredith’s journey was super poignant and beautiful. I was a bit frustrated because I kept wanting *more* from the book (though exactly what I can’t articulate)…but would still recommend to lit fic lovers in the mood for some very deep topics!

CW: Self harm; sexual assault; physical and emotional abuse; mental health/trauma generally

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Terminal illness, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Panic attacks/disorders

revengesrose's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Infidelity, Alcohol, Cancer, and Death of parent

sleeson's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad tense fast-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

I happened to come across this novel in a small bookshop by chance. The title intrigued me and the blurb on the back of the book sold me. Meredith is a beautiful, messy, and courageous character. The relationship with her mother carried a such a similar tone of the one I have with my mother. The way Mer tries to navigate her emotions, situations, and her interaction with people, is heartbreaking yet determined. Absolutely relatable. 
Claire Alexander wrote such a great novel. I want to share this book with others. Mild swearing. Mild sexual content. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Rape

mwhite0226's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Cancer, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Rape

brimcnull's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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

I had no idea what to expect when picking up this book. I chose it because the cover was beautiful and it had a cat on it. 

Meredith, Alone is a dual timeline novel that features a lovable character with significant trauma, anxiety, and depression. I believe the author handles the book with care and puts people in Meredith’s life to support her as she processes her trauma. 

Meredith hasn’t left her apartment for three years, but wants that to change. This book is a testament to how therapy, good friends , and a cat, can help bring healing one moment at a time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Rape, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Cancer and Alcohol

sam_h's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Miscarriage, Rape, and Mental illness

Moderate: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Self harm

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Cancer, Terminal illness, and Suicide attempt

drraytay's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Rape, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, and Bullying

Moderate: Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

Minor: Car accident and Cancer

dracovulpini's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Self harm, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, Bullying, Death of parent, Cancer, Physical abuse, and Cursing

brokenbodybitch's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Mental illness, Rape, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Cancer, Miscarriage, and Ableism

sarahannereadsbooks's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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? Yes

5.0

The protagonist is Meredith Maggs, a 39 year old Glaswegian who has not left her home in 1214 days. However, Meredith still functions rather well as long as she is in her own home. She keeps busy working from home, exercising, cooking/baking, completing jigsaw puzzles and has her cat Fred for company. Socially she communicates with an online support group, speaks to a psychologist weekly and she is regularly visited by her oldest friend Sadie and her two children 

Near the beginning of the book we get to witness Meredith's circle growing as she starts having weekly visits from Tom McDermot, who works with the Holding Hands Charity. She also develops a closer relationship with Celeste, one of the people she talks to in her online support group and who she invites to her home to meet face to face. She is also introduced to a ten year old neighbour when he knocks on her door one day. All of these new people in her life care about Meredith very much and are very helpful to her in trying to turn her life around.

Meredith also has a small family, which include her sister and mother, but due to an unfortunate and traumatic event in her past, they do not visit. We slowly learn what this traumatic event was and about Meredith's not so easy upbringing, as the book is written with multiple timelines. We also discover that this event was the catalyst to Meredith's agoraphobia.

This is essentially a story about a woman who has a painful past and has become a recluse in order to feel safe and cope with the trauma. As the story progresses we follow her struggles with anxiety, depression and her attempts at taking back control over her life.

Meredith, Alone is a beautiful slower paced book and I throughly enjoyed and was encouraged by Meredith's story. There is so much character developement throughout the book, not just for the main character but for the majority of the characters, even the not so nice ones. I also really appreciated how supportive, understanding and patient Meredith's friends are. It was so refreshing.

There are many difficult issues discussed in this book including mental health, domestic abuse, parental neglect, mental abuse and sexual abuse but I felt this was handled very respectfully by the author and was done well. But please be aware of these as potential triggers.

Overall an excellent book, that I feel deserves more attention and to be talked about a lot more. This book is not necessarily an easy read and there are plenty of up and downs throughout, but I think the author handled this extremely well and still manages to keep the book hopeful and uplifting.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Sexual assault, Rape, and Physical abuse

Minor: Child abuse, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse