Reviews tagging 'Miscarriage'

Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh

110 reviews

isiahreads's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-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

3.0

I really tried to enjoy this, but she made it so difficult. Deeply disturbing and seemingly without a good reason, idk, just wasn’t my cup of tea. Just look at the content warnings and it’s plain to see, I didn’t even get them all

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Cannibalism, Suicide, Death, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Body horror, Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, and Excrement

ropalimpia's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This is probably my favorite book that I've read this all year, and I picked it up as a hate read. After having read My Year of Rest and Relaxation a while ago and having absolutely abhorred it, this felt entirely different. It was disgusting, grotesque, gory, it smelled bad. It felt like a project in filth, immorality, religion, class, and abusive family dynamics. This book is "Religion is the opium of the masses. It is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of the heartless world, and the soul of our soulless conditions": The Novel. Most of the dynamics present in Lapvona were the rich looking down on the poor for being too pious, stupid, and easy to manipulate, and the poor looking down on the rich for being too indulgent, stupid, and distant from God.

Lapvona is not for the reader who turns to reading for comfort and escapism. It's not even for readers who want to read about the complexities of the human condition. It's not for readers who want a creepy horror read. Everything in this book is exaggerated and digusting. It's meant to cause revulsion in the reader. I'm not someone who is easily fazed by text, but there were times when I would physically cringe, but over time, you grow numb to the vile acts. It's like you become one of them. 

I really loved this book. I loved Moshfegh's project. I loved how much care she put into something so irreverent. It's not something I would recommend to anyone, frankly, but, for me, it's the single best book I've read all year. I like to be uncomfortable. Maybe that's it. This is for the reader who wants to be uncomfortable, but still enjoys amazing writing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Gore, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Vomit, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Child death, Death, Classism, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Kidnapping, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Miscarriage, Infidelity, Murder, and Pregnancy

Minor: Alcohol, Excrement, and Incest

lotus440's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Pedophilia, and Self harm

benevolentruler's review against another edition

dark 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Excrement, Animal cruelty, Sexual violence, and Blood

Moderate: Gore, Suicide, Miscarriage, Animal death, Cannibalism, Body shaming, and Death of parent

rzh's review against another edition

dark 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

3.0

this book was ..... a lot. the prose was expertly written, which made the whole horror of the book so much more difficult to bear: its like a car crash where you can't look away. everyone online seems to be trying to find some kind of dEePeR mEaNiNg to the book and decide which of the characters is their pet favourite but i feel like lapvona refutes both possibilities entirely. the violence and perversion and death are stupid and pointless, and the characters are all selfish, mean, and cruel to each other. and that's literally it.
i really like books that make me rethink how i'm reading them as i'm reading them, and lapvona is one of them. however, the actual sadism of the content was entirely too much so i'm rating it down for that. 3/5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Cannibalism, Abandonment, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Animal death, Murder, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Blood, Death of parent, Excrement, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Alcohol

minxtte's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Classism, Sexual violence, Animal death, Physical abuse, Death, Self harm, Cannibalism, and Child death

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Abortion, Excrement, Incest, Infertility, Murder, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Infidelity

Minor: Body shaming and Miscarriage

corpseparty's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

3.0

I liked this more than my year of rest and relaxation but still it had no plot. It’s just nonsense from start to finish I need to stop listening to booktok recs lmao

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Abandonment, Ableism, Incest, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Body shaming, Murder, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, and Religious bigotry

holmesstorybooks's review against another edition

2.5

I don't know how to feel about this. On the one hand, it was classic otessa. On the other hand, it didn't work, lol. It felt like The Favourite or the Great, but more grotesque. Except it wasn't darkly comedic like those two films/shows just ... bizarre. 

What worked in McGlue didn't work here. This had visceral descriptions of every bodily function you can imagine and then some. McGlue had that as well, but mostly related to the main character's traumatic brain injury and alcoholism. The unreliable narrator worked in McGlue, but not here. The unceremonious addition of indisputable facts (and plot points) that worked in McGlue to combat the unreliable narrator's narrative didn't work in Lapvona. 

Also as a disabled person, I dont mind that non-disabled authors write disabled characters, but more that Disabled Characters As Protagonists always have their disabilities as Symbolism. Many of these characters in this medieval village have disabilities, which is absolutely fine and accurate, but also, did your main character really have to be a child with a birth defect who thinks of himself as a Lamb of God? 

It was very readable ... but also ... not enjoyable. lol. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Death, Gore, Child abuse, Cannibalism, Ableism, Vomit, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Miscarriage, and Murder

Moderate: Pregnancy

hristiyanak's review against another edition

dark sad medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Grief, Murder, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, Excrement, Gore, Body horror, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Blood, and Death of parent

Moderate: Animal death

Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Miscarriage

librarycowboy's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Murder, and Cannibalism

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Incest, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, and Death

Minor: Classism, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Vomit, and Sexism