Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

9 reviews

palejandro's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Domestic abuse, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Racism

librarymouse's review

funny mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

A book within a book within a book made for a wild and very engaging read. I finished it in a day.

the novel ending with Leo, whose storyline seemed to be constantly unfinished, waiting for Winifred and Marigold made the whole thing more meta. For Freddie to be seemingly stalked by the Leo that Leo the murderer praises Hannah the author for creating was such an interesting way to fold the layered universes in on themselves! Leo the murderer stalking the author who then wrote a Leo the character stalking Winifred the author character who was friends with Marigold, the stalker of Whit, who had done an unsettlingly large volume of research on Cain to try to exploit his mom's shoddy lawyering into a pullitzer makes for a very interesting web of morally gray people. I did want Leo the character's story to be tied up more. He's still characterized as helpful, which I think ads an interesting tilt to the story being told about Leo the murderer and Hannah the author and the impact of what he gave her on her writing. But I want to know more about the reasoning behind the cupcakes and the groceries. Is it flirting, stalking, or friendship? I wasn't expecting for Leo the murderer to be a racist, but using that racism and vitriol to show his descent into delusion was interesting, especially in how that morphed from what could be perceived as advice on US perceptions of race and how it impacts jnteracrjoms with the police.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic friendship, Mental illness, Murder, Racism, Blood, Grief, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Death

Moderate: Police brutality, Pedophilia, Addiction, Violence, and Child abuse

tabookish's review against another edition

mysterious 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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Stalking, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Mental illness, Child abuse, Death, Racism, and Sexual content

amberinpieces's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Medical content, Death, Cursing, Murder, and Stalking

Minor: Body horror, Classism, Racism, Addiction, Alcohol, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Violence, Child abuse, Drug abuse, and Gun violence

laura_keoski's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

This was one of the more creative murder mysteries I've read this year! I thought the plot-within-a-plot device was used in a really clever way, and allowed space to explore some interesting topics about the genre itself. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Torture, Mental illness, Death, Violence, Gaslighting, Stalking, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

Discussed in the book: COVID-19 pandemic, characters experiencing homelessness, prison incarceration

This book contains depictions of a serial killer, including some graphic descriptions of violence and murders

purplepenning's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Classism, Blood, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Medical content, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Violence, Addiction, Death, Cursing, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

madisonfrank's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional lighthearted mysterious reflective 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Sexual assault, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Classism, Confinement, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, and Stalking

laceystairs's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

A nesting doll of mystery plot lines.

I loved the unique way this book told multiple unrelated yet related stories.

The main focus of the book is on Freddie, an exchange student studying in Boston on a writers scholarship, and the three friends she meets in the Boston Public Library.

Freddie is an aspiring author looking for inspiration when three interesting individuals sit down at the same table. In enters Freud Girl, Heroic Chin and Handom Man. This begins the second story, being the ongoing project Freddie is inspired to write staring her new acquaintances and the chilling scream they hear in real life, which echos through out the silent halls of the historic library. 

The third story being told is discovered when the reader sees that the chapters about Freddie & Co are actually the manuscript of an author who is corrisponding via email with an associate.

Soon the reader is hit with the knowledge that the murder mystery within Freddie's world is not going to be solved easily. And the goings on outside of the manuscript is a wonderful example of live mirrors art (or vice versa?).

Although it's challenging to explain to people (I have several times) this story is fun and easy to follow between plot lines.

The characters and writing style were so interesting and I can't stop (trying to) tell people about this book. A great thriller/mystery. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Violence, and Death

pollyhall's review

dark emotional sad tense medium-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? No

2.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Drug use, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Addiction, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Death, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Blood, Biphobia, Emotional abuse, Grief, Violence, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship