Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

8 reviews

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.

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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

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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

falltumn's review

mysterious tense 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Stalking and Racism

Minor: Child death, Drug abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

bluecardinal's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Child death, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Infidelity, Rape, Domestic abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Classism, Gun violence, and Racism

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

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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

flyoverzoner's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

I will start by saying I listened to this on audiobook, so sorry if I spell names wrong. 

I found this book to be really off-putting at times. I didn't like the story within the story, I don't think it was executed well, nor did it add much to the book. 

The portion of the book dedicated to Hannah was my least favorite part. Having her be explained simple concepts by Leo, and then /that/ whole plot doing a 180, seemed completely unnecessary. Maybe Leo's annoying mansplaining was supposed to be telling of his lack of expertise, but it was a struggle to get through. 

In the part of the story involving Freddie, I didn't particularly bond with any of the characters, nor was I invested in their relationships, because they kept making incredibly stupid decisions. Freddie and Cain were not interesting enough to take up so much time in this story, but I guess they were needed to continue the plot. 

The murder mystery itself kept me interested enough to listen until the end, since I was invested in the whodunit and their reasoning. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Violence, Pedophilia, and Rape

ckraney's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

3.5 stars. I loved the format of this book—the book within a book. I thought the crimes and clues were well plotted and I was prepared for a masterful reveal. I was disappointed by the twist at the end and it felt like it cheapened all of the previous work. Such crimes seemed more intricate than how they were tied up in the end. (It’s hard to explain without spoilers!) I wish the ending had been as well thought out and crafted as the rest of the story. It would have been a 4 star book in that case.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Domestic abuse, Stalking, Medical content, Death, Gun violence, Addiction, Violence, Child abuse, Cursing, Physical abuse, Murder, and Pedophilia

booksnbones13's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence