Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson

54 reviews

tmcphetridge4's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

1.75

(Starting off by saying this is NOT my chosen genre, I am being asked to read this book for a course I am helping to teach.)
Nope. This book 100% is not for me. Pretty much from the jump I was disturbed by the content of the book and I did not like how this one was written. I can see how people view it as a stunning debut, but because it is not the type of genre that I like to read, it was a slog to get through. Utterly violent, abusive, abhorrent behavior from just about every party involved. There were multiple times that I had to turn down the volume because I could not stand the content I was listening to. Especially having read Grown first, I thought that the plot twist at the end was cheap. Again, makes you rethink the whole book, which isn't the worst tactic but I don't think it was necessary. 
This all being said, I think it opens an interesting conversations on cycles of abuse/trauma and generational trauma. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Violence, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Grief, Lesbophobia, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Murder

_fallinglight_'s review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective 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

4.0

Changed my rating and review entirely bc sitting on the ending, even though it wasn't entirely to my liking bc I didn't think the book was gonna have it, is that what makes TDJ's writing so entrancing to me is that it always has a tantalizing social/psychological horror undertone and how she weaves one sentence after another to make that slowly settle on your head is so masterful. For some reason, I was so into how I was spoiled the plot twist and how I was wanting a different outcome for Mary, that my initial reaction was to find the ending erratic as hell that I wasn’t appreciating the horror aspect of it. When viewed that way, the ending is unsettling and gloomy and compliments the story instead of cheapening it, though I'm still not entirely convinced about it and Marisol vs Mary spat left me a weird aftertaste.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Abandonment, Bullying, Death, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Fatphobia, and Mental illness

Moderate: Ableism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

emhicks72's review against another edition

dark 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Sexual harassment, Murder, and Physical abuse

islesbiyana's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-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? Yes

3.5

Hard to celebrate the day you were born when everybody seems to wish you were never born at all. Especially after you come into this world and fuck it all up.

rating: 3.5 stars
trigger/content warnings: death of infant, bullying, r/s between a minor & a young adult, severe bullying, child abuse, gaslighting, racism, lesbophobia, ableism, attempted child SA, references to rape, fatphobia



while i usually do enjoy following stories from an unreliable perspective—and that aspect sure added to intrigue of this book—i still have no idea what to feel about that ending. i understand what jackson's intent was, but there's a part of me that feels like there was there missing things that could've helped tie in together with the final parts while still maintaining the dubious & unpredictable narrative. idk. still, i can def say that jackson succeeded in provoking a certain reaction through that ending.

such a heavy and gritty story about a young girl enduring an abundance of fucked up but infuriatingly real scenarios, it all makes your stomach churn. there were parts that remind you that this was her debut, but it's such an immersive and compelling debut nonetheless.

“What does it mean when you love and hate someone at the same time?” I ask.

He laughs. “It means they family.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Violence, Gaslighting, Child death, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Animal death, Child abuse, and Bullying

Moderate: Ableism, Lesbophobia, and Rape

Minor: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

catwhisperer's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Death, Murder, Abandonment, Blood, Mental illness, Gaslighting, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Violence, and Vomit

aprilbethp's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Abortion, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Gaslighting, and Grief

jaz_gets_literary's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Bullying, Child abuse, Vomit, Gaslighting, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Sexual assault, Confinement, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, and Death of parent

on_your_raedar's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

The way I loved every second of this book. No spoilers but I actually really loved the ending. Seems to be a heated topic in the reviews but it really worked for me. This is the 3rd book I’ve read by TDJ and she is officially a read without question author of mine. Do be mindful of trigger warnings though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Grief, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Addiction, Child death, Bullying, Pregnancy, and Mental illness

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, and Pedophilia

Minor: Lesbophobia, Death of parent, Drug use, Alcohol, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Sexual harassment

manonschuur's review against another edition

dark inspiring sad tense

3.0

Ik ben iets te verward om een goede review te geven. Ik haat het echt als je bijna 400 pagina's leest en ik weet niet of het aan mij ligt, maar je weet nog steeds niet wat er nou precies gebeurd is de avond van de dood van Alyssa want de 'smoking gun' is nooit vrijgegeven. 

Buiten dat om vond ik het wel een heel interessant boek om te lezen. Er wordt goed weergegeven hoe de opvoeding en het gedrag van ouders kan zorgen dat een kind dingen doet die niet horen. Het legal system in Amerika wordt ook goed weergegeven en het is absurd dat een kind zo gemakkelijk terecht kan staan voor iets waar ze niet genoeg onderzoek voor gedaan hebben. Helaas gebeurd dit in het echte leven ook. 

Ben het gewoon alleen niet helemaal eens over het verloop van het verhaal want ik jammer vind.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Violence, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Medical trauma, Murder, and Torture

calamitywindpetal's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Death, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, Murder, Violence, Racism, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Medical trauma, Forced institutionalization, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, and Grief

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Blood, and Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia, Suicide attempt, Abortion, and Lesbophobia