Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Normalūs žmonės by Sally Rooney

611 reviews

redefiningrachel's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Classism, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Abandonment, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Bullying, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Death, Violence, Vomit, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Panic attacks/disorders, and Misogyny

Minor: Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Pregnancy

lindsey_holmes's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Grief, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexism, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Classism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

nlucereads's review against another edition

emotional sad tense fast-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

3.0

Read it cause of the hype it got last year on TikTok, did not know what I was walking into that much but overall: it’s a good read. Sad, heartbreaking, a little bit of some spicy scenes, and pity. The overall plot, the growing up and learning how to deal with your romantic relationships/situationships, is somewhat nostalgic. I feel like if you can relate to the shitty relationships in this book (I’m sorry first of all), this read can be very emotional. It’s a very fast read, nothing too dense or triggering imo. The ending left me hoping that Marianne finally lets Connell go.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Domestic abuse

sofiafja's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, and Bullying

hdarling's review against another edition

dark sad 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? Yes

2.5

These characters are insufferable, I found it difficult to get through the book.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Bullying

maybevie's review against another edition

challenging

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No

If i was sally rooney, i would feel deeply embarrassed that i brought this book into the world. Poorly written, and without speech marks. The whole thing was deeply off-putting. I was waiting for it to get good, to resemble the good reviews i’d read- but nope. The characters are fundamentally unlikeable and I didn’t care what happened to them at all. As for their weird little sex scenes- that was completely unnecessary and quite uncomfortable. I don’t think I’ve ever scowled so much. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse

paulinskaja's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder, Grief, Blood, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Drug abuse, and Suicide

Minor: Bullying and Panic attacks/disorders

filipa_maia's review against another edition

sad 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

1.0

Normal People? NORMAL PEOPLE? Excuse me? That is nothing normal about these people. They need therapy. I'm just glad that, by the end, at least one of them is getting therapy. I'm so mad at this book, so mad at this story. Why? What have we done to Sally Rooney? Honestly, I read it because I do not DNF books but I though about giving up a couple of times. I just don't get the point.

I felt sorry for Marianne a couple of times. Her family is completely broken and she gets nothing from them. Her entire childhood was a mess, her time in school was a living hell... I get it. But when she gets older, when she became and adult, there is no excuse anymore. She replaced her childhood trauma for current trauma by dating a bunch of weird guys and having very wild sex. Just go get some help! Connell is just annoying since the beginning of the story and until the last page. That is one toxic relationship that should have stayed in high school. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Dysphoria, Toxic friendship, Body shaming, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Bullying, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Rape, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Death

matthewa118's review against another edition

emotional tense fast-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

4.0

This is a great book about non-romanticized love. It shows two very realistic depictions of people who love each other, but may not be the best for each other. I found myself both annoyed with and rooting for Connell and Marianne, which goes to show what complex characters they are

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Sexual assault

abbby029's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

4.0

It's a great modern piece on intimacy and how relationships with other people can be affected by your relationship with yourself. I love how mental health is depicted in this book - the narrative that something is inherently wrong with oneself is something that's touched on a lot, but it's not described in a way that is this profound, ultimate thing that always stays with the character and feels unchangeable. The author's tone succeeds in creating a flow between the narrative and thoughts of a a character, but also an overall storytelling tone that describes this feeling of ultimate sadness and self-hatred, which both main characters experience, as something temporary. The sadness and crushing weight of depression is extremely well described, but it flows well into the next seasons of their lives as they overcome these thoughts and the reader is able to find their happiness (or contentedness) believable just as the characters themselves are beginning to believe in their own happiness. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault