Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

71 reviews

kgc8's review

challenging informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

While a little slow to start, I loved the historical detail. Written in first-person POV, there was a lot of exposition in the first third of the book as Martha explains how things work in colonial times. But once we got further into the case Rebecca Foster brought against Joseph North for rape, along with more rich details of Martha's daily life, things really picked up.  It was fascinating to read daily accounts of a woman's activities, back when most women did not leave a historical footprint (except to be documented as wives/daughters). Martha Ballard's real diary was very sparse and not introspective, but the author does a good job of filling in the gaps and imagining her life and community.

Though the book uses a murder to grab your attention, I honestly found the legal case more interesting because of how nascent the U.S. legal system was at the time (and I'm not even a lawyer!). The author's note at the end (don't read until you're done because there are spoilers) tells you you have to throw out all your preconceived notions about due process and the law before reading because it's so vastly different and primitive. Colonel Joseph North, despite not having studied law, was the judge in the area given his rank and deeds during the War. Not only that, he was able to preside over the case locally and didn't recuse himself in spite of the conflict of interest! (Don't worry, he gets scolded for that by the regional court).

If you enjoy history and immersing yourself in a different period, check out this book. I took off a star  because I think the author dumbed a few things down for "modern" readers in her exposition and I loved the idea of Martha Ballard's story being told more than the author's writing style.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Pregnancy and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Violence, Blood, and Death

amandadelbrocco's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

The historical aspect of this was really interesting and I really liked that the author based the story on a real person and included real life events from their life. However, I thought it was really repetitive as there were a ton of stories that really were very similar (midwife called to assist with a birth, men suck, birth goes wrong, etc) and I felt it could have been pared down to make it more powerful. I also didn't like the incorporation of the journal entries associated with my previous point as they were a repetitive summary of what had just happened.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Murder, Child death, and Death

silverhill's review

dark emotional inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Blood, Misogyny, and Rape

Moderate: Child death, Murder, Gore, Sexism, and Sexual violence

Minor: Chronic illness, Ableism, Abortion, Animal death, Classism, Incest, Grief, Racism, Sexual content, Alcohol, and Bullying

amanda_reads13's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

In Maine, 1789, Martha Ballard, a midwife, is called to examine a dead man who was found in the frozen river. Martha immediately recognizes him as one of the men accused of raping a local woman. She's certain the two crimes are connected.

This an incredibly intriguing and thought provoking story. The author blends fact and fiction to bring this historical fiction to life. This is a heartbreaking story, and caution should be given as there is much discussion of rape. 

Maine acts as its own character in this book, with its difficult winters and beautiful landscape as a backdrop. I loved the vivid descriptions of the landscape throughout the story. 

During a time when women had no rights or freedoms, Martha was an outspoken advocate for her patients. She's a strong, empathetic, and courageous woman who goes to extreme lengths to protect and care for the women in her community. 

This book does a really great job at exploring the role and treatment of women at this time. Martha lived in a time when women were seen as less than. You could be charged for having a baby out of wedlock, but of course there were no repercussions for the man. Martha fought for justice even when all odds are against her. Even as a midwife, she was looked down upon by the male doctors. 

The murder mystery element within the story was very compelling.

We were given some clues that pointed to Sam as the murderer earlier on. So I had an idea that it may have been him, but I couldn't figure out his motivation. That came as a surprise.

 

I'm really happy that North got what he was due.

I actually burst out laughing when Martha cut off his *appendage*. As she said, he can't hurt any women now.

I felt as though the story could have been a little shorter, there were some scenes that didn't really add to the book. Also, there are a lot of characters who I lost track of and had to go back and figure out how they fit in the story.

The Frozen River was inspired by Martha Ballard (February 9, 1735 – June 9, 1812), a midwife who delivered hundreds of babies and never once lost a mother during birth. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, Abandonment, Infidelity, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Blood, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault

the_cat_on_a_bookcase's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

This was a compelling story about a midwife who is torn between knowing the truth and having to prove it in the 1700s. The main character, Martha Ballard, is based on a real woman in American history and her personal journals (which I love when reading historical fiction!) This was part murder mystery and part a tale of the community that Martha was interwoven into. I loved the character development, how the story unfolded, and the liberties that the author took with the truth of history. The ending was a twist for me which definitely makes a mystery great in my book. Highly recommend this one to all the mystery & historical fiction lovers! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence and Sexual assault

Moderate: Murder and Death

allisonw92's review against another edition

adventurous funny informative inspiring slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Death, and Murder

celery's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Religious bigotry, Body shaming, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Ableism, Classism, Death, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual harassment, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Medical content, Animal death, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Child death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, Sexism, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Grief, Infidelity, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Blood, Body horror, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Vomit, Cursing, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Rape, War, Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Sexual content

juanat77's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Violence, Death, Murder, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Blood, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Vomit, Cursing, Grief, Sexism, Sexual content, Bullying, Medical content, Miscarriage, Rape, and Injury/Injury detail

theoceanrose's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Rape, and Sexual assault

Minor: Child death, Vomit, and Death

snark's review

adventurous emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

Skillfully woven, compelling, juicy story, characters have a lot of depth. It took a few days for me to latch on to this, buy i had a hard time putting it down for The last half. I love hearing from an older established women and mother.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Death and Child death