Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Mrs Caliban by Rachel Ingalls

7 reviews

emotional fast-paced

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adventurous emotional fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

If you’ve ever wanted to romance a frogman, this book is for you.

Ingalls plays with the archetype of the traditional Gothic Hero with Larry (who is about as average as his name). Larry very well may be the lonely housewife Dorothy’s own creation, both as an erotic object and a compensation for her lost children. 

Both odd and profound, I’m happy Del Toro’s ‘The Shape of Water’ brought this back into print.

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad fast-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

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dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

A love story about a lonely housewife and a giant anthropomorphic frog, mixed with some satire about the drama of American suburbia sounds like it should be relatively lighthearted faire. Nope. This is a bleak book; this is a Shakespearean tragedy about loss, trauma, mental health (or lack thereof), and fractured relationships, which makes the tender romance, peaceful moments, joyful moments, and snippets of snarky humor shine all the brighter against such a dark background.

Therefore, it makes sense that the ending would be devastating, but I was quite unprepared for how devastating it would be, because not only was it WAY too real, it was completely justified and horrifically beautiful. No "drama for shock value" stuff here. This is the real deal.

This ending was like having your heart ripped out by a gourmet chef, who sautés it right in front of you with herb butter and garlic.  You're reeling from the shock of such sudden violence, and by the time your senses return, the chef serves you your heart, glistening with luscious sauce beside some bright spring greens. You numbly take a bite...and it's the most delicious thing you've ever tasted.

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