Reviews tagging 'Blood'

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

49 reviews

rbash2391's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexual content, Death, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Classism

akevaa's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Death, Grief, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

tadah's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Xenophobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Sexual assault, Violence, and Sexual content

Minor: Death of parent, Animal death, Death, Blood, and War

katastro's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Minor: Misogyny, Gaslighting, Blood, Adult/minor relationship, Sexism, and Child death

dixiecarroll's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious fast-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? It's complicated

4.25

this was so addicting. So lovely. So scary. So FUN! It carries some very heavy material, so please look up triggers- not nearly as heavy as juniper and thorn. I love books about faeries (real lore) and how evil and cunning they are. This felt like Emily Wilde but less goofy. Anyway I am not making sense but I loved this so much. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Grief, Sexual assault, Bullying, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Adult/minor relationship, and Misogyny

wrensreadingroom's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Animal death, Bullying, Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Blood, Car accident, Classism, Addiction, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, War, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Rape, Sexism, Child death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content

honuzbubbles's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Sexism, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse

Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Grief, Bullying, Car accident, Physical abuse, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, and Violence

Minor: War

btwnprintedpgs's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

A Study in Drowning is an impeccable study in world building - the writing is atmospheric and full, while also filling you full of dread. It was definitely one of those books where you think, "I'm not happy to be here, but I'm intrigued. Proceed." The uncomfy feeling that sat on my chest through this story made it harder to read, but the writing made it hard to look away. It was an interesting reading experience for sure.

While I loved the premise of the story and the tidbits of magic and horror that we get, I feel like much of the problems the characters run into are solved too easily. Need to find proof of something? Go from point A to point B and tada - it's right there waiting for them. A lot of things felt too convenient which often pulled me out of the story.

Additionally, the romance felt too quick. Effy is so rude to Preston when he, objectively, has done nothing to actually offend her. They weren't rivals, really, Effy was just a classist B who needed someone to yell at since everyone else was a misogynistic a-hole. I didn't like her a lot because of that, and their declarations of feelings came much too fast when that was the base of their relationship. It was not for me, honestly.

I did love the overall message. It didn't feel preachy - in fact, it felt magical and I loved that. The way Ava Reid weaved together the story and connected all the dots at the end was absolutely brilliant and I almost wish we could've scrapped the whole romance plot for more depth into the magic of the world. 

All in all, this was a solid read, but the stakes for the obstacles they faced (other than a few obvious big ones) felt so low and too easy. I wish there was a bit more meat to those aspects, but enjoyed the book as a whole.

Plot: 3/5
Characters: 3.5/5
World Building: 5/5
Writing: 4.5/5
Pacing: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5

TW: misogyny, sexism, sexual harassment, sexual assault, grief, injury detail, PTSD, mental illness, emotional abuse, blood; mentions death of a parent, abandonment, adult/minor relationship, xenophobia

eARC gifted via NetGalley by HarperTeen in exchange for an honest review.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Grief, and Misogyny

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, and Blood

Minor: Abandonment, Death of parent, and Adult/minor relationship

aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition

dark sad medium-paced

3.0

Def look at trigger/content warnings.
Overall, I appreciated reading this, but it wasn't a favorite. It was pretty slow at the beginning, and if I didn't also listen to the audio, I think I wouldn't have liked it as much. I appreciate the discussions on sexism and abuse of power/power dynamics with a backdrop of magic, but I feel the magic was a little throw away. I also could've done without the romance aspect of this.
This is the first book from this author I've read and I will plan to read more from them it's just this one wasn't amazing for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Blood, Gaslighting, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Medical content, Racism, Alcohol, Bullying, Classism, Death, and Rape

deetabz's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Misogyny

Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Confinement, Death, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, and Sexual content