Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid

18 reviews

reddeddy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Sexism, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexual content, Body shaming, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Classism, Confinement, Child abuse, and Mental illness

Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Terminal illness, War, Animal death, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Blood, Colonisation, Dysphoria, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Body horror, Bullying, Car accident, and Deportation

midgereads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.0

It took me an eternity but I finally finished this book and I really liked it.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Medical trauma, Sexism, and Misogyny

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Sexual harassment

emmieanna's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I loved the aesthetic of this book and I really felt as though I were in the world there with them. It is folklore fantasy crossed with light academia and the romance elements were really tasteful, complementing the style and tone of the book. I would love to explore this world further with any future spin-offs or novellas. I do feel as though the Fairy King could have featured more as an antagonist.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Rape, and Sexual assault

justnicole's review against another edition

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Sexism, Alcoholism, Xenophobia, War, Sexual assault, Medical trauma, Sexual violence, and Emotional abuse

mooreeg2's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I had a very difficult time getting through this book; I had to put it down part way and then come back to it.  The entire book is a very slow progression and it doesn't really start to pick up until you're at least 2/3 of the way through, which was really difficult for me as a reader. 

The main female character went through a lot of ups and downs and alludes to some events that happened before the book starts and how those events are influencing her now. She definitely had some growth throughout the book and I'm very glad by the last couple chapters The author did clear everything up so you got a better picture of what happened prior to the start of the book.

The main male character didn't have a lot of growth but I enjoyed his character. He added a little something different to the story and definitely had a different view on women than the other male characters of their time.

I started reading this with the actual book and then part way through I switched it to the audible. I definitely found it more enjoyable with audible, hearing their voices helps pick up the pace of the book a little bit.

There is nothing to graphic, but there is more than one references of assault by an older man to a younger woman. This whole story takes place in a time. Where women don't have as many rights and are viewed lesser than men.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault and Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Death of parent, Addiction, Death, Medical trauma, Misogyny, and Mental illness

amandaaahyde's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

5.0

Another book devoured in a day. I couldn't put it down and it has lingered in my dreams. 

"I was a woman when it was convenient to blame me, and a girl when they wanted to use me."

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Child abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, and Dysphoria

Minor: Medical trauma

It's never explicitly stated, but the main character struggles with PTSD

kiwij96's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-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

3.5

I was excited to read this book as it featured a lot of words in my country's language and that's always a winner for me, especially when places like Lake Bala (Llyn Tegid in North Wales) and Saltney (definitely not based on the town in North Wales) are mentioned in the book. And Caer-Isel was an interesting University town name too for me as it translates to Hell Fort.

The book was only okay in comparison, the majority of it was long drawn out internal conflicts and all the characters were unlikeable. I also do not love books where the FMC is described as beautiful by literally every male character (main or otherwise), nor do I love books where the two characters say they love each other after knowing each other for 2 weeks. And for a book following two scholars, neither of them seemingly did any work. Or rather Effy seemed to do all of Preston's work while he had nervous breakdowns.

Don't get me wrong though, the book raised some important points about women's stories being erased and their voices never being heard. And I really appreciated the way that it ended. However, for 280 pages of Effy's internal conflict and the characters barely attempting to put the pieces of their puzzle together, the last 90 pages felt like the story could have been so much shorter.

From a Welsh person's perspective, the fact the house was called Hiraeth was a nice touch. "Hiraeth" being the feeling of homesickness or longing for a homeland you can never return to (a word meant specifically for the people of Wales). That was a constant foreshadowing in the story and one which I enjoyed very much.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexism, Drug use, Death of parent, Child abuse, and Bullying

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Addiction, Mental illness, Alcoholism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Abandonment, Medical trauma, Child death, and Car accident

loveat1stwrite's review against another edition

dark slow-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? No

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Misogyny

Moderate: Blood, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Grief, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual assault

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, and Terminal illness

haileekaye's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Death of parent, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Mental illness

crispinophurs's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

As usual, a book by Ava Reid is phenomenal. But I think it’s the weakest of her current books, for one reason only: I think the demographic rating actually held her back a bit. If she’d been allowed to delve into it the way she went into Juniper & Thorn, this book would have been a masterpiece.

And that isn’t to say that the contents of this book were too “adult” for the YA genre or some other nonsense— as a mentally ill, Jewish SA survivor myself, Ava’s writing and handling of such topics means the world to me— but I know that she could’ve pulled out all the stops for such a story with no limitations placed upon her.

I also guessed the puzzle pieces of the mystery early on, but this was written like a good mystery: it allows the reader to figure things out for themself and the conclusion makes them feel like an intellectual instead of annoyed by a sudden rug-pull.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Violence, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Ableism, Sexism, Xenophobia, Classism, Rape, and Medical trauma