Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

302 reviews

duskisses's review against another edition

emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

“If I have learned anything in this long life of mine, it is this: in love we find out who we want to be; in war we find out who we are.”

i am writing this review with tears in my eyes. this book had been on my TBR for so long and i can’t believe i waited so long before reading it. 

this is absolutely my top book of the year and will likely remain as one of the best novels i will ever read. this story is so incredibly heartbreaking yet so beautifully written. this story hit so close to home and touched and pulled at my heart strings.  i don’t understand how there are people out there who are capable of such evil. i know this story is fiction, but it is such a great reminder for all of us what happened to an entire group of people. it highlights the tragedies that millions of people faced for years during wwii. it sheds light on the sacrifices women have made in this war. sacrifices that went unnoticed. women who went through a great deal of pain and loss but won no medals. isabelle and viviane are fictional characters but they are written with real women in mind, women who scarified everything. 

vianne was right when she said “women get on with it. for us it was a shadow war. there were no parades for us when it was over, no medals or mentions in history books.” this point of view is one that is never heard and i think that it is such an important part of history that should never be overlooked or forgotten.

“wounds heal. love lasts. we remain.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Antisemitism, and War

sarahfeller's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, and Deportation

eesamel's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and War

silverhill's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, War, and Deportation

Moderate: Alcoholism, Vomit, and Pregnancy

Minor: Cancer, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Terminal illness

neatan's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual violence

srosa037's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense 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

I loved it from the beginning. It was a sometime sad, and emotional right. I am not usually one to enjoy historical fiction but this one got me 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

maxine_t96's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Antisemitism, Murder, and War

Moderate: Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Medical trauma, and Death of parent

Minor: Cancer and Terminal illness

daralexandria's review against another edition

emotional inspiring sad fast-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Deportation

Minor: Miscarriage, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

monikapuff's review against another edition

emotional 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

4.5

 I don't really know how to put my feelings about this novel into words, I think I spent last twenty or so pages bawling my eyes out it was that painful.
The Nightingale is a work of fiction, but it's hard to draw a line between it and reality, knowing just how realistic it is(as far as I know, it is inspired by true story of Andrée de Jongh, as a direct inspiration for Isabelle) and that the society keeps forgetting that women live through the wars too, while trying to either have their families safe in danger of the full blown enemy occupation, or to stick to their beliefs and fight for them. Vianne's and Isabelle's stories are equally as tragic and heartbreaking, while on the flipside, showing how heroic they were.
I think it gave enough details of the horrific events without overtly describing them. It certainly packs a punch in the realism of the war and what it takes from people who are 'lucky' enough to survive it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and War

Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual violence

jdjd2025's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring sad medium-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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War

Minor: Alcoholism, Death, Genocide, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment