Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid

5 reviews

jlschingle's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I went in with no knowledge of the book and thinking it would be closer to the source material. This is more like magic really does exist and Lady Macbeth is actually 17 AU. I didn’t love that she was still a child because she very much acts surprised when her actions have consequences to others that aren’t just her. I’m not a fan of her choices and their actions not being intentional until the last chapter of Act 4. 

Once I realized kind of what the book was it was fun, but do not go into reading this book thinking it’s going to be remotely similar to the original work 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism and Violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Murder, and War

kkopacetic's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Torture, and Abortion

tropicwitchgirl's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, and Violence

Moderate: Child abuse

luckyonesoph's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

1.5

this was.....something! idk what though!

what liked:

• ava reid excels at writing gothic settings. always dark and rainy and damp, and i admire her consistency.  
• i highlighted at least 2-3 quotes every act - quotes that were poignant and somewhat original and that would probably stick with me had i liked the rest of the book better
• even though i didn't really like this, i do think its a good thing that authors are being less faithful and more creative with their retellings. 

what didn't work:

• roscille is just...not compelling. i get that she is young, and that this is not meant to be a faithful retelling of the original play, but she just seems so inconsistent in her motives. she is defined completely by the men who use and abuse her. 
• the
  lisander romance
  plotline came out of nowhere and cheapened roscille's character development completely. ruined the book for me tbh. 
• too many subplots that felt underdeveloped or unfinished.
• the fantastical elements (magical realism? idk) also cheapened roscille as a character for me. again, why is this character that is supposed to be strong and smart and feminist defined by the way men react to her "witch-kissed" eyes? boring! bland! unoriginal! 
• i honestly think i'm just not intuitively smart enough and not patient enough to really get all the symbolism weaved through this. there is a lot that goes unsaid, i think. a lot of meaning cloaked in metaphor, and i think this book could be really great with 1-2 more closer reads, but I just don't care enough to want to try. 
• the depiction of all the scottish men as brutal and unfeeling was.....a choice ava reid made. and not a good one! maybe there's a message there if you go a bit meta and remind yourself that roscille is the one speaking, but idk. i can't figure out what the message would be so its entirely possible im being too generous. 
• please god take feminist buzzwords away from publishers and marketing teams until they can handle the responsibility. im so tired. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Pregnancy and War

Minor: Child abuse and Child death

devynreadsnovels's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Abortion, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail