Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

The Chateau by Jaclyn Goldis

6 reviews

dev921's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Blood, Genocide, Gun violence, Murder, Violence, War, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Abandonment, Cancer, Death, Hate crime, Infertility, Medical content, Outing, and Grief

beckyremillard's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Violence, Death, Gun violence, Antisemitism, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Cancer

Moderate: Bullying, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Physical abuse, and Rape

arthur_pendrgn's review

slow-paced

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

2.25

Trauma as character development.  Way too much going on that clutters up the plot: cancer (2 characters), infidelity (2 of these), break ups, domestic abuse, multigenerational rape, Holocaust trauma, lesbianism (1 hidden), unhappy marriages (at least 4), a missing masterpiece, infertility issues, jealousy, sociopathy, betrayal, murders (2), assault, a custody fight, a potential romance, 2 side mysteries that don't matter, 2 children-as-plot-props, gun & knife violence, and an improbable rescue. That doesn't include the 4 narrators who, sadly, have indistinguishable voices.

Underneath all of that are the bones of a tried-but-true plot. If only the plot had been trimmed down so we could actually focus on a murdered grandmother with a lot of money at stake. Goldis left no time for the reader to connect with anyone. (Honestly, the murderous couple in the last chapter would have been enough rationale.)  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship and Infidelity

Moderate: Death, Gore, and Violence

Minor: Pedophilia, Incest, Cancer, Antisemitism, Blood, Terminal illness, Classism, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Rape

chris_reads's review against another edition

mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Gun violence, and Infidelity

Moderate: Murder, Cancer, and Fatphobia

Minor: Terminal illness, Eating disorder, Alcohol, Genocide, and Infertility

kecresser's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

The setting for this book was super intriguing to me, and it was the second thriller I've read recently set in a palatial estate. I can honestly say that I didn't see the major twists coming and I didn't know who the killers was, all the way until the last chapter. It takes a bit to get the four women straight in the beginning of the book, and I wish we had a bit more time for each character to develop, but I do love a multi-perspective story that keeps you guessing on who the unreliable narrator actually is. It was a page turner that I read in a day, but nothing too spectacular. I enjoyed the reading experience, but nothing really stands out to me that I think will stick with me in the long run. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Violence, Infidelity, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Chronic illness, and Murder

Moderate: Classism, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Hate crime, Stalking, Infertility, Child death, Rape, Blood, Grief, Alcohol, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

Minor: Car accident

ohyayitsapril's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

HOLY SHIT. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Eating disorder, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Classism, Grief, Cancer, Infertility, Mental illness, Rape, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Toxic friendship, Hate crime, and Murder