Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

263 reviews

chavonnwshen's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

This is white feminism fodder - the cast is entirely white as literally all the people of color in the book have  been exiled. Despite the book's glaring flaws in the light of intersectional feminism, the prose really is beautiful. The plot is tightly woven and the characters are complex. I can definitely see why it's considered a classic. Not the best book I've ever read, but far from the worst. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Infertility, Trafficking, Torture, Blood, and War

bradenchu's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Sexism, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexual assault

peachy_reader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Colonisation, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Body shaming, Death, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Homophobia, Gaslighting, War, Physical abuse, and Violence

renorsomethin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Infidelity, Homophobia, Suicide, Miscarriage, Child death, Abortion, Confinement, Trafficking, Antisemitism, Pandemic/Epidemic, Police brutality, Rape, Violence, Islamophobia, Medical content, and Animal death

bluelien's review against another edition

dark sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence and Misogyny

lislune's review against another edition

Too disturbing, I didn’t want to finish it because I already know gender theory and there wasn’t a need for me to trigger myself over ideas I am already familiar with

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Trafficking, Rape, Infertility, Misogyny, and Sexual assault

mgcalder's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-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

3.25

Whilst Margret Attwood is clearly an excellent writer, and the concept of the book is fascinating, I found the story itself to be somewhat lacking. The open ending also seemed at odds with the rest of the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Slavery, Infertility, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Homophobia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, War, Body shaming, Death, Self harm, Abortion, Confinement, Medical content, Physical abuse, Blood, Mental illness, and Murder

another_dahlia's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Hate crime, Death, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Child death, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Grief

Moderate: Infidelity, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Infertility, Trafficking, Suicide, and War

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Colonisation, Ableism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Biphobia, Torture, Classism, Death of parent, Transphobia, Violence, and War

calaisnobu's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Suicide attempt, Abortion, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Pregnancy, Body shaming, Misogyny, Infertility, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Suicide

littlehedgehog's review

challenging dark informative reflective 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

4.75

This is a really important work of dystopian fiction, one of those "every one should have read it at least once in their lifetime"  books. However, the pacing was a bit too slow for me sometimes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Rape, and Trafficking

Moderate: Torture and Suicide