Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

160 reviews

rileyyy02's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Mary Shelley is my ancestor! I read this book when I was younger so it felt slow at the time but it’s a good story about humanity

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

Minor: Kidnapping, Medical content, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Stalking, Confinement, Death, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

willow1113's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Grief, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

jenna_justi2004's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Gore, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Grief, Murder, Mental illness, Stalking, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

jessi_lou95's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective slow-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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, and Death

Moderate: Violence, Animal death, Blood, and Stalking

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

orchidlilly's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective 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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Body horror, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Islamophobia, Mental illness, Death, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racism, Religious bigotry, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Medical content, Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Classism, Chronic illness, and Fire/Fire injury

b00murded's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

i would have given it 5 stars but i hated the ending :/// why can't they just be happy 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Grief, Stalking, Death, Murder, Violence, Body horror, and Body shaming

Minor: Ableism, Cursing, Medical content, and Suicidal thoughts

rin_varga's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

4.5

I enjoyed reading this classic immensely! I'm so glad that I decided to start it in the heart of winter just after the holidays since I discovered so much of the mood is wrapped up in desolate, frigid landscapes & frozen tundra.

If you've only ever watched the 1930s movie like me, then the original 1818 version will feel like a completely new story to you!

I appreciated how much heart, empathy, passion & flaws we see as both Victor & his creature explore the same feelings (believing that they're completely different from one another) such as hubris, the spectrum of morality, justice, & if wickedness is due to nature or nurture. The book even begins & ends through the lens of a third party, leaving us the reader free to sympathize a bit with both Victor & his creature who are at such odds with each other.

I didn't expect to get as emotionally invested in the characters as I did--it was a pleasant surprise to find myself hoping, grieving & crying on their behalf, especially the monster who so desperately & sincerely loves people & longs to be accepted for who he is on the inside💔

The middle of the novel could drag on at times, especially as Victor traveled and couldn't shake his fears, regrets & melancholy no matter who he was with or what he was doing for long. In the begin & by the end though, events picked up again in anticipation & drama leaving me at the edge of my seat!

There may be a little good & evil in everyone, & this novel explores in depth just how much enemies can be more similar than they'd like to believe. I'd recommend it to anyone who doesn't mind a little (or a lot) of gray area & want to try a classic where emotions are a strong motivation--both for the characters & us as readers!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Stalking, Violence, Abandonment, Physical abuse, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Xenophobia, Death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Alcoholism, Torture, Violence, Bullying, Xenophobia, Chronic illness, Child death, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Confinement, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Blood, and Gore

hjb_128's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective sad fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Violence, Stalking, Murder, Death, and Child death

Moderate: Death of parent and Suicidal thoughts

carolinebl's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

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

Frankenstein is such a famous story, but my expectations were quite wrong. I enjoyed the end of the novel, the plot of which I knew less. I understand why it is considered a seminal work, and has inspired so many adaptations, but I did not love it.

The voice of Frankenstein’s monster felt implausible; how could he really have developed such a complex vocabulary? I enjoyed hearing of his early days of life, but it felt like Shelley was unwilling to sacrifice her style for the good of the story.

The narrative voice was interesting,

removed as it was from the main events, though this again brought up issues for me of the detailed recollection of conversations… is my memory just so poor that this seems ridiculous?

Perhaps I am too pedantic over these details, and should focus instead on the novel in general. I found both Frankenstein and his monster deeply unlikeable.

I’m not sure how others genuinely champion the selfish and destructive monster. Both of them should have just offed themselves!

The parallels between Frankenstein and his monster were the most powerful aspect, alongside Shelley’s commentary on superficiality and the beautiful depiction of nature. I want to visit Switzerland, but also to study this novel in more depth… perhaps I would gain a more positive impression.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Suicidal thoughts

singalana's review against another edition

challenging mysterious reflective 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

4.5

I must confess I didn't have a clear understanding of the story as I've never watched any films or read the story before. Therefore, it took me by surprise. 

Frankenstein was originally published in 1818. Unless I'm mistaken, it's one of the first science fiction stories ever written. Of course it's also a gothic horror novel, and possibly the best known work of its author. 

Frankenstein tells the story of a young scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who creates a monstrous being and brings it to life. After this, his life becomes a nightmare. 

Frankenstein and his creation contrast each other on a thought-provoking way, and I found my sympathies to be with the monster. For a modern reader, the story lagged a bit in places but I decided not to deduct any stars because of it. The book is full of interesting themes and symbolism, no wonder this is a classic. 

This edition: I liked the colourful audiobook cover and I found the narrator (Jonathan Keeble) to fit the work very well.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Abortion, Murder, Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Body shaming, Grief, Stalking, Torture, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Suicidal thoughts