Reviews tagging 'Cursing'

These Violent Delights by Micah Nemerever

10 reviews

birdieex's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Mixed feelings on this book. I feel like this is going to be is difficult for me to rate. On one hand, I think I lacked the media literacy skills to understand a fair bit of the writing style, and ended up having to reread paragraphs. On the other hand, I can acknowledge it's a layered, psychologically complex story of obsession and violence.
 
I can see what the author was going for with the writing; something complicated and tangled and messy. However, there were many scenes I couldn't comprehend what was going on. I couldn't piece together where scenes started and ended or who was speaking when. I thought the

unreliable narrator

was done well. The ending threw me for a loop, honestly. That callback was so good.
 
There were a lot of times where characters knew something (or thought they knew something) I didn't and it was hard for me to connect to anyone. If the intention was to make us read between the lines, I had trouble doing that; and again this could come down to my own media illiteracy. I can't grasp the motive behind the killing. It was a thrill killing, but why? Why did they suddenly decide to do this?

I couldn't figure out if they even liked each other during some parts, which I get is the point. It's toxic and codependent, but I still found myself thinking "why the hell are you even together?" because I couldn't see anything that really brought them together.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Toxic friendship, Violence, Death, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Car accident, Classism, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Cursing, Police brutality, and Self harm

Minor: Animal death

The sexual assault is a brief detail; however it is described and could be triggering. Details under the spoiler.

Julian explains that his prep school roommate would climb on top of him (fully clothed) when he thought he was asleep. Julian said he allowed it because "he was a little good-looking and I felt sorry that he didn't have any other friends.

ashlikes's review against another edition

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Grief, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, and Homophobia

Moderate: Blood, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Antisemitism, Sexual content, Suicide, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcohol

Minor: Rape, Bullying, Sexual violence, Animal death, Sexism, Vomit, and War

addyruth17's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.25

Slowly enthralling, creeping like ivy growing up a brick wall. Many character moments and traits in the beginning that I felt saw right through me, which is scary by the end. Nemerever paints so well with words--I love the color scheme and I enjoy how uncomfortably visceral the senses were. There's a lot of build-up, so the pay-off is a bit disappointing to me; maybe one could argue that's part of the genius, leaving the reader suspended.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Toxic relationship, Death, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Drug use, Gaslighting, Grief, Cursing, Homophobia, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Mental illness

elioreadsbooks's review

dark emotional 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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book is one of the best made tragedies I’ve ever read. The threads of the story are laid out fantastically and tie together perfectly. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Violence, Cursing, Death of parent, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Toxic relationship

adreamerontherun's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

a very underrated dark academian book with very twisted love at the front.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Death, Emotional abuse, and Cursing

michaelferlazzo's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense 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

3.5

Ok, is it no plot just vibes? Maybe, but just imagine only bad vibes. A book full of red flags, no joke, if you know, you know. Paul and Julian both need to get over themselves already, you’re both not that great ok? What great prose, such a depressing book about the terrible things people can convince themselves to do and it’s so well written. Would not recommend, but had an interesting time reading it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death of parent, Violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Death, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Cursing

enyltiak's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, and Stalking

Moderate: Homophobia, Classism, Child abuse, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Cursing, Drug use, and Suicide

Minor: Forced institutionalization, Genocide, and Vomit

iridaceae's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Self harm, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Animal death, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and War

Minor: Abandonment, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Antisemitism, Body shaming, Cancer, Car accident, Child abuse, Colonisation, Drug use, Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Gun violence, Police brutality, Racism, Torture, and Vomit

maeveit's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

don’t know how i was somehow surprised by the ending but i was ! absolutely fantastic debut !

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Suicide, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Cursing

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Forced institutionalization, and Car accident

biblioleah's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

this book reads like heartache. it is a book about people who are hurting and in turn want to hurt the world for what it’s done to them. it is not a love story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Toxic relationship