Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - The Five Wounds

Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade

14 reviews

schlady's review against another edition

emotional sad tense slow-paced

Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A realistic portrayal of a year in the life of an imperfect family living through even less perfect circumstances. Very strong writing in the senses of family & place in New Mexico, also well narrated as an audiobook. The main characters were overall likable even after making difficult, frustrating, unlikable choices; I really felt for all of them as their stories twisted and turned and intertwined.

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annahelle's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

this is such a solid book! really glad i read it. the author did an amazing job at expressing the characters’ thoughts, insecurities, flaws, behaviors, etc. she was really good at describing facial expressions and body language too. just a great job exploring the interior lives of this family. i really felt like i knew the characters and their thought processes. great character development. definitely a character > plot narrative, but the story was still entertaining and devastating and emotional too.

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kitty03's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective slow-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

3.75

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stacey_l's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring 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

3.75

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ashwaar's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

4.25

This is death, then: a brief spot of light on earth extinguished, a rippling point of energy swept clear. A kiss, a song, the warm circle of a stranger’s arms—these things and others—the whole crush of memory and hope, the constant babble of the mind, everything that composes a person—gone.

As in the above quote, the writing in The Five Wounds is absolutely beautiful. Our story follows the Padilla family in the remote, forgotten town of Las Penas in New Mexico. Amadeo has been chosen to play the crucified Jesus in the annual Good Friday procession when his mother, Yolanda, receives an unexpected medical diagnosis, and his 15-year-old pregnant daughter, Angel, turns up on his doorstep after a fight with her mother. Despite the challenging circumstances and questionable decisions, the new infant brings several generations together and pushes them to re-evaluate their choices, identities and importance to those closest to them.

The story tells the harsh reality of living in a small, dwindling community in America that nobody seems to care about and what happens to the people who grow up in these places and the futures they’re told they can never have. There are some really strong commentaries on the problems afflicting these small communities, and I have provided trigger warnings below, but it can make it a little harrowing to read at times.

I want to be clear that all the characters are deeply flawed and really quite unlikeable. They make mistakes, don’t take responsibility, run away from their problems and get caught up in fantasies without thinking about reality. But you still root for them far more than the people or challenges they come up against. You keep wanting them to do better, even if you sometimes have to put the book down out of sheer frustration that they’re making terrible choices.. again…

In addition, some characters are a bit over the top, like Angel’s teacher, Brianna, who cannot get over the fact that she’s a virgin and feels inferior in educating these young women on childbirth and parenthood. Lizette can also be written a little over the top at times, and it feels a bit exploitative to the reader.

However, the writing is beautiful, and the family are messed up and broken but slowly putting themselves back together and creating something that isn’t perfect but is theirs, and that's really admirable. It’s a bit on the long side, and I found it faltered in pace at some points, but overall, it's a really strong, challenging, character-focused read.

Rating: 4.25/5

Recommendations: Olga Dies Dreaming by Xóchitl González, Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson, Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers

Trigger Warnings: addiction, alcoholism, cancer, car accident, death, domestic abuse, grief, medical content, pregnancy, rape, self harm, sexual assault, terminal illness

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bandysbooks's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense slow-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

This is a story that follows the members of one family over the course of roughly a year. Each family member is relatively dysfunctional and has made mistakes. Now, with things changing they are each forced to grow and change.

I thought this book was pretty interesting. All of the characters are highly dysfunctional, but still relatable. I personally felt frustrated with them on many occasions, but ultimately couldn’t help but root for them.

I did find the pacing a little bit slow. At times the story did drag a bit or get a little redundant, but it was a minor thing.

All in all, if you really like deep explorations of characters and their motivations, this is for you!

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