Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin

11 reviews

dev921's review

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Abortion, Cancer, Death, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Suicide, Self harm, Child death, Mental illness, and Pregnancy

bebidocrimes's review

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.5

It's heartbreaking to read a story that really begs the question: what if? What if they never went to the fortune teller? I think their dates were different before they walked through her door, but that information influenced them all, and especially Simon, in how they would lead their lives. I think Simon's choices were a hefty domino effect for the rest of the siblings. How would you live your life if you knew when you would die? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Death, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death of parent, Medical content, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic

amandaformby's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Sexual content, Death, Medical content, Grief, Drug use, Abortion, Homophobia, Eating disorder, Death of parent, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Suicide, and Mental illness

gentleprocrastination's review

challenging dark emotional 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Suicide, Grief, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Eating disorder, and Child death

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Antisemitism, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Medical content, Pregnancy, Cancer, Abortion, Gun violence, and Police brutality

archivofrances's review against another edition

inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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: Alcoholism, Suicide, Xenophobia, Animal cruelty, Death, Mental illness, Murder, Grief, Gun violence, Medical content, Racism, Terminal illness, and Religious bigotry

desiderium_incarnate's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

3.5

Simon, Klara, Daniel und Varya - 
das Leben der vier Geschwister wird in diesem Buch nacheinander dargestellt. Alles beginnt mit dem Tag, an dem sie ihren Todestag erfahren. Eine einschneidende Erfahrung für die Kinder damals, die sie ihr ganzes Leben begleitet. Es werden glaubhaft dynamische Familienbande gezeigt, der Einfluss von Religion und Spiritualität auf das Leben wird behandelt und Sexualität und mentale Gesundheit wird angesprochen. Dir zentrale Diskussion jedoch, die ebenfalls gen Ende sehr elegant direkt in den Text eingewoben wird, ist, Leben vs. Überleben. Wie verhält man sich im Angesicht seines eigenen Ablebens? Geht man lieber auf Nummer sicher und versucht die Zukunft doch noch etwas zu beeinflussen oder nimmt man die Zeit, die man hat und macht das beste draus? Lieber im Jetzt leben oder im Potential der Zukunft? 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Abortion, Addiction, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Antisemitism, Body horror, Confinement, Death of parent, Death, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Excrement, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Racism, Self harm, Terminal illness, Violence, and Vomit

gemma7's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Really enjoyable book, especially if you like books that have a darker edge. Interesting to see how 'knowing' when the characters are going to die impacts their lives

and if the psychic was right or whether they enable her to be right.

The ending was a bit naff though, unless I am just one of those people who didn't understand it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, and Suicide

Moderate: Death of parent, Mental illness, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content

Minor: Abortion, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, and Pregnancy

kutreen's review

emotional reflective sad 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

3.5

This book, though not always engaging, makes up for it by delving into a variety of inner conflicts people may have as a result of: descending from immigrants, the religion they grew up in, their relationship with their siblings and other relatives, their role in current social/political events, and their approach to love and life. I admired how Benjamin was able to tackle so many different issues, and in four wildly different characters on top of that. The natural problem that arises for the reader is that they will likely be more interested in one of these issues and one of the main characters than the others, so reading about the other issues and characters can get tiresome. However, I personally find the way Benjamin approached the perspectives (by giving each character their own section) more enjoyable to read than the most common approach which is to give each character alternating chapters. The way Benjamin did it, you get enough time to dive into the mind of each character, understand their problems and their philosophies, and reflect on your own in relation to theirs. It might be annoying, though, when you finally become close to a character and then their section ends and you don't get to revisit their mind again. Basically, it feels like Benjamin tried to do a little too much. Finally, I feel like I didn't really get the thing I was most looking for in this book based on the blurb: how would someone change their approach to life, knowing their death date? I felt like no character took their death date seriously, except in their final moments, except for one.

Why in the world does the youngest sibling die first, the next youngest sibling die second, etc.? Isn't that way too much of a coincidence?

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Grief, Mental illness, and Suicide

Minor: Abortion, Alcoholism, Genocide, Infidelity, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, and Vomit

bi_n_large's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Self harm, Sexual content, Gun violence, Death, Animal cruelty, Racism, Terminal illness, Homophobia, Medical content, and Mental illness

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Abortion

cammiem8's review

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

I read this for a book club and couldn’t help but read ahead. The first section about the life and death of the youngest sibling in the family is the strongest emotionally, though there are things to think about throughout the book. The third section is the weakest. The author also uses a lot of very strange and seemingly out of place sexual descriptions, which might be a turn off for readers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Mental illness, and Suicide

Moderate: Hate crime, Medical content, Police brutality, Alcoholism, Terminal illness, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Adult/minor relationship