Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

25 reviews

cwerber's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Medical content, Fatphobia, Racial slurs, Self harm, Violence, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Terminal illness and Body shaming

I liked this book.the first 3/4 felt slow but ramped up in the last quarter of the book. I enjoyed it and would like to see more of Gail, Hermes, and Edith.

crownoflaurel's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship

Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Racism, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

whimsicalish's review against another edition

adventurous informative mysterious fast-paced

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

3.0

Sadly I did not enjoy this one as much as T. Kingfisher's What Moves the Dead.

This one felt lacking the mystery. You figure out early on what is happening in the house. The set up with the main character and her family is appreciated but it's a slow pace in the first half. Before any hauntings have happened, you're learning more about Latin names to insects than anything else.

I did enjoy most of the characters. They felt like real people. I'm not sure why the book had to flirt with the idea of a budding romance. It didn't have anything to do with the story or characters. It's just kinda there.

The thriller was the climax at the very end. Bummer that it ends so quickly when you get a taste of the creepiness.

It's not a bad book. It didn't enthrall me like her previous one. I'm still interested in her future stories.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming and Toxic relationship

Minor: Body horror and Child abuse

leeghlee's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror and Cursing

Moderate: Death of parent, Fatphobia, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Toxic relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Alcohol, Body shaming, Gaslighting, and Grief

Minor: Medical content, Mental illness, Dementia, Sexual content, Child abuse, and Stalking

vixenreader's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.5

An unsettling yet enjoyable read, this Southern Gothic story reflects on how nasty traditions and rotten ideologies can be lurking beneath the sweet-smelling rosebushes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Toxic relationship, Torture, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Cursing, and Death

Moderate: Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Xenophobia, Cannibalism, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Physical abuse

Minor: Vomit and Abandonment

Be warned that this book addresses generational trauma, C-PTSD due to abuse from a parental figure, abuses with the occult, parental neglect, swarms of insects, and one mention of semen in the occult ritual.

livlamentloathe's review against another edition

funny informative mysterious 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

4.0

Really funny in ways I didn’t expect! Sam was a great protagonist. Her logical scientist brain struggled so hard to process the bizarre reality of a haunted house. I think the insanity of it all was what made this story more cohesive. If the protag had been more credulous, the nature of the happenings of this book would’ve blistered and fallen apart. But because she was going step-by-step researching and attaching meaning to illogical things, when really wild stuff happened, it was fun rather than silly.

Don’t get me wrong, there was a sense of creepy and horror to it all. Definitely got tense. But Sam’s narration was a joy. It made the whole book so much funner than it needed to be. I especially loved the running bit about her phone trying to get service. 

Bonus points for the strong, fiery, fat protagonist who had no qualms about her body. And ruthlessly mocked those who did have a problem.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Death, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, Cursing, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Racism

skeuomorphism's review against another edition

funny mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

love the humor! plot's a little slow on the build-up but trust that it's worth the read. and the suspense.....entomologist's kiss....i cannot express the sheer joy that i felt as a insect lover reading about sam's thoughts on bugs
+ the hardcover edition of this book is so pretty??????? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Blood, Emotional abuse, Cannibalism, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Animal death and Racism

mshiiken's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship and Body horror

Moderate: Abandonment, Self harm, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Body shaming and Racism

rachelunabridged's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Cursing, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, and Racism

sarahmiller98's review against another edition

dark funny tense

4.0

It's funny that I read this book so close to How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix, because the two books share a number of themes: family, trauma, inheritance, child abandonment. This book though is pure T. Kingfisher, which means a very specific type of comfort read for me. When I read this author, I know I'm getting warmth, humour, practicality, and kindness. Sometimes that comes with a side of romance, or fantasy, or - in this case - horror. Often it contains a mix of all three. It takes a special writer to balance those elements - to make you smile one minute and genuinely creep you out the next - while still leaving you with an overall feeling of steady hope and goodwill.

In other words, I've read and loved the author's other horror novels, and this book is no exception to the trend. The protagonist is typically smart, level-headed, funny and relatable. Her relationship with her mother, which is central to the story, is likewise funny and endearing. As with all T. Kingfisher books, I cared instantly about the characters, which made me deeply invested in their situation as the horror gradually unfolded. Although the plot is a slow burn compared to some of the author's books, it never feels like the pacing drags. Structurally, it's a very well-balanced, well-crafted story that comes to a satisfying conclusion without sacrificing any of the little details of character and setting that make the author's books such a pleasure to read. Highly recommend, as usual.       

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Body horror, Violence, Body shaming, and Fatphobia