Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Reluctant Immortals by Gwendolyn Kiste

7 reviews

thegayestghost's review against another edition

dark fast-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? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Blood, Death, Stalking, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Abandonment, Confinement, Physical abuse, Violence, Domestic abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

mochimustreads's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring 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

4.5

I really enjoyed that this book struggled with the idea of victimhood and recovering from abusive relationships in such a unique way. I’d never have thought combining Charlotte Brontë and Bram Stoker could result in a story of found family taking back their narrative and their independence. If you like feminist retellings or are in a place to deal with topics of recovering from cycles of abuse, I’d recommend giving it a try. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence and Toxic relationship

florecita_lectora's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad tense slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Stalking, Confinement, Sexual violence, and Body horror

vixenreader's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

A mixed bag of a novel, with great suspense and worth-building while suffering from trying to rely on the original texts in order to fill in characterizations and relationship dynamics. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Misogyny, Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Cursing, Stalking, Confinement, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Infidelity

Minor: Animal cruelty, Medical content, and Sexual content

Beware of violence against women, mentions of mold and decay, vicious wild wolves, and deterioration of property.

angreadseverything's review

emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.25

I liked it, but

wish it went into more detail about Lucy and Bee's past. Especially since Lucy keeps saying how the books and movies don't accurately portray how their life was. The beginning was also a little slow, but it definitely picked up towards the end. I liked how Kiste drew parallels to the victims in horror and how they (especially women) are often a footnote in the main story of the killer/antagonist. The ending where Lucy, Bee, and Mina set all of Dracula and Rochester's victims free in the afterlife was really interesting as well. I would definitely want to see a sequel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, Violence, and Confinement

hazelgirl21's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Death

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury

caseythereader's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Thanks to Atria Books for the free advance copy of this book.

 - Embarassingly, I've never read the original DRACULA, but I'm a big fan of JANE EYRE and any and all retellings, and I blew through RELUCTANT IMMORTALS in one sitting.
- I loved the reimagining of Bertha and Lucy as the main characters, trying to take control of their narratives even when trapped. And (MILD SPOILER) Mr. Rochester as cult leader is completely inspired.
- I didn't think all of the magical elements made total sense, but I was held in such suspense by the rest of the story that it didn't really matter. Pick this one up if you're in the mood for something weird, dark, funny, and unexpected. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Death, Blood, Cursing, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Sexual content