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michaelion's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Sick and twisted! But the book isn't bad. The best part is the creative writing. Extremely, vividly, wildly creative.
Graphic: Stalking, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Incest, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Gaslighting, Blood, Ableism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, and Rape
Moderate: Police brutality, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Kidnapping, Child death, Confinement, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Dementia, and Drug use
Minor: Abandonment, Transphobia, Abortion, and Racism
zerinasahar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Body horror, Abortion, Confinement, Death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Murder, Rape, Chronic illness, Dementia, Gore, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
zhort's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
After finishing Crime & Punishment, I was looking to relax and read something easy and fun so I picked up Geek Love thinking it would be some dumb romcom between geeks. Well it turns out geeks in this book has a very different definition:
Geek [noun, slang]. A carnival performer whose act usually consists of biting the head off a live chicken or snake.
Geek Love is about the Binewskis, a family of circus performers, where the children are all freaks of some kind; born with flippers instead of limbs (Arty), an albino dwarf with a hunchback (Olympia), conjoined twins (Elly and Iphy), and a telekinetic baby (Chick). The caveat here being they were all deliberately "made" by the parents, Al and Lily, by having Lily consume various alchemical concoctions while she was pregnant. This is all for the sole purpose of having the freakiest children possible to make their traveling circus a success. If this grosses you out, please cross out this book forever from your reading list because it gets much, much worse.
What follows is a tale of jealousy, unhinged egos, and unquestioning devotion that made me hate every single character in the book. Arty is the oldest and most charismatic, and believes that being freaks are what makes life special, so he does the most sensible thing and starts a cult that demands their followers cut their limbs off. The twins have wildly different personalities but their main problems begin, as with most girls, when they hit puberty. Chick is the youngest and most powerful, but is also the most empathetic and naive. We follow this story through the eyes of Olympia, and for someone with a hunchback she somehow manages to be the most spineless creature in the family. She loves Arty and stands beside him while he commits mass mutilation, familial abuse, murder, all for the minuscule hope that Arty will love her back.
Overall this has been the most grotesque, tragic, and twisted stories I have read, and I hated everyone and everything that was happening in the book. There are themes of betrayal, manipulation, murder, abuse, mutilation, grooming, incest, and basically anytime you think the story has reached a new low Dunn surprises you with her limbo skills. Throughout the entire process of reading it my soul has felt unclean but I couldn't tear myself away.
8/10, would not recommend.
Graphic: Gaslighting, Abandonment, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Incest, and Rape
ann17young's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Incest, Rape, Self harm, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Gaslighting, Gore, Medical trauma, Blood, Bullying, Chronic illness, Sexual violence, Torture, Drug use, Medical content, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Addiction, Death, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Misogyny, Police brutality, and Alcohol
katelynalice's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, Stalking, Domestic abuse, Dementia, Child abuse, Body shaming, Bullying, Excrement, Drug abuse, Body horror, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Death of parent, Cursing, Violence, Incest, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, Rape, Alcohol, Child death, Blood, Animal cruelty, Murder, Suicide, Medical trauma, Medical content, Emotional abuse, and Drug use
sarahbeydoun's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Incest, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Rape, and Murder
emily_weiss's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Ableism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence
maekay's review against another edition
2.0
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence