Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Les Optimistes by Rebecca Makkai

18 reviews

mmaack24's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

i think this may be the most beautiful and compelling work i have ever read. i admit that i was a bit skeptical at first, as it is written by a straight cis woman and about queer struggle, and also because it seemed to be so solely about queer struggle. i worried that it would be 400 pages of just trauma and sadness, but the emotions are so complex and the characters are some of my favorite depictions of queer men and complicated relationships i have ever experienced. i am so incredibly in awe, and i have a feeling this will put me in a reading slump because at the moment i can’t picture anything else being good or even worth reading because of how gorgeous this book was.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, Sexual content, Medical trauma, Suicide, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Racism

erikajdea's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad fast-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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Terminal illness

Minor: Violence and Homophobia

alexisgarcia's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad slow-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

5.0

i thought this was just phenomenal. both storylines interested me and i felt so so much for the characters. this broke my heart but also put it together. this was devastating but beautiful.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Gaslighting, Chronic illness, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Classism, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Grief, Violence, Vomit, Cursing, Hate crime, Death, Medical content, Police brutality, Sexual content, Addiction, and Alcoholism

ninjamuse's review against another edition

emotional informative sad slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Death, Grief, Terminal illness, and Medical content

Moderate: Violence, Alcohol, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Drug use, Police brutality, Lesbophobia, Hate crime, and Bullying

dominic_t's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

I cried so hard. This book was so beautiful, but it emotionally destroyed me. 

I hope I remember to revisit this review when I've recovered a bit. I'd love to add more when I have a chance to digest this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Terminal illness, Vomit, and Homophobia

jim_jam's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative sad medium-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? No

5.0

Really really good but you will cry a lot reading this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Medical content, Terminal illness, Homophobia, Grief, Death, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Police brutality, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Infidelity

charvermont's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Terminal illness

Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Drug use, Pregnancy, Vomit, Violence, Police brutality, and Homophobia

bookswithisabel's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative sad slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Terminal illness, Homophobia, and Medical content

Moderate: Sexual content and Infidelity

Minor: Vomit, Drug use, Violence, Pregnancy, and Suicide