Reviews tagging 'Rape'

Woom by Duncan Ralston

190 reviews

kiiriko's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

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

1.5

why did i read this??? for once, i trusted Booktok without checking the reviews or anything because i thought the set-up was interesting but as i continued, it got more disturbing and crazy and, for me, not in a good way at all. i thought each story had its kind of interest to it, but the ending was so weird and out of place, i absolutely hated it and i felt as if it did absolutely nothing for me.
additionally, i thought that it was weird that the n-word was used i think at least twice, despite the fact that the author is a white man? i feel like there is no need to use this word in books written by white authors...

also, the description of the prostitute's body was so gross... i can't really describe it but it is quite noticeable that this book was written by a man because he objectified her so much... 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Addiction, Abortion, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Rape

fearsickness's review against another edition

challenging dark funny slow-paced

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

3.0

if you were on the internet at the height of shock sites, this book probably won't phase you much. there were some parts of it that made me physically wince a little bit, but it's not near the disturbing mess that i'd been told it was.

however, i do think it's pretty funny at parts, and decently written. i think both leads were interesting characters, and it made me wish the novel was just *slightly* longer, if only to give more breathing room for their respective personalities and eccentricities. honestly, the shortness is what keeps it from being a 4 star to me. 

overall though, if you're squeamish this won't be for you.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Body horror, Gore, Drug use, Sexual content, Rape, Pregnancy, Torture, Excrement, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Racial slurs and Suicide

seriously, don't read this if you're easily disturbed. but also, if you do read this, don't be surprised by the content. it's transgressive fiction/extreme horror for a reason.

night_shift's review against another edition

dark funny fast-paced

3.25

Bizarre! I wouldn't say this was extreme horror unless you find sexual stuff and body fluids horrifying (though I'll give that the bathtub scene and the prom night scene would probably fall into the horror side of things). Angel was a strangely sympathetic character even though his final act was completely vile and if I was Shyla I 100% would've left at that point. A strange sort of character study into a broken psyche, I guess. Deff check out the CW if you're concerned because there's a lot of things in here that won't set right with a lot of people.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Rape, Drug abuse, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Abortion, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Racial slurs, and Pregnancy

Minor: Homophobia, Infidelity, Bullying, Vomit, Blood, Excrement, and Death of parent

mjadeh's review against another edition

1.0

This…was not good. It wasn’t even horror. It was just weird sexual violence and a guy with serious mommy issues. It didn’t succeed in horrifying or disturbing me, it just kind of made me confused as to why a human would write this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Miscarriage, Self harm, Pregnancy, Excrement, Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Abortion, Addiction, Racial slurs, Rape, and Violence

ericgarika's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-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

3.25

It’s really hard to review this book because I feel as thought the storylines are largely based on female experiences (which are written by a cis white man). I will say the book does a good job of creating plot twists and tying the stories together. I would not recommend this book to those that do not read about the trigger warning or to those unprepared for a story of extreme horror and pain.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Drug use, Dysphoria, Fatphobia, Grief, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Bullying, Death of parent, Excrement, Gore, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Murder, Rape, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Sexual assault, Ableism, Abortion, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Please take this as a warning that all of the warning listed are most definitely taken to the extreme.

mundpund's review against another edition

challenging dark fast-paced

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

3.0

I wasn't sure how to feel about this (short of uncomfortable) until I read the author's note at the end. It helped wrap it up and I bumped it up to 3 stars. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Blood, Body horror, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Vomit, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Excrement, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, and Rape

alindeman's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Honestly I don’t even know what to rate this! It’s definitely *very* disturbing content, lots of shock value. I had heard how awful it was (in the best way) so was a little wary. Honestly it wasn’t that bad! Obviously it was disturbing and HEAVY on the body horror but I didn’t feel especially uncomfortable or have to put it down. It’s probably the second most disturbing book I’ve read. Interesting plot, I was definitely invested in what was going to happen. CHECK TRIGGER WARNINGS!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Miscarriage, Drug use, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Body horror, Drug abuse, Sexual content, and Death

Moderate: Rape

shawna_reads's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

4.0

"I think when you enter a place that's absorbed enough bad things, it pukes them out at you. It drenches you in them. So a relatively innocuous room, like this one, will appear evil. Because bad things happened here." 

The Lonely Motel holds a lot of secrets, but room 6 contains the worst of them. Angel knows all about pain as his mother died in that room and he has come to end it where it all started. Shyla, a prostitute, accompanies him while he tells his stories, revealing the secrets of that room. 

This was a disturbing, compelling story about a man named Angel who appeared to have experienced nothing but pain in his lifetime. As distressing as it was, I could feel the grief and desolation coming off the pages. I'm not normally a squeamish person, but there was one scene that made me cringe as it was graphic and I could almost feel the pain (if you know, you know). 

I liked the structure of the story, weaving back and forth between Angel's stories and the present moment with him and Shyla. Everything connected nicely and I liked how every pivotal moment centred around room 6 at the motel. I also liked the fact that Shyla had her own stories to exchange with Angel, adding more sustenance to the book. 

You don't need me to tell you, but don't forget to check content warnings before going into this one. It's gross. It's fucked up. It's psychological. And I enjoyed it, for a lack of better words lol.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion and Rape

abbsp222's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual content, Addiction, Death, Abandonment, Abortion, Blood, Gore, Racial slurs, and Vomit

meh697's review against another edition

dark tense fast-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Gore, Medical trauma, Rape, Torture, Medical content, Drug abuse, Suicide, Body horror, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Abortion, and Vomit