Reviews tagging 'Incest'

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

92 reviews

cooldudenick's review against another edition

adventurous dark lighthearted mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse

Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual content, Stalking, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Confinement, Incest, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Forced institutionalization, Pregnancy, and Classism

meguniqueuser's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

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

1.5

Very melodramatic. The main character Daniel is overly emotional and falls in love with almost every woman he meets and they in turn are charmed by him. 

Every woman falls madly in love with Julian and is obsessed with him.
The criticisms that are thrown at romantic novels by female authors all apply here. 

While the writing is poetic and evocative, the story lacks much meaning. Yet the author upholds the plot like it is the most sacred of texts. Maybe it was the audio I listened to with piano interludes that made it even more overdramatic. 

Perhaps if you enjoy gloomy mellow drama you might enjoy this, but I don’t. I especially didn't like that the author describes women as sexual objects, plot devices, or the butt of jokes. 

There are so many endings and epilogues, it was worst than the last Lord of the Rings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, and Police brutality

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Sexism, and Sexual content

br3adstick's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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? N/A

5.0

shadow of the wind is a beautifully written story with quotes that resonate, and a plot that keeps you turning page after page.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Violence, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Incest

Minor: Homophobia, Alcohol, and War

readandfindout's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

3.5

Style/writing: 4 stars
Themes: 3 stars
Characters: 2 stars
Plot: 4.5 stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and War

Minor: Excrement and Death of parent

seforana's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• 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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Infertility, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

krysley's review against another edition

emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Hate crime, Incest, Police brutality, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Death of parent

nathalieisg's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense slow-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? No

4.75

Very intriguing. This book has been the first to throw curveballs at me Ina while and kept me guessing at what was real, who was who and how it would end throughout the whole story. I also particularly loved the European setting and writing style - refreshing after reading mostly American novels all year. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, and Pregnancy

seasonedreadings's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Police brutality, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual content

Minor: Homophobia, Incest, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Abortion, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment

cass_lit's review against another edition

4.0

I think I overhyped this in my head, unfortunately. While it’s still a 4⭐️ primarily because of the feat it is to write so many plot lines and books within books, my enjoyment during it was just *fine.* One thing that kept coming back to irk me were the romantic relationships — I didn’t buy into any of them enough for how much they completely controlled where this story went. I know Daniel started out young in the beginning of the book, but even towards the end, I can’t tell you how many times I rolled my eyes at him. As Isaac Monfort says, Daniel is an idiot for most of this long book. 

For all of my complaints, however, I was still impressed by this. I loved the writing style, the discussions on books and what they mean to each person, and the stories within stories within stories. After the first few chapters, I wondered how everything would come together without it feeling almost too fantastical. But it did. And the last ~10% or so when everything came out / came together? I literally gasped at 👀that👀 reveal. 

Also — the audiobook is great! There are fun little interludes. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Police brutality

Moderate: Bullying, Hate crime, Incest, Rape, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Abortion, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Death of parent

vilde_a's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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

4.75

It took a couple of chapters getting into it, but in return, there were several chapters I just had to complete no matter time or place. If you like books about books, you’ll love this!

Read while listening to “Øyeblikke Vi Husker” by Hvalfugl. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Classism

Minor: Incest, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Medical content, and Sexual harassment