Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

The Mothers, by Brit Bennett

7 reviews

sparklefarm's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I don't know how to review this book. I've been sitting with it two days after I finished. I read Bennett's The Vanishing Half first, and found it arresting and unputdownable, which was not necessarily the case for The Mothers, although I truly enjoyed it. I think when reading books I tend to want them to have "a point," or a true conclusion. The Mothers didn't; it had the literary equivalent of a song fading out. No less effective, but it left me wanting. I wanted to know the details about whether our characters were okay, did they heal, did they find what they were looking for? But I suppose that's also the hallmark of a good book. I've kept thinking about Aubrey and Nadia and Luke, because Bennett made them feel real. She's so good.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Abortion, Suicide, Gun violence, and Sexual assault

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, and Medical trauma

zoebill96's review against another edition

reflective slow-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

Moderate: Suicide, Abortion, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Racism, Infertility, and Sexual content

Minor: Car accident, Child death, Grief, and Gun violence

aappel2491's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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: Suicide, Abandonment, Abortion, Child abuse, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Rape, and Religious bigotry

buecherballern's review against another edition

emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

Nadia, Aubrey und Luke wachsen im gleichen Küstenort in Kalifornien auf. Während jede*r der drei mit eigenen Traumata und Verlusten zu kämpfen hat, entspinnen sich zwischen ihnen immer tiefere Beziehungen. Auch als Erwachsene verbindet Nadia und Luke eine gemeinsame Vergangenheit, ein Sommer voll zarter Liebe, der sein Ende mit einer Abtreibung findet. Aubrey und Nadia finden als Freundinnen zueinander und füllen Lücken im Leben der anderen mit Zuneigung. Nach der Schule verlässt Nadia den Ort und Luke und Aubrey verlieben sich in einander. 

Ein Roman über Familie, Freundschaft, Vertrauen und Mutterschaft.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Gun violence, Violence, and Sexual violence

sierranorgan's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

4.5

The writing on this one was beautifully slow. But I felt like because of that some parts felt like they lagged a little bit. The story was beautifully woven together though and I enjoyed being in these characters lives! I can’t wait to read what Bennett does next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Child abuse, Death of parent, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Infertility, Pedophilia, Sexual content, and Suicide

rachaelbeau's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

The writing in this novel was some of the best I've ever read. There were so many excellent quotes and observations, I'll be thinking about this book for a long time. The characters were so well fleshed out. I liked that our main girl wasn't super likeable. I also really liked that no one was inherently good or bad, they were flawed and acted out of desperation or love. 

The reason this book wasn't a 5 star read was the greek chorus/Mothers portion of the story. I didn't love it, and I didn't connect with it at all. It was confusing, and really didn't offer much to the story. I felt like it was a good idea, but wasn't fully fleshed out. 

I highly recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Infidelity, and Gun violence

Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Infertility, and Grief

kelsielovesbooks's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Medical content, and Suicide

Minor: Sexual assault