Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

The Mothers, by Brit Bennett

21 reviews

sophieturbutt's review against another edition

challenging reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Suicide, Sexual violence, and Child abuse

Moderate: Misogyny

monikakris's review against another edition

emotional sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Toxic friendship, Suicide, and Sexual violence

iheartapolloxxi's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-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: Injury/injury detail, Death, Abortion, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Infertility, Sexual violence, Cursing, Toxic friendship, Sexual assault, and Death of parent

diaratewi's review

dark emotional sad tense 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Suicide, Sexual violence, Abandonment, and Abortion

jennazim's review against another edition

emotional reflective tense 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Child abuse, Violence, and Sexual violence

hcasasca's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Infertility, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Domestic abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, Abortion, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Death of parent, and Sexual violence

rebekah_florence's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

If you’re a fan of the show Greenleaf, I would highly recommend this book.  As a Black woman who grew up in the church (specifically with family members who were pastors of an A.M.E. Zion church) this book felt like coming home to me.  The mothers of the church-their drama, adages, gossiping, compassion- were written in such an authentic way that I could hear their voices as they spoke.  I could gush about this book all day.  I love that the title is a nod to not just the mothers of the church but also the mothers of our three main characters in the novel.  Each of their mothers has traumatized them in one way or another, and that trauma has brought them to they way each of them navigates their own life presently.  I loved that the story was told from multiple points of view.  Maybe it’s the theatre-lover in me but each time the “Mothers” narrated the story, I felt that they operated as a Greek chorus of sorts. If I had to make a complaint about this book, I would say that I wish the ending was a little more fleshed out without

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the major time jump

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but perhaps that’s for the best.  Much like Nadia’s situation and relationships, some things will

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always be left unresolved

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.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Suicide, Abortion, and Violence

Minor: Sexual violence

sophiekingo's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide

Moderate: Abortion and Sexual violence

brittandwaffles's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

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

Minor: Violence

nothingforpomegranted's review

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Six months after the gruesome suicide of her mother, Nadia is processing her grief by isolating herself from her friends, her church, her father, instead finding comfort in the sensation of anonymous bodies pressing against hers and imbibing alcohol. Secretly, she develops a relationship with the pastor's son, Luke, who was recently forced to abandon his college football career due to a debilitating injury. When Nadia becomes pregnant, she is wrenched back into reality, considering her conceptions of motherhood and what it means to love and be loved. Nadia slowly develops a friendship with born-again church girl Aubrey, and it is fascinating to watch her deliberate her actions and exhibit greater empathy over the course of the novel. 

The first-person plural narration by "the mothers," the female church elders, establishes a sense of nostalgia and spirituality in the novel, and I loved all of their gossipy interjections. Bennett demonstrates a mastery of description, adding details about each character without getting bogged down in adjectives, and every character comes to life on the page. The development of the plot was predictable, yet still engaging with an overarching intrigue that propelled the story forward even when not much was happening at all.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Suicide, Grief, and Infidelity

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship