Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Yes, Daddy by Jonathan Parks-Ramage

105 reviews

wrenl's review

dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

3.0

This book is a punch to the gut. It’s dark and gritty with characters you root for even though they make horrible decisions. I can’t say if I like this book because Jonah is a hard character to love. He makes so many bad decisions, but they’re mostly because of trauma and not because he’s a bad person. I gasped and gaped with each chapter. Although this book starts off slow, it throws you into the deep end with all of the drama and outright crimes that happen. I’m not totally sold on the book’s message, mostly because Jonah is a tough character to love. But I believe in its perspective about trauma and recovery. Therapy is great, y’all, but you need to be open to it for it to work. I just wish this wasn’t wrapped up in some seriously fucked up shit. But that is the point too. So I feel very torn about this book. It’s graphic, but it needs to be, somewhat, to make its point.

There are some very explicit and graphics scenes, so you’ve been warned. There’s a lot of religious trauma too.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Suicide, Homophobia, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Suicidal thoughts

arbramirez's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Pedophilia, Rape, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Drug use, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Outing, Self harm, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Trafficking, Violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, and Vomit

bmcdaniel1993's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Grief, Trafficking, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

crushedvelvet's review

Yes, Daddy was an interesting enough (though on the nose) erotic thriller at first. But as I read on, Jonah's character & the exploitative nature of the plot grated on me.

Jonah is a simpering social climber eager to cast off his humble beginnings. So much so that he leaps at the chance to turn his nose up at any & everyone he sees himself in. This would be fine if he was at least interesting. I don't demand likeability from protagonists--least of all in a gothic novel. But before the trauma porn begins, he's just endlessly whiny & has an arguable persecution complex. After, he's a blank slate for the cadre of damn well mustache twirling villains to enact their brutality.

The plot itself is every slanderous accusation thrown at the gay community EVER. If I didn't know the author was gay himself I'd think a homophobe was behind this. It's a torrential downpour of bizarre, graphic rape scenes. Every development feels like it's there for shock value and nothing more. Just to put readers through an unearned emotional wringer.

I wish I never read this. Take every content warning very seriously. Each one goes in the cruelest, most cartoonishly repulsive direction possible.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Pedophilia, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Incest and Gaslighting

vexatiousbird's review

dark sad tense 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

3.25

It does well at depicting escalating abuse and makes it clear why the protagonist doesn’t leave after the early warning signs, and it’s written in a conversational style that makes it a quick read. The protagonist is intentionally unsympathetic to highlight how even unsympathetic people can be victims, but that presents a challenge for the reader. At least for me, the basic sympathy for his suffering and desire for him to escape terrible abusive circumstances didn’t extend to much longer term emotional investment in him as a character in the extended aftermath. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Homophobia, Drug use, Rape, Alcohol, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Suicide and Violence

Minor: Incest

haleyapratt's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

2.0

Contains lots of interesting ideas, but we don’t spend enough time with any one character, plot, or theme for them to become fully realized. Oddly, despite quite a bit of graphic content, there was still too much telling rather than showing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

mgann1's review

dark tense medium-paced

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

2.0

SPOILERS** 

This book felt like trauma-porn and a Frankenstein’s monster of genres that went every which way. The main plot ended about 60% through and the rest was just insufferable. 

I would have enjoyed this book more if the author had expanded on the relationship between Jonah and Richard for a few more chapters. Building up some sort of emotional connection between the reading and the MC before devolving into the madness and abuse. Instead, the relationship was expedited and shallow, and the abuse began immediately before the MC could really believably become drawn to the abuser. In turn, there was no stakes and instead the reader watched as the MC knowingly put himself in harmful situations.

It easily could have ended after Jonah and Mace escaped and it would have been a satisfying ending to a thriller. Instead, the capture and escape happened within chapters of each other, and then the book continued for another 100 pages of internal dialogue, MORE trauma, and weird church propaganda. 

I really wanted to like this book, but between the unlikeable MC and the copious amounts of rape, I really disliked it through and through.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Physical abuse, and Sexual content

axelgrcia's review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

i was absolutely ENTHRALLED with this debut novel! jonah as our MC made me want to cry and fight for him (super obvious red flags aside!), especially since it gets pretty dark and each chapter im just waiting for the next sucker punch. just go in with an open mind, especially since this novel really does a good job at providing a dark lens into how predatory some relationships can be, and how especially vulnerable queer youth can be. on that note i can’t wait to see what other stories this author comes out with!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, and Drug abuse

Minor: Homophobia

vintesta's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, and Rape

klausington's review

dark sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Drug abuse, Alcohol, and Religious bigotry