Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Yes, Daddy by Jonathan Parks-Ramage

37 reviews

arlingtonchamberofgay's review

dark emotional sad fast-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? Yes

4.75

In Yes, Daddy, Jonah dances the line between rags and riches, climbing the ladder of wealth the only way that many of us working class queers can: through our bodies. Parks-Ramage does a brilliant job conveying just how quickly survivors start reasoning away the abuse in an effort to stay sane and hold on to their life. The constant internal dialogue of “i’m doing this to survive” and “this isn’t fucking normal”, back and forth, over and over again, that damaging spiral of mental turmoil that just chips away at your mental health. He also explores the way that evangelical christianity is woven into our culture and often follows us long after we’ve left, even sometimes calling us back before falling out again. 
As a trans, queer, sexual assault survivor with religious trauma and a plethora of daddy issues, this book got to me in a way I wasn’t fully expecting. But it brought words to the things that I’ve only ever kept to myself or told few friends. So thank you. Here’s to my fellow survivors. Let’s knock ‘em dead.

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Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Suicide, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Homophobia, Death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Child abuse

lucajgrainger's review

dark emotional sad tense medium-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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Rape, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Violence

asreadbykhyla's review

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book was an easy 5 stars for me!!! While it was a heartbreaking story, I felt like there was so much pure truth in it as well! It was heartbreaking but also shined a light on how truly fucked up people with power can be! And while Jonah is an incredible flawed character, I really enjoyed how honest he was with us as the readers! Mace deserved better!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Drug abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, and Cursing

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

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

aely's review

dark emotional sad tense slow-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

This book was extremely depressing. Jonah simply wanted to have a roof over his hand, and what happened to him was truly awful to read.

Parks-Ramage managed to write realistic characters who go through SO much trauma, with a bittersweet ending that left me feeling… complicated.

My only critique would be that the book felt so depressing and hopeless that at times it was very hard to return to the story.

Other than that, the book is a grim cautionary tale about abusive relationships and sexual assault. It was very emotional and well written. I hope that Jonah is able to live happily after the books ends. That is all.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Child abuse, Cursing, Gaslighting, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Classism, Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Addiction, Death, Murder, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Self harm

Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Stalking, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Animal cruelty, Blood, Trafficking, Dementia, and Abortion