Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

50 reviews

alicebodnar's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Classism, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Rape, Addiction, Sexism, Torture, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Abortion

riffmonkey's review against another edition

dark sad slow-paced

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

1.0

I in no way understand why my mother recommended this. I also do not get why the rating of this book is so high by so many people. In the first chapter, there was already much unnecessary grossness and violence towards women. But in the second it was even worse, and it did not get better as the book went on. Call me crazy but I would rather not read a whole chapter about some racist, misogynistic, child-raping paedophile having a tirade about how much better he is than everyone else and trying to justify his slave-owning ass. 

I do not want to read about exploitation or rape. I do not give a shit about torture and the most dark psychological hellscape you can come up with. But just 500 pages of a garbage human ruining the lives of this magical family made me feel sick to my stomach. It's a fucking miracle I even finished this book although I am quite sure I was dissociated for the last 2 chapters at least. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Animal cruelty, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Sexual violence, and Slavery

Moderate: Torture

notallbooks_mp's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• 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, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Colonisation, Death, Animal death, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Ableism, Classism, Drug abuse, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Incest, Mass/school shootings, Abortion, Infidelity, and Gaslighting

deniseh's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective sad slow-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Confinement, Abortion, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Slavery, Genocide, Incest, Colonisation, Cursing, and Vomit

whitelotusreads's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

It’s dark and gut-punching; the descriptions of violence and assault are pretty graphic but it’s not without purpose and is a crucial aspect of the overarching theme. The characters are all well-rounded and wonderfully developed. The narrative flows well and the prose arrestingly beautiful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Torture, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Sexism

smashley_rr's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.25

I have been wanting to read this book for SO long, but this one just was not for me. Allende is a gorgeous writer, the repeated themes throughout connected so well and the prose itself was beautiful, I just was not as invested in the story as I had hoped to be. There were times where it was okay and I enjoyed those small sections, but others I almost stopped reading. In the future I would like to try some other books by her, and hopefully I will find a story in one of those to match the beauty of her writing!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence

Moderate: Sexual violence and Sexual assault

Minor: Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Emotional abuse

seawarrior's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

4.0

While I felt that this book was difficult to initially get invested in since the plot didn't have a clear direction, and the narrator was unknown, once I fell into the story I was able to appreciate how lyrical and magical the writing is, even when describing horrific events. At its roots, this is a story about how a single patriarch destroys an entire country. Yet it blooms a story of family triumph and tragedy, of love that endures destruction, and how acts of violence are never restrained to a single point in time. It's a modern epic that is as rewarding to read as it is distressing. Although reading it does require a level of acceptance that this family is steeped in racism, misogyny and the violence inherent to massive wealth, I did think the book has worth. I would recommend it to those that can withstand reading about the subject matter, namely, the egregious sexual, physical, and political violence the leading character commits over his seemingly never-ending lifetime.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Infidelity, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Death, Rape, War, Torture, Slavery, Sexual violence, Misogyny, and Lesbophobia

tangerinetea's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Suicide attempt, Sexism, Sexual violence, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Rape

norimee's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

Moderate: Classism, Emotional abuse, Racism, Torture, Ableism, Death, Grief, Police brutality, Rape, Addiction, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Abortion

ryann_400's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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

5.0

This is MUST READ, no book has challenged my concept of time, family and politics like this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Torture, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Sexism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Blood, War, Violence, Rape, Police brutality, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Gun violence, Incest, Blood, Car accident, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Miscarriage, Religious bigotry, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship