Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

In Memoriam by Alice Winn

92 reviews

caitlin_123a's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Antisemitism

clemireads's review against another edition

emotional tense 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: Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Grief, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

janetsuzanne's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, War, and Injury/Injury detail

nadijya's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

reflectiverambling_nalana's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative 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? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

A poignant and gritty historical fiction that does not shy away from the physical and emotional brutality of WWI. While marketed primarily on the lives of two friends turned lovers and the environment of the time for those attracted to the same gender, it should not be understated how much this book dedicates to friendships, bonds, as are and the assumptions of. While not as prominent it also addresses classism and has a beautiful not to how many gray areas existed 'behind enemy lines' in that even in the darkest places there were examples of compassion and a recognition of humanity no matter what language was spoken or what uniform was worn. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Homophobia, Vomit, and Classism

breanneporter's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

This is stunning. I generally stay away from anything to do with war, and I only picked this up due to a glowing review by a bookseller I trust, not really believing I would be able to finish it, but boy did it hook me and engage me and devastate me and teach me until the very end… I’m so so glad I gave it a shot. In Memoriam follows two high school best friends, Henry Gaunt and Sidney Ellwood, attending a wealthy public school in England when WW1 breaks out in 1914. Both boys are  secretly in love with the other, but believe it’s unrequited. They each end up at the front of the war and confront the horrifying realities of trench warfare, losing friends and parts of themselves along the way. 

This novel is not for the faint of heart: it is heart wrenching and painful and describes in visceral detail the terrible gore and tragedy of war, as well as the  long term effects, both physical and mental, on those who manage to survive. I listened on audio, which was excellent, but at times very difficult to picture. 

As many other reviewers note, however, there is levity and humor and romance interspersed in the horror. There are triumphs, big and small, and there are beautiful depictions of acceptance and found family. One of my favorite parts of the novel was

the friendship between Gaunt, Pritchett and Devi, the latter two of which demonstrate unflinching devotion and acceptance of Gaunt, despite how criminalized and stigmatized homosexuality was at the time.

Throughout the novel I kept googling WWI history based on Winn’s writing, and I feel like I re-learned so much from this novel that I’d long forgotten, and I’m so grateful for that. I would highly recommend to all historical fiction and LGBTQ fiction fans (even if you’re war-wary like me)!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, and Antisemitism

akbbailey's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

4.0

Slow in the start, but I gained interest in the characters as book progressed

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical trauma, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Homophobia and Pandemic/Epidemic

lealula's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Suicide

novelshire's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, and Grief

Minor: Confinement and Antisemitism

catorureads's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

This book does not romanticize war, yet it shows us how we can find love even in the cruelest places.
While this book is disturbing and sad, I found the moments that will haunt me the most are the smallest little things. The In Memoriam pages in the newspaper. When you see 16 years old next to a name of a boy in the list of killed in action. When people who're both German and English are forced to fight against their kin. 

The thing that will keep lingering in my mind however, is the very last page of this book. Without spoiling, it's another newspaper article of 10 November 1918. I think that says enough. 

I did not cry but it was a very brutal book so make sure you're in the right headspace to read this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Violence, Blood, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Antisemitism

Minor: Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Vomit