Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Normal People by Sally Rooney

614 reviews

filipa_maia's review against another edition

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

Normal People? NORMAL PEOPLE? Excuse me? That is nothing normal about these people. They need therapy. I'm just glad that, by the end, at least one of them is getting therapy. I'm so mad at this book, so mad at this story. Why? What have we done to Sally Rooney? Honestly, I read it because I do not DNF books but I though about giving up a couple of times. I just don't get the point.

I felt sorry for Marianne a couple of times. Her family is completely broken and she gets nothing from them. Her entire childhood was a mess, her time in school was a living hell... I get it. But when she gets older, when she became and adult, there is no excuse anymore. She replaced her childhood trauma for current trauma by dating a bunch of weird guys and having very wild sex. Just go get some help! Connell is just annoying since the beginning of the story and until the last page. That is one toxic relationship that should have stayed in high school. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Abandonment, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Dysphoria, Toxic friendship, Body shaming, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Bullying, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Rape, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Death

matthewa118's review against another edition

emotional tense 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

This is a great book about non-romanticized love. It shows two very realistic depictions of people who love each other, but may not be the best for each other. I found myself both annoyed with and rooting for Connell and Marianne, which goes to show what complex characters they are

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Sexual assault

abbby029's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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

4.0

It's a great modern piece on intimacy and how relationships with other people can be affected by your relationship with yourself. I love how mental health is depicted in this book - the narrative that something is inherently wrong with oneself is something that's touched on a lot, but it's not described in a way that is this profound, ultimate thing that always stays with the character and feels unchangeable. The author's tone succeeds in creating a flow between the narrative and thoughts of a a character, but also an overall storytelling tone that describes this feeling of ultimate sadness and self-hatred, which both main characters experience, as something temporary. The sadness and crushing weight of depression is extremely well described, but it flows well into the next seasons of their lives as they overcome these thoughts and the reader is able to find their happiness (or contentedness) believable just as the characters themselves are beginning to believe in their own happiness. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault

e28rika's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Sexual harassment and Sexual assault

phantomeyer's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-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

3.0

The public’s opinion on this book is divided, and so too is mine. 

Perhaps easiest to first discuss is the writing style. While you could argue that the lack of punctuated dialogue contributed to the impression that each scene wasn’t so much a distinct event as a one of many moments in time, it seemed a lazy method to achieve this goal. Punctuate the sentences properly, and it would have been more obvious just how mundane some of the descriptions were. Not that mundane is necessarily bad, but it doesn’t sit well with me that this stylistic choice could be sufficient to turn mediocre writing into “good” writing. I will admit, however, Rooney does make good word choices, which at times lead to rather evocative passages. 

Next, the characters. I’ve seen complaints that the secondary characters aren’t fleshed out, but honestly I couldn’t care less. This book is about two people, and it makes sense to me that others seem unimportant in comparison. But let’s talk about these two characters. I don’t think they are unrealistic, but their arc felt rushed or disjointed at various points. Marianne all of a sudden fits in at college despite an incredibly isolating youth? Connell is intensely discomforted at the idea of dominating through violence, but gives away his former misgivings about psychological dominance without any reflection shared with the reader? It felt like Rooney was missing opportunities to explore interesting themes that would have added more depth to the book. Furthermore, skips such as these meant I was unable to maintain empathy consistently throughout the novel, and Marianne and Connell are not easy people to read about to begin with. You can’t afford to lose a reader’s empathy when your main characters’ struggles (to communicate, to make good decisions for themselves) become irritating without it. 

This leads me to my thoughts about the plot. As a general rule, I enjoy character-driven plot, but I was tired of the constant back and forth by the end. A correction: I was tired of it a quarter of the way in. Their relationship felt largely repetitive, and the change in dynamic in the final act was not explored enough. If I had cared more about the characters, the ending might have been poignant, but as it was, I was just happy to be free of joyless characters and a book that had not quite reached its potential.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Suicide, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, and Misogyny

Minor: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Self harm

sinningsammy's review against another edition

adventurous 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

4.75

After I picked this book up I couldn’t put it down. As I read this book I think I felt every emotion known to man in all honesty.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Body shaming, Bullying, Classism, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

skateybarb's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, and Suicide

czty27's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Sexual content, and Mental illness

Minor: Sexual assault and Death of parent

mirandalikesbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

I felt like I was rooting for Connell and Marianne while at the same time not really knowing what I was rooting for. This discussion of power dynamics was really beautifully done.

But

i have never read a book that ended so abruptly and i think i love it?

Honestly I did struggle with the dialogue not being in quotation marks...but I did adjust!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexism, Grief, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Drug use

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Eating disorder, and Classism

Minor: Injury/Injury detail

packedjam's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

😵‍💫

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, and Eating disorder

Minor: Mass/school shootings, Suicide, Fatphobia, Vomit, Classism, Abortion, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Drug use, Blood, and Racism