Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

13 reviews

theiagrace's review against another edition

funny mysterious 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

4.5

This is the first fiction book I've actually finished in years. The preface would catch you off guard and the break in the fourth wall stopped me multiple times to check if I've been actually paying attention. It was a fun read. Every single character is flawed and slowly built up into a fiery reveal. However, I don't know how I feel about the biggest twist at the end, I haven't decided yet. But that doesn't take away from how much a good time this book is.

P.S. I've experienced needing to rent snow chains from Jindabyne and run a sedan up the snowy mountains on turtle pace and because of that I've decided early on that I like Ernest, from shared trauma.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Gore, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Abandonment

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Drug use, and Drug abuse

Minor: Suicide

Themes sprinkled in are very heavy but treated lightheartedly

as that is how the narrator deals with difficult things.

aloeverra's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? No

4.75

A very fun read and listen (I did a little of both). The author has a great way with words and descriptions. I loved the family dynamic and how it transitions in the book. It was great to enjoy a surprising plot that also looks hard at family problems and the idea of hero and anti-hero.  I only didn't make 5 stars for me because there were still sometimes I felt the plot and how it was presented to us became overly convoluted, but in the end things wrap up nicely. I can't wait to pick up his next book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse

Moderate: Torture

Minor: Drug abuse, Death of parent, Vomit, Child death, Kidnapping, and Infidelity

Emotional Abuse Content

The main character's mother is terrible about ostracizing and actively disowning the main character. They both gain understanding later in the book, but it's pretty hard to read at the start

Torture Context

this involves past description of choking and suffocating, though it is not described as it happens from any of the victim's perspectives. It is brought up and talked about 3 or 4 times.

ecstarr's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Vomit, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Medical trauma, Addiction, Suicide, Violence, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Torture, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Murder, and Self harm

cianarae's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Child death, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Blood, Addiction, Infertility, Death of parent, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Death, Drug use, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Emotional abuse, Murder, Gun violence, Grief, Confinement, Drug abuse, and Child abuse

cmc027's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Kidnapping, Infidelity, Child death, Suicide, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Addiction

ashmak06's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Vomit, Suicide, Child death, Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Medical content, Torture, Blood, Drug abuse, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

bubblehead_1994's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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

Minor: Infidelity, Medical content, Death, Death of parent, Blood, Abandonment, Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, and Suicide

cartridgepink's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.75

Great book. I was having so much fun I stopped trying to work out the mystery and just enjoyed reading instead. (I did work it out anyway but that's not the point.) Funny, layered without being overly convoluted, great characters, and a satisfying mystery to boot.

Last year I went to a Melb Writers Festival event where Ben was a speaker. I hadn't read the book but was a fan of him + his brother's musical comedy. Panel goes well, Ben cracks jokes all the way through, then they open it up to Q&A and an elderly lady in the front row says, "Are you actually a comedian?" Honestly as brutal as some of the murders in the book. Gotta respect it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Vomit, Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Blood, Body horror, Suicide, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Blood, Car accident, Medical content, and Infertility

Minor: Pregnancy and Emotional abuse

mainjane's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Child death

Minor: Emotional abuse and Child abuse

75ayla's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-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

3.5

More like 3.5/5. But I always round up if I like how the author wrote the story line.

I very much enjoyed the satirical way the author wrote this. You won’t guess the twist at end in a way I’m not sure felt entirely satisfying but in a way that gave a very dramatic ending. 

I would say if you’re looking for a comical take on a thriller this is probably the way for you to so.

That being said check your trigger warnings before you get started, especially is child death is on that list for you. Not positive if this would be considered a big spoiler so I marked it just to be safe.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Torture, Child death, Child abuse, Confinement, Violence, Vomit, Death of parent, Infidelity, Murder, Body horror, Death, Grief, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Blood