Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Near the Bone by Christina Henry

60 reviews

cyris_reads'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? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Gaslighting

jes_reads00's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Kidnapping, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Gore, Rape, and Sexual assault

trrm's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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

5.0

I loved this book! You have multiple stories going on once you meet the newer characters to explain various plots in the story. I loved how Mattie went from a little, timid, dormouse to someone who finds inner strength she never remembered having before coming to the cabin. 

This book disturbed me a bit too so if you’re not into kidnapping and the makings of a child bride, this one isn’t for you. I always struggle with stories about young children and sexual abuse, this one caught me off-guard. Once the realization is made and you connect some dots, you’re even more freaked out!

The only thing I want to know is: Does she ever find Heather?!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault

emilylikesbread's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

2.5

Just sorta meh for me. Characters felt very flat. Their development, as well as the progression of the plot, also felt rushed and underdeveloped. There was some imagery that was creepy, but for the most part didn’t find this thrilling. The cryptid was so vague and when it was described it honestly sounded more silly than scary. There was good ideas in the book but overall didn’t feel well fleshed out 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, and Violence

Minor: Confinement and Sexual assault

yekani's review against another edition

dark tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping

Moderate: Miscarriage and Sexual assault

ronja234's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, and Murder

Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

scjasmine04's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

mandi_lea's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

romeisnotindc's review against another edition

4.0

Really good at building atmosphere and narrative voice. Wish we could’ve gotten more lore about the creature.

the creature is kind of always just there as a threat, occasionally picking people off. We never learn what it really is or even get a distribution other than it’s got claws and it’s big. It’s behavior and the mystery around it is what makes it scary, but I would’ve liked even just a little info on what it actually was, where it came from, or even just what it looks like.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death

elitheradguy's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

This story was sold to me as a creature feature, and it very much is, but the creature is not the forefront of this story by any means and is more of a metaphorical device than something that is dived into in detail. The story centers a lot more on our main character and the abuse she suffers at her "husband". 

We learn later that this was actually her mother's boyfriend, and he kidnapped her when she was eight years old in order to groom her.

All in all, I feel like this was a beautifully done story. I've never suffered abuse myself, but it seemed like a liberating story to me about an abuse victim who finally manages to break free of her situation and find something better. I would hope that, if an abuse victim read this story, they would have the same hope for something better that I finished the story with. Fair warning that the emotional and physical abuse in this story is explicit, and I'd imagine that this would be an incredibly hard read for somebody who's been through abuse like this before. Take care if you intend on reading this story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, and Blood

Moderate: Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexual assault

Minor: Animal death