Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

The Fury by Alex Michaelides

20 reviews

leebeeloves's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Death, Mental illness, Gun violence, Infidelity, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcoholism

Minor: Blood and Domestic abuse

avidreaderandgeekgirl's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.25

    It's a thriller based very loosely on Lana Taylor's murder. (Or that's my guess)
   There were many twists and turns, but I figured out some partway through. I knew it would some way tie back to the other books. As they all tie back to each other.
   

I would have liked to know what he meant by, if you read this I'm dead part. Maybe I just don't remember from the other books.

     None of the characters were particularly likable which did make it harder to enjoy. Though it was well written. It was very atmospheric. I also would have liked someone else's POV besides Elliot, since he was a highly unreliable narrator.

Narrator Rating: 4.5 stars
   The narrator did an excellent job. Though he was a bit easy to zone out to.

Extra ratings: Fluff-NA   Heartfelt-3/5   Helpful-NA    Horror-NA   Inspiration-NA   Love aka Romance-0.5/5  Mystery-3/5    Predictability-1.5/5  Spice-0/5   Suspense-3/5   Tear- 1.5/5  Thrill-3.5/5   Humor-0/5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Alcohol, Abandonment, Toxic friendship, Death, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Infidelity, Gun violence, Gaslighting, Bullying, Drug use, and Mental illness

Moderate: Murder, Addiction, Cursing, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Animal death, and Violence

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, Vomit, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Rape

kelshenka's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Challenging characters (plus unreliable narrator) ricochet off one another, unraveling the story like the threads of a scarf tugged loose by cold fingers of wind. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, Infidelity, Murder, Misogyny, Bullying, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Blood, Cursing, and Toxic friendship

aileron's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Infidelity, Murder, Gun violence, Violence, and Death

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Stalking, and Bullying

Minor: Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse

annaavian's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

While this book had the potential to be great, I found it's heavy reliance on dramatic elements for shock value rather disappointing and tiring. 

The flow of the story often felt unbalanced. Some scenes tended to drag on longer than necessary, while other key moments were rushed through or not fully developed. This unevenness in the pacing detracted from the overall enjoyment I had while reading.
I also felt there was a lack of credibility and common sense throughout, which prevented me from fully enjoying it. The characters' choices often came across as being poorly thought out. 
And while Elliott may not have been the most likable or believable narrator, it would have added depth to the story if his past had been more fully developed. 

Overall, this book felt like a shallow imitation of an Agatha Christie novel, lacking the depth, complexity and attention to detail that made her novels so captivating. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Infidelity, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse

Minor: Domestic abuse, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Bullying, Drug use, and Stalking

sarahm's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-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

4.0

Alright, here’s my once-in-a-blue-moon thriller read! I don’t think I’ve read one since 2022! (The Storygraph says Killers of a Certain Age counts as a thriller - read late 2023 - but I disagree). 

I enjoyed this one! The style is interesting: the narrator tells the story directly to the audience, as though we’re listening to a verbal story from an acquaintance. The character of the narrator knows a reader is listening to the story as they are telling it, and it’s obvious to the audience that the same character would tell the story differently if they were just writing it down for themselves in a journal. It definitely makes you think about why the character chooses to explain things in certain ways. (And why the author chose to have the character make these choices…). 

The pacing is interesting too: the narrator tells us some parts of the story several times, adding a new piece of information for further context each time. The plot unfolds bit by bit. And the plot of this book – the reveals, the ups and downs, et cetera – are not about the murder. Those first two sentences of the synopsis are accurate: this isn’t a murder mystery. It’s a character study. The plot is about the main character. It’s a really interesting and neat way to tell a story, and as someone who doesn’t read a lot of thrillers and doesn’t mind that this one has pretty slow pacing… I enjoyed it. I think it’d make a great book discussion pick for the right book group. 

(Thanks to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the e-ARC!)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Violence, and Child abuse

noladawnreads's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Murder

Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic friendship, and Child abuse

Minor: Bullying and Domestic abuse

readingindc's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.75

This was a fairly solid read, however the first person narration style with this particular main character was a bit challenging for me. I enjoyed the stetting and most of the characters, but the style got a bit confusing by the end of the story. However the idea to have so many of the characters have a connection to acting really helps make the plot a bit more believable. Overall a vast improvement over the Maidens! 

Thank you to the author and publisher for providing this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity and Child abuse

Minor: Domestic abuse

devynreadsnovels's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Gun violence, Infidelity, Death, Violence, Cursing, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Grief, Murder, and Physical abuse

Minor: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, and Abandonment

gkaltam's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Blood

Moderate: Domestic abuse