Reviews tagging 'Dysphoria'

Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin

217 reviews

jenkinel's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

ciaranolio's review against another edition

challenging 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

Post-apocalyptic hyper-gory trans horror, about a future where a virus has turned all humans with a certain level of testosterone into monsters. Incredible character writing, especially enjoyed the two trans female pov characters and their views on trans womanhood in their TERF-ruled dystopia in which maleness is actually the ultimate mark of violence. Absolutely not for the faint of heart
TWS: extreme violence, rape & sexual violence (on-page), misogyny, violent transphobia, racism (including lynching), body horror, fascism, frequent and detailed discussions of body image, eating disorders, medical trauma.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Deadnaming, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Cannibalism

birbmcbirb's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

This book made me very uncomfortable, and goes at a pace that makes you feel like you can't catch you  breath. The characters were flawed, sometimes to an annoying extent, but in a way that mimicks a found family of traumitized people. I think it's worth sticking through the hard parts, but make sure youre in a good head space before you pick this one up. Especially if youre someone targeted by TERFS & SWERFS.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Deadnaming, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Biphobia, Eating disorder, Incest, Racism, Stalking, and Cultural appropriation

theofanis's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring 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? It's complicated

5.0

READ IT

Are you a leftist, are you a trans ally, do you want to be a trans ally, do you think you’re a trans ally, are you trans, are you genderqueer, are you part of the lgbtq community, do you want an inside look to a part of the trans experience?

READ THIS BOOK

I will be thinking about this book for the rest of my life. It’s terrifying and amazing and so impactful. 

As a trans guy reading the pov of a fictional hot cool and strong trans guy with a similar background was awesome. And the trans female leads are so powerfully written. 

It’s just such an amazing book and it’s gotta be my favorite fiction I’ve ever read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Police brutality, Cannibalism, Murder, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Infertility, and Dysphoria

Minor: Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Deadnaming, Miscarriage, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent

__katdoesbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring sad tense fast-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 was one of the best books I have read in a while and cannot recommend it enough! It was reminiscent of Moths by Jane Hennigan, but substantially darker. The issues tackled in the book are even more heartbreaking as, although set in a dystopian setting, they are real and current dangers. Your attachment and love for the characters just grows with every page, and it left me emotionally devastated. A true modern horror classic.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Transphobia, Grief, Dysphoria, and Classism

vampfang's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-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? Yes

4.5

i really loved this one! the writing style felt very “by queer people, for queer people,” with perspectives and cultural references that felt familiar to me, but at the same time i think is engaging and worthwhile for everyone to read! the premise is such an intriguing metaphor and when i first heard “a virus turns all men evil” it sounded like something a cis woman cooked up, and was really happy to see the idea executed by a trans woman instead. as a tme person it broadened my horizons and it was just really interesting to read from the perspective of transfemmes. i do wish there were a bit…more to the book. while the characters do undergo growth, there was no real sense of finality to it for me.

everything after the escape from the screw felt incredibly rushed to me, with the sudden introduction of tons of new characters and confusing fight scenes. when the characters emerge from the turmoil, it’s not quite clear what changes have occurred. fran’s apology to beth felt hasty, and i would’ve liked more backstory about the two of them. ramona’s changing perspective on trans women seemed like it didn’t develop properly, though her ending at least made sense. while beth indi and robbie all had whole arcs i still find myself wanting more. i also think the virus metaphor and its implications could be explored a bit more.

all in all, it feels like more of the first installment in a series than a standalone, and i for one would love to read more. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Transphobia, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Gore and Miscarriage

imcourtneymarie's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.0

This book gave me literal nightmares when I first started reading it. The writing is so vivid and the concept so realistic that the horror comes less from the gore or sickening TERFs and more from how this world that’s written about is not so far off what we have now — snarling, rape-y men included.

Make sure to check the trigger warnings!!!

I found it quite jumpy at times and was not expecting it to be as smutty as it was. That’s biggest gripe. I feel like so much of this story could have been told without the sex (I don’t love smut in any of my stories fwiw). So if you’re not a smut reader, I would not enthusiastically recommend Manhunt. 

Fran and Beth and Robbie and Indi’s internal stories were heartbreaking and they all deserved better in this shitty world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Dysphoria, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Deadnaming, Death, Suicide, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Fatphobia and Trafficking

zachzakku's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

What a horrifying book. I thought I should read it slowly, alongside something lighter, but it started giving me nightmares so I binge-read the ending. This was a tough read, especially in the beginning when I was still meeting characters and wrapping my head around the world. What makes it especially terrifying is that all the monsters in this book--abusive men and TERFs--are absolutely real. This book is just what happens when all of life's real monsters stop pretending and do what they really want to do.

From a writing perspective, I think this book is exceptionally well written. It's honest, it digs deep, and we get into all of the main characters' heads in a way that makes their motivations believable. I adore Robbie (of course) and found Ramona fascinating. I think Ramona is meant to represent the average self-proclaimed-but-not-actually-an ally: claims to support trans people, until it's inconvenient for her; never actually does anything; still has the gall to get upset when trans people don't bend over backwards to thank her... Brilliant depiction.

This nightmare-inducing, too-real novel should be required reading. Replace Shakespeare with Manhunt.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Death, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Murder, Outing, Dysphoria, and Pandemic/Epidemic

sophiesticatedselections's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny fast-paced

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

4.25

Intriguing premise is what kept my interest throughout. I found a some of the characters (Fran and Ramona especially) insufferable and others (like Robbie for the first 2/3 of the book) dull and underdeveloped. Beth and Indi were my favs and I wish we got more of their POVs. Not sure how I feel about the book overall and whether I would recommend it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Toxic friendship, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Cancer, Confinement, Deadnaming, Drug use, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

caseylovett's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

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

1.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Rape, Transphobia, Violence, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Deadnaming, Death, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Self harm, Blood, Cannibalism, and Dysphoria