Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

Death in Her Hands by Ottessa Moshfegh

53 reviews

beanwa's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.75

Wow. This book is actually a bit different from Moshfegh's other work in that Vesta is actually quite sympathetic imo. And, this is the only one of her books that's made me cry - I had to pace myself with the last chapter because otherwise it would have been too much. I feel like this story was a really accurate depiction of life post-abusive relationship, and Vesta's loneliness and slow descent into madness was beautifully written and heart wrenching. I just loved it - but fucking ouch man.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death

Moderate: Cancer and Emotional abuse

kelleywithanextrae's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective 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? Yes

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death, Death, Blood, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, and Child death

robi_locksley's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fatphobia, Animal death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Body shaming, Cancer, Classism, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, and Emotional abuse

tangerinetea's review against another edition

dark emotional funny 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: Cancer and Fatphobia

Minor: Domestic abuse

akadie's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective 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

2.75

At first I stopped reading the book, because it started slow and then made quite a few fat phobic comments that I did not see the point in. However, the other reviews on here intrigued me to at least continue a little further. After finishing the Story, it is really interestingly written. However still a rather slow development with the fat phobia continuing throughout.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Fatphobia, Animal death, Murder, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Cancer, Terminal illness, Infidelity, Death, and Grief

mikmocha's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Fatphobia, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Cancer

hanreadin's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Terminal illness, Body shaming, Death, and Fatphobia

Minor: Abortion

callikat's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-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

3.75

I love how provoking Moshfegh's books can be, this was no exception! The tone you feel throughout the novel is isolation. Vesta is an older widow, who lives miles out in the woods, and is new to town -- she interacts very little with others, and only has her dog Charlie for companionship. You see her reflect on her life, and see she never really fit in before either; always watching from afar, the central character being her husband Walter, who she was very emotionally estranged from.

The only interruption to her routine is the death of a mystery woman "Magda." This is where her vivid imagination plays out, as she builds the entire mystery of what happened. You see Vesta get more and more unwound as the novel goes on. It's a very lonely novel, especially as Vesta reflects on her life and all the missed opportunities -- you can really feel the quiet defeat, up until the end when she finally takes charge.

As always the prose is excellent but I liked this book less than her others. It is basically a steam of consciousness with very little dialogue, and I found it hard to pay attention sometimes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death

Moderate: Cancer

alisonfaith426's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Animal death, Classism, Grief, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Blood

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Cancer, Death, Excrement, and Terminal illness

Minor: Suicide attempt and Infidelity

x_lola_rose_x's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I feel like I'm going to have to read this again one day with everybody's theories in mind!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Excrement, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Infidelity, and Murder