Reviews tagging 'Dementia'

The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi

6 reviews

klsreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

Wow, does Roshani Chokshi know how to write a beautiful sentence. You can really feel the world she crafted, which is no small feat as she jumps between whimsical and brutal realities. I love a coming of age story. I love a dark fairy tale. I love a personified house. I love a weird marriage with secrets. 

As always, check the TW's. There's nothing overly graphic, but plenty of unsettling, nasty things.

1 star docked because while this was stunningly beautiful and filled with fairy tale lore from around the world, the plot was quite slow and sometimes got lost in all the metaphors and similes. Because of that, I think it dragged and it took me a while to get through (though I am silly, silly busy right now). I'm a bit torn saying this, though, because I adored the character development in the backstory and am unsure if this could've been done at a faster pace. I wasn't as interested in the present-day story in the book, though the twists and turns hit some emotional slam-dunks. 

I will absolutely be reading more from Chokshi. Her writing is gorgeous! Highly rec if you like dark fairy tale, slow-burn, coming of age stories. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Blood, Dementia, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, and Grief

praaliine's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

this was so beautifully written and it really crept up on me. it really gets into the weirdness of teenage girlhood and it would have still been so good if that’s all the story explored, but then it goes further to explore marriage, relationships that border obsession, and this dangerous thing that is the want to be loved and desired. 

you’d think that this premise wouldn’t mesh well with a gothic yet whimsical tone, and in the style of a bizarre fever dream. but oh, how it does! it really lured me in with the premise and the lush, atmospheric prose and the story itself had me locked in till the end.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Dementia, and Grief

cheye13's review

challenging dark mysterious medium-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

2.0

The best thing I can say about this book is that the writing is beautiful. Stepping back, I can see what it was going for, but ultimately, I think it should've been a novella, or even a short story.

A big part of my disappointment is the fault of the synopsis. I had expected a bluebeard-like tale featuring the Bridegroom as a main character, but as is, he could've been removed from the story entirely. In actuality, this is the story of Indigo and Azure growing up together, and the all-encompassing nature of their friendship and the world they create together. It's an interesting story, but simply too long. Every element of the tale is overdrawn to the point that any initial tension dissolves.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Gore, Sexual content, Suicide, Dementia, Grief, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Rape, Dementia, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

a myriad of standard old-style fairytale content warnings, not graphically described, but consistently mentioned: rape, incest, murder, etc. A persistent predatory stepfather and an off-page sexual assault involving blackout drinking.

amberghinii's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Blood, Dementia, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

morellomel's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Dementia, and Toxic friendship

nikogatts's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Dementia, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail