Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - I Have the Right to Destroy Myself

Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

I Have the Right to Destroy Myself by Young-Ha Kim

16 reviews

anna_l's review

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challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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noella19's review

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dark reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.75

All in all be careful when you read the book. Very trigger warning conversations

The brothers felt even more like strangers at the end than in the beginning.

I feel for K and the fact that he attempted to reach out but was ignored by C. He seems very lost and the book ends with him unraveling.

C is quite literally the worst. He appears to believe himself the center of the universe but not to a degree were he consideres himself above everything and everyone else (at least not blatantly) but he’s just so stuck in his own world. Everyone appears like a prop in his life to keep his day going and even though some made an impact in his life but somehow not enough to ground him in reality. He seems not see people as people but pieces and some with more depth than others.

Mimi and Judith felt like text book manic pixie girls but yet were intriguing. Can’t say their choices surprised me but their explanations fell flat but maybe it’s because they were talking to c and were aware of how he views them. I wanted more from and for them.

The ominous voice that assisted with the decisions to exit was intriguing to say the least. At first I thought he was simply the embodiment of death himself but clearly he wasn’t but he was something else. His reasoning is realistic but unfair to most but he seemed to hold more compassion for the people he met and helped.

The book sad and the characters are broken but each one is finding a way to cope or make the pain go away.

All in all be careful. Take breaks if necessary.

Content Warnings

angela_iseli's review

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dark medium-paced

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

2.0

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quills4days's review

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dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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jhw's review

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dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

bookcaseclosed's review

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challenging dark mysterious tense 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

3.75

Similar to Han Kangs "The Vegetarian", but with less story. The premise is pretty cool but the story is just a little bit too confusing.

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abbie_'s review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

4.0

Bleak and I loved it. Sometimes I find Korean fiction a little too obscure - like I’m almost getting it but I can’t quite grasp the full extent. Not so with I Have the Right to Destroy Myself, but it’s also not too on-the-nose. I loved the set up, a mysterious man on the hunt for clients - although I’ll not spoil the services he provides. Then there are stories within the main frame, stories of the people he encounters. It explores lust and art, and of course death, and it just reads so smoothly. Highly recommend, though heed the content warnings.

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joyfulhopes's review

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dark mysterious fast-paced

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

2.75

Content Warnings

maybeillreadtoday's review

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3.0

i think a lot of this went over my head but the overarching theme is whether or not people have the right to end their lives and thats a big and murky conversation to have that i dont think will ever have a concrete answer so ... neat? that the author took it upon themselves to try and explore that through this narrator who's sole job? purpose? is to assist people interested in ending their lives.

felt a little like a wong kar wai movie in which nothing really happens and its really just snippets of different characters' lives that are all connected in one way or another. admittedly not a huge fan of those movies for that exact reason but i can totally appreciate the art of those movies/this book.

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manasvini's review

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challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I expected this book to be weird and I expected not to like it. Turns out, it was weird, but a kind of weird that spoke to me. This strange and surreal story held many moments that were so vivid and gripping, and spurred my imagination. The fast pace helped, not letting you marinate in the strange, forcing you to accept it and move on. Almost reminded me of The Stranger by Camus. A good read for those who enjoy the absurd.

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