Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

197 reviews

swapacoinforafish's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-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

5.0

I really enjoyed this book. It's think everything I want in a book to feel like an exploratory rollercoaster but still have the cathartic ending that makes you feel good once you finish it. 
My favourite quote is "Aye well - what is it that they say? - try everything once, except incest and morris dancing."

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Content Warnings

Minor: Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

m4rtt4's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

I think this book should be primarily marketed as a trauma story, as it was quite dark rather than funny in my opinion. It made me smile as well, and those darker parts gave the story the depth it needed, but that's just because I do not have ptsd myself — please consider the trigger warnings carefully.

Since the story was such a slow-burning one, I wouldn't have minded had it been a bit longer as the ending felt a bit abrupt. And Eleanor really grew on me, it pains me to let her go :( <3 

The English audiobook narrator did an excellent job portraying the characters, I'd highly recommend the audio version over the text!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Medical content, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Child death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Self harm

mikaylanh's review against another edition

challenging sad 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

2.5

I wanted to enjoy this but honestly just found it very underwhelming and irritating to read. I understand Eleanor has a very advanced vocabulary as a result of her crossword obsession, but I was constantly (like, every other page) having to look up words she was using. All of them  could have easily been replaced with simpler words to make for a better, more accessible reading experience. Also thought Eleanor exhibited extremely creepy behavior when it came to the musician love interest… so overall, not a huge fan

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Toxic relationship, Child death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Addiction

Minor: Vomit

rich2023's review against another edition

emotional sad tense

4.0

This was a great book! It is about Eleanor who lives a lonely, solitary live where she doesn’t really interact with anyone but her mom. She goes to work, and other places like the grocery store but she is lonely. That is one the major themes throughout this book. It made me think about there are a lot of people in the world who are lonely and don’t have anyone there for them. The power of kindness and friendship from others makes a big impact on Eleanor.    
Warnings: Coarse Language, Emotional, Physical, and Mental Abuse, Alcoholism, Depression

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, and Cursing

Moderate: Emotional abuse

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Physical abuse

knikchevich's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Body shaming, Child death, Vomit, Child abuse, Mental illness, Domestic abuse, and Fatphobia

kvvai's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

There was quite a bit of Scottish slang as the story is set in Glasgow, Scotland and the author is Scottish. However, it was interesting to learn many new words. The characters in the story made me reflect who I aspire to be in society and how I want to live my life moving forward.  I think the author did a good job foreshadowing what may have happened in Eleanor's past.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Mental illness and Grief

venturajai31's review

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad slow-paced

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

5.0

Absolutely beautifully written. There are not enough words to describe the emotional rollercoaster I was on while reading this. It’s not at all what I thought from the blurb, it was a million times better. The growth of Eleanor and her evolution of strength was so beautiful and inspiring. I could not get enough of this!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Alcoholism, Mental illness, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Abandonment and Child abuse

kingsteph's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Domestic abuse, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Cancer, Death of parent, Child death, Fatphobia, and Child abuse

Minor: Rape

quixie's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Eleanor Oliphant is completely lovable and hilarious. Her story is so sad and I found myself desperately wanting to be her friend! Some of her social faux pas were entirely relatable, which endeared me to her character. I also loved Raymond and his mum, and Sammy. Such lovable characters. Such an engaging story. I’m so glad the author decided to speak on the subject of loneliness, which is a major problem ironically in our overly populated world. This book gave me so much joy and hope. Well done!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

Moderate: Murder, Violence, Child death, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Sexual assault, Grief, Death, and Vomit

Minor: Animal cruelty and Stalking

hnebel's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Alcohol, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, and Death