Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

137 reviews

ajourneythroughpages's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Racism, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, and Stalking

Minor: Pregnancy, Police brutality, Suicide, Drug use, and Abandonment

ginacarlotta's review against another edition

emotional funny 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? N/A

5.0

Ich habe mitgelacht, mitgeweint und vor allem mitgefühlt! Ein so gutes Buch über race, Kindheitstrauma, Freundinnenschaft und vor allem das wichtigste: gut für sich selbst sorgen. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse

liesbethvv's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

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

5.0

Oh Queenie. If I’ve ever wanted to hug a book character, it would have to be Queenie. So closed off, so ready to write herself off, so violated by the atrocious behaviour of the men (and some women) in her life, she somehow finds the power to work through. Amazing!
The darkly witty writing style is an enormous feat in a book with topics like rape, abuse and mental illness covered, but somehow it really works here. This book will stay with me a long time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, and Emotional abuse

gcrespo97's review against another edition

challenging emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book gave me so much anxiety but it was so good I couldn’t put it down. I had so much love for the main character and wanted things to work out for her so badly. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Police brutality, Panic attacks/disorders, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse

lectrixnoctis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Queenie Jenkins is a 25-year-old Jamaican British young woman living in London, perching two cultures and slotting into neither. She works at a national newspaper, where she is frequently forced to compare herself to her white middle-class equivalents. After a messy break-up from her long-term white boyfriend, Queenie seeks comfort in all the wrong places, including several hazardous men who do an excellent job of occupying brain space and a bad position of establishing self-worth.

As Queenie reels from one debatable decision to another, she wonders why she is doing all this or why does she not stop, although it might not be something she wants —all of the inquiries today's women must encounter in a world trying to reply them for her.

This story is incredibly raw, and I think that everyone in his early adulthood would enjoy this piece of fiction. I can see why this novel has won the award. I found it fascinating to read about all these different characters and how they intertwine in the story, but the focus is still on the protagonist herself. I think it has so much nuance that you probably don't get in mainstream books by white authors.

How the author approaches tough topics like anxiety or racism is astonishing, and  I cannot get enough of her writing style. Although it was so raw, it was so beautifully written that I just wanted to keep reading; although it was so natural, it was so beautifully written that I just wanted to keep reading. 

Sadly, I had a big reading slump; however, I finally found the time again to pick it up and finish it in one go, and I think it has a lot to do with the book itself. I don't believe that every reader could've done that; I did not have a reading slump because of it.

Overall I highly recommend this book. When you're in your early 20s are becoming an adult, you should read this book. All women or female-presenting people can relate to a situation somehow. The nuance with interracial dating and racism was so interesting that I will read more of the works.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Grief, Rape, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, Medical content, Miscarriage, Alcohol, Cultural appropriation, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, and Sexual harassment

alisonannk's review against another edition

emotional informative sad medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Racism, Toxic friendship, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Rape, Infidelity, Eating disorder, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Fatphobia, Body shaming, and Abandonment

Minor: Medical trauma, Violence, and Cultural appropriation

jmcampbell57's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Infidelity, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, and Alcohol

Minor: Police brutality, Toxic friendship, Eating disorder, and Toxic relationship

cfrancoeur's review

challenging dark hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes

4.25

This was a rollercoaster of emotions. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse

toffishay's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-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

3.0

It can be a really tense read and it stuck with me long after I finished. Not one that you return to often, but the messaging and what you learn from this complex character is worth the endeavor.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse

Moderate: Self harm and Sexual violence

Minor: Physical abuse

armontheroad's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

CONTENT WARNING FOR REVIEW: Discussions of rape

QUEENIE is a novel that does not shy away from hard-hitting topics. Candice Carty-Williams did such an amazing job at making me care for Queenie. MY heart broke over and over again at all the traumatic experiences Queenie was put through. There were a few reasons this wasn’t five stars. Firstly, I was so happy seeing Queenie go into therapy, however, I was waiting for her to unpack the fact the sexual encounters she has throughout this book were in fact all rape. I don’t like this was never talked about because it leaves even more survivors thinking their experiences are totally normal, nothing to worry about, and it leaves them unaware that their experiences are rape. I do like that Queenie mentions implementing the behaviors she learned in therapy in her day-to-day life, though. Secondly, the female/male terminology is transphobic and dehumanizing. I do not believe there is reason to use these terms at all in modern language. It gave me major ick every time I saw a woman referred to as a female or a man referred to as a male. Especially since there is no way of knowing from just looking at someone. I did not believe those two things were enough to take away a full star, so I left my rating at a 4.5-star rating. I severely recommend this book, however, it is dark and you should be fully aware of all of the content and trigger warnings before going into your read. I am looking forward to reading more from Candice Carty-Williams!!

CWs: Gentrification, fetishization, microaggressions, TERF language (female and male are not terms that should be used at all), all other warnings are listed below.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Miscarriage, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Rape, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Police brutality, Fatphobia, Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Abandonment

Minor: Slavery and Car accident