Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Die stumme Patientin by Alex Michaelides

475 reviews

catarina_pego's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Violence, Stalking, Self harm, Mental illness, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Car accident, and Death of parent

cwbillings's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

2.0

Wow. Okay. I REALLY wanted to like this one. The first half kept me on my toes, the mystery and pacing was irresistible. And then the ending turned out to be such a let down. Predictable and anticlimactic. PLUS my major qualm with the book is how the author writes his characters. 

The way the male narrator describes the female characters and in turn the way the author writes women veers into misogyny. There are a number of likable male characters mentioned in this book and they have substance. Every woman is either a martyr or a monster. 

They all fit into a different stereotype one way or another. Every woman mentioned is a victim, a bitch (calls women this multiple times), or motherly. And their characterization goes no deeper than this. I noticed this about halfway through the book. It’s also worth mentioning, the story heavily takes place in a mental hospital, and somehow all the patients are women. 

So, unfortunately, this highly anticipated read became quite a chore to get through for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Medical content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Stalking, Medical trauma, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Misogyny

Minor: Alcohol

mlweih's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, Mental illness, Violence, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Confinement

Minor: Car accident

getyourghosts's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

Worryingly relatable at times.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Death, and Self harm

Moderate: Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide attempt, and Violence

melannedavis's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Violence, and Infidelity

anjh's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

oh my god wow. this book shocked me. it was a real page turner, one of the quickest books i’ve read this year. it was one of those books where you are kept on your feet and kept guessing thinking “is it this person?” “no it can’t be”, until one possiblity is ruled out and you form another theory but all the time there is a hidden clue (that the book is written to make you miss) and there is a plot twist and ahshdhdhhd

i think too there were some pretty interesting themes in this book - such as not only the devastating and shocking effects of untreated trauma and what it can do to people but also when this is combined with the power of love in the strongest of relationships the lengths people will go to to make things seemingly “right”. honestly this all probably makes no sense unless you read the book but ahhh it’s so good and just,,, thrilling

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Domestic abuse, Blood, Car accident, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence

rachelhelmer's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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

Minor: Infidelity and Violence

aaashtyn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I really enjoyed this book, I haven’t read a thriller/mystery in a while, and this was a great book to get back into that genre.

The plot twist was phenomenal, I never predicted that Theo was the husband of the affair that linked him and Alicia and hence the whole purpose of the book.

I personally think that every character in this book is crazy, but that’s what makes us all human. I enjoyed reading the different perspectives, and it helped complete the story more and give more insight into who was “good” or “bad”.

I wish the ending was more complete and defined instead of being left ambiguous after the inspector shows up at Theo’s house; however I just prefer books that have a clear ending and not an ambiguous one.

Overall I loved the book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, and Infidelity

Moderate: Murder, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

saisrei's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Alcohol, Gun violence, Addiction, Blood, Death of parent, Infidelity, Medical content, Violence, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Suicide attempt

therealanakin's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Suicide, Sexual content, Gun violence, Violence, Suicide attempt, and Infidelity

Minor: Stalking