Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney

64 reviews

joisaddler's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Gaslighting, Grief, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Death, Fatphobia, Infertility, Medical content, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

magellen's review

dark mysterious sad tense slow-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

3.0

While the plot is twisty and really takes flight at about 75%, you spend most of the book bludgeoned by the phrase 'let herself go' or some adjacent negative assessment regarding every single woman in the book. Seriously it is exhausting, it rises in most chapters, whether it's a pov talking about herself, or her mother, or a coworker, just an endless loop of hate that doesn't add anything and makes the book feel particularly dated. 

The book is a great example of unreliable narration but is likewise tedious in stretches where the mc walks forward and backwards through her thoughts with zero self trust and yes, toxic relationships do instill distrust in one's self, but it just feels like bloat in the narrative when it doesn't stop. Likewise it breaks your trust in all the narratives, breaks the momentum the book has built and becomes a muddle halfway thru. Intentionally done and layered as it is it mostly works but I feel like I only began enjoying the book in the last quarter and prior to that it was simply 'welcome to untreated paranoia'.

Matters did hit a hat on a hat level as the book progressed. An antagonist born of the antagonist born of the protagonist. Yes Edward is a successful red herring but god what a loose thread that could have not been in the book at all except for sexual violence. While I'm pleased for the mc cleaning up her psycho sister in the end (gotta think with your head and not your fists, well done taylor) the bracelet reemerging had me rolling my eyes. Just close it out, jesus christ.

Every character is unlikable, no one ever has an honest conversation and yes sure Sometimes I lie, but the inconsistency and internalized body judgement gets in the way of it being a truly satisfying read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Body shaming, Car accident, Confinement, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, and Rape

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Bullying, Death of parent, and Medical content

Minor: Kidnapping, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Miscarriage

cherrypiejay's review

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Infidelity, Infertility, Grief, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Car accident, Torture, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Rape, Toxic relationship, Murder, Gaslighting, Violence, Toxic friendship, Stalking, Sexual assault, Medical trauma, Sexual violence, Blood, Alcohol, and Adult/minor relationship

adequateanja's review

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Well this was kinda fucked up. I liked the plot twist at the end. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Gaslighting

oshild's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Rape, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Stalking and Car accident

Minor: Infertility and Miscarriage

oliverreeds's review

challenging dark 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Rape, Sexual harassment, Emotional abuse, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Physical abuse, Stalking, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship

savvyrosereads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Rating: 3/5 stars

Amber Reynolds is in a coma, but she can hear everything going on around her—she just can’t remember how she got there, or figure out how to wake up.

This one was…not for me. In fairness, a plot where the main character is in a coma for 30% of the chapters is naturally going to feel a bit slow, but none of the timelines were particularly entertaining to me. I also had a lot of issues with the plot itself, which I won’t discuss here because spoilers.

As for what I did like—there are some beautiful quotes and the writing is really sophisticated. I also really like a twisty psychological plot, so even though the details of this one weren’t for me, the idea behind it all was fun. And, as always, it was so fun to buddy read with some of my faves!

Recommended if you like: cerebral psychological thrillers; multiple timelines; domestic-ish thrillers

CW (mild spoilers!!!): Sexual assault/rape; infertility/miscarriage/pregnancy loss; cancer/grief/death of loved one/death of parents; OCD/mental illness.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Rape, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Sexual violence, and Stalking

Moderate: Cancer and Terminal illness

marselise's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse

sarafinley's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

1.0

This was very much not for me.

I think the plot and twists would have been sufficient enough without the involvement of Edward and the very detailed rape scenes.

At the end of this book I had more questions than answers, and the parts that stood out the most weren’t even the biggest plot points- just the most disturbing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Rape

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Child abuse

the main character starts showing signs of OCD after severe childhood trauma. There were times where this character is called insane for her behavior. It also seemed as though these actions associated with her OCD were suppose to lead us to further believe she was an unreliable narrator - which it already established in other ways that she was.

1auren's review

dark emotional mysterious tense 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

This was a book that grabbed me from the beginning. Could not put it down. The ending kind of confused me and I almost wish it was left out.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Car accident, Emotional abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Pregnancy, Stalking, Violence, Gun violence, and Miscarriage