Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Normal People by Sally Rooney

1323 reviews

withlivjones's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

3.5

I really wanted to love this book, especially considering all the hype that surrounds it. And there were definitely things that I enjoyed about it. I thought Connell and Marianne were really interesting as individual characters, Sally Rooney is very good at creating these very flawed but nonetheless relatable and sympathetic characters. Both Connell’s struggles with his mental health and Marianne’s abuse at home which leads her to pursue toxic friendships and relationships outside her home were very interesting to read. It’s a real shame that the relationship between the two was the most boring part of the book. The sentiment of two characters whose lives are intimately tangled together is a very intriguing one, but when their relationship ends up being a continuous cycle of miscommunication after miscommunication, it gets old pretty quickly. If it’s a trope you enjoy, this book will probably be right up your street. But for me, I’ve come to realise that no matter how well written (and this is a very well written book), it’s a trope that I really don’t enjoy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Sexual content, Suicide, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Racism

itsrua's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Grief

Minor: Body shaming, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Abortion, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment

lunacueva's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence

Moderate: Eating disorder and Physical abuse

ahrya's review against another edition

emotional fast-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Violence

nklimczak's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Grief

hjb_128's review against another edition

emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Drug use, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual content, and Classism

Minor: Death of parent

modeislodis's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.25

Rooney is an exceptional writer, but I was upset that her characters couldn’t accept being so deep in love. It was portrayed like their love was a weakness. That bothered me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Physical abuse

somills's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

I’m taking it a bit fucking personally that anyone thought that a rating under 5 stars was appropriate here. I realize that’s dramatic but I’m PROCESSING. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

estellegodard's review against another edition

fast-paced

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

3.0

I found this book pretty enjoyable to read but I did not find the character study to be earth shattering at all. a lot of these sentiments were familiar to me already and it thematically didn’t feel like anything ground breaking; very overhyped book.
the very last chapter of the book was the most clear-cut depiction of the protagonists’s relationship and the way each views love. but all in all, I never felt convinced of their affection for eachother nor of the complexities and obstacles they faced. the entire time it feels like we are circling around the main point this novel is trying to make, yet we never truly achieve it. 
lastly, it also felt like many characters were meant to be unlikable but we were never given a proper motive , like alan for example. many of the peripheral characters were one-dimensional even though they play a pretty big role in each of the protagonists’s developmental arc. 
overall, I would say this is a very middle of the road book that doesn’t provide much human relatability at all, despite that seemingly being the point. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse

Minor: Mental illness

13oclockreads's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

I went in expecting a romantic novel and clearly I was wrong. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Suicide