Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

The September House by Carissa Orlando

1 review

bambooboy's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted sad tense fast-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

5.0

It can be hard to write an allegory for domestic violence without coming off insensitive or ham-fisted. In The September House, Orlando manages to gracefully use the metaphor of a haunted house beautifully. This book was darkly funny, with engaging characters that keep you wanting more of them after you put the book down.

I was concerned that she was going to go the coward's route and have the protagonist institutionalized after being characterized as crazy, but luckily she does not!

There is real growth among the characters and you find yourself rooting for them, even those that you might be surprised by. The descriptions are artistically disgusting, and the detached nature of the protagonist's voice is startlingly realistic. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Alcohol, Physical abuse, Body horror, Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, Confinement, Death, Murder, Suicide attempt, Torture, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Child abuse, Violence, Vomit, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Suicide, Cannibalism, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Cursing, and Bullying

Minor: Stalking, Self harm, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Detailed description of content warnings below

--Father is an alcoholic, who becomes sober and then relapses
--Father is emotionally and physically abusive to mother; attempts to be abusive to daughter so mother removes her from home
--Multiple child murders, graphic descriptions of torture and murder
--Gaslighting protagonist as to existence of ghosts
--Many graphic descriptions of bodies being twisted and deformed, tortured
--Protagonist is abused emotionally and physically for many years and the ways she copes are covered
--Multiple people commit suicide in the house, deaths described
--Multiple descriptions of vomit, especially vomiting flies
--One character is murdered in a fireplace, attempts made to burn entire house down
--Daughter attempts to institutionalize mother