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Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'
Southern Gothic - Das Grauen wohnt nebenan by Grady Hendrix
185 reviews
_cecilie_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I will not repeat all my rantings and ravings here but compile a few of the points I thought most important. First, I really respect that this story would work almost as well if it had no fantasy in it at all and that it is frustrating but in a good, a real way. Patricia (and the other women in this story) is undervalued, not being believed, made to feel small and helpless and if you have any semblance of empathy it will make you curse and seethe on their behalf while feeling as powerless as them. Not to say that these are unproblematic characters, oh no! If you have a problem with reading about sexist or racist characters then maybe skip this one entirely, especially if you have the feeling that you need to brush up on your media literacy skills. All of these characters are flawed but at the same time distinct, fleshed out and worthy of sympathy.
I loved (hated, but it was a good kind of hate) that all of them had to sacrifice something, that nothing was sunshine and rainbows at the end but they had to deal with real consequences. Also, I'm not saying that chopping up poeple you hate is a great way to deal with them but some just have it coming.
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Rape, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Violence, Body horror, Classism, Gore, Grief, Sexism, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Dementia, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, Racism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, and Stalking
sayhar13's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Body horror, Rape, Suicide attempt, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Death, Dementia, and Blood
arukeni's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Violence, Misogyny, Blood, Death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Child death, Domestic abuse, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Racism, and Suicide
Moderate: Rape, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault
nerdie88's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Child death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Suicide attempt, Gore, Suicide, Body horror, Forced institutionalization, and Mental illness
sar_she_her's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
~ Entertaining at x1.2 speed.
- Fyi LOTS of gore and Trigger Warnings for many themes. In addition to numerous ones cited below, also creepy/crawly/gross out factor. (Albeit, worst gore is mostly in isolated parts of book: earlier in book as impetus for some call to action, and 1/2-2/3 through book with family endangerment, and 3/4-end with more of the same.)
+ I used to have to skip any books narrated by the much celebrated Bahni Turpin bc her performances of immature, catty, or complaining/whiny characters was too grating. But her array of performances for this book's variety of personalities and ages really impressed me and even converted me as a new fan. impressive performance!
~ While surely part of the author's intentional commentary, his representation of the male partners and how dismissive, condescending, and unaware they were was enraging. His tipping of the scales, whether feeling odds were against certain characters, or the resolution of certain conflicts, felt too steep and stacked, left unfinished or too tidily wrapped up. I wish these scenarios or interpersonal conflicts were more mixed and balanced.
~ Similarly, for better or worse, predictable. which can be helpful with scary horror, depends on readers' preferences.
+ That said I REALLY enjoyed the main protagonist, appreciated the representation of different aged women and black women, and glaring commentary around racism and classism and their effects.
Graphic: Gore, Pedophilia, Injury/Injury detail, Cannibalism, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Body horror, and Sexism
Moderate: Child death, Suicide, Blood, Sexual assault, Racism, Addiction, Classism, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Rape
Minor: Death, Forced institutionalization, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Bullying, Misogyny, and Sexual violence
torismazarine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Gore, Animal death, Blood, Car accident, Dementia, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Medical content, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Classism, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Rape, Grief, Infidelity, Murder, Stalking, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Vomit
kaylasbewks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
cawpile ,, 9.14
this book was insane ,, i read 80% in one day which explains a lot.
i'm a sucker for 'housewife horror' so i may seem biased when i say this but ,, the characters were amazingly written. were the ignorant? yes. were they stupid at times? yes. were they selfish? yes! but that's what makes reading about them so interesting, instead of seeing people suddenly rise up to the occasion you see the internal battle of ignoring the problem or fighting against it. also, the atmosphere was phenomenal, the amount of times i actually got freaked out was embarrassing ,, and the amount of times i giggled was unsurprising. i also seem to be a sucker for books that heavily lean into horror stereotypes ,, but are extremely self aware ,, so that's always nice to know!
i'd definitely recommend this but please check the tw's before reading, it's a dark book.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Gore, Rape, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Child abuse, and Pedophilia
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, and Forced institutionalization
kk_gotit_goinon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Dementia, Medical content, Terminal illness, Rape, Sexual violence, Death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Sexism, Suicide attempt, Grief, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Violence, Cursing, Mental illness, and Misogyny
xeniba's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
2.0
It felt very “white women’s tears” and of course the person who ended up taking charge and doing the dirty work was the one Black character.
I get that it’s probably supposed to be about the patriarchy and racism and gentrification, but I really don’t need to read about that from a white dude. I definitely will not be reading anymore of his books.
This was my first fiction audiobook and I did enjoy the narrator, so that’s something.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexism, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Death and Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Infidelity, and Forced institutionalization
eden_briar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Blood, Dementia, Gore, Medical trauma, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Kidnapping, Forced institutionalization, Sexism, Racism, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Infidelity, and Animal cruelty