Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

315 reviews

soswiin's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.75

the more i think about this book the lower i rate it 

the good

- loved the setting and the way it was written almost worshipfully. i too idolize cambridge and all its uneven cobblestones and river-soaked undergrads 

- + 1 star because the best breakfast spot in the city was mentioned: the copper kettle 

the bad

- the way mythology was used. OKAY yes i picked this up because it was so “heavily versed in greek mythos”. it just felt very elementary. i wasn’t opposed to the vengeful almost teenage-bully nature of persephone but i didn’t love it. fosca’s lecture on the cult of eleusis was a great mythology-centric plot point but it was only truly relevant that one time. 

- for a book called “the maidens” the actual maidens really aren’t that prevalent. there’s not much of a cultish/abuse of academic authority vibe going on despite the fact that it’s a selling point of the book (it was for me) 

-the red herrings; spent the entire book trying to guess who the bad guy was because the wrong choices were so obvious. i did get fooled but it wasn’t satisfying or well done in the slightest. 

- maybe i’m just looking for things to complain about but a lot of the phrasing was just very cliche 

the ugly 

- the ending. rushed, confusing, and unnecessary. also really gross

- the characters. i’ve walked on floor tiles with more personality. there is not a single  person in the entire story that i was rooting for or who’s downfall i was praying for 

- where do i even begin with the pedophilic/incestuous subplot. what?? thrown out there without an ounce of comprehensible elaboration. made no sense to the story despite it basically causing the entire thing. just a nasty shock grabber

there were so many aspects of the book that would’ve been so interesting if they hadn’t been brushed over; henry’s role in the story, morris’s blackmail, the actual maidens themselves, the abuses of power. the author spends the entire book reiterating how terrible men are but never shows any woman successfully winning against the circumstances imposed on them. an amazing concept with poor execution

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, and Self harm

Moderate: Rape and Body horror

sugarbucky's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

Michaelides has done it again!! You will NEVER guess the twist in this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Grief

Minor: Child abuse, Mental illness, Violence, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

lalinamarie's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.25

A thriller that did shock me, just not in the way I was expecting it to. In the same note it disturbed me most when I was not expecting it.

By this I’m referencing finding out Sebastian had groomed Zoe
I’m assuming since he’d met her as a little girl. Made my stomach turn. Though I had a feeling Zoe was in on the murders, I did not expect that.

The one thing I really don’t like about this book is how they try to make psychoanalysis into something so simple. “I can see it in your eyes,” and things like that throughout the book made me roll my eyes as someone who actually works in the mental health field. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Death

Trigger Warning

grooming

.

lizfields's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Murder

gwenswoons's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Incest, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexual violence, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Violence, Alcohol, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, Torture, and Gore

lump's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gore, and Murder

Minor: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Blood, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Incest, and Gore

kaylamf's review against another edition

dark emotional sad 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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

smaung's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

2.0

Gave it two stars because I did read it fairly easily/quickly. However, the plot twist at the end was unearned, unrealistic, and really spoiled any redeeming qualities of the book. 

Also the secret society and the Maiden group were barely in the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Child abuse

readwithsophsx's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Child abuse, Stalking, Pedophilia, Blood, Murder, Violence, and Sexual assault

nehaanna's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.0

I’m not entirely sure what this book accomplishes. It has the twists and turns of any murder mystery but the character development of the female characters is reprehensible. They are written through such a paternalistic and chauvinist viewpoint that it is overpowering to the plot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Grief, Sexual assault, Blood, Bullying, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Animal death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Rape, Gore, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic relationship, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content

Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol