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hauntedantiqueshop's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Body horror, Terminal illness, Violence, Medical content, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
The word sphincter was used an UNGODLY amount of times.klinkertinlegs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Suicide, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
restoller's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
andreatypesbraille's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol
billyjepma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
It didn't take long for me to feel that padding, either. The flashbacks are haphazardly placed and often defuse the tension created by the gnarly survival narrative. They also lack the emotional depth required to enrich the story, which makes the flashbacks and dramatic scaffolding they're trying for feel tacked on at best. The symbolism and metaphors Krause draws aren't bad, but they're overwrought to the point of exhaustion. If the connections weren't repeatedly spelled out in exacting detail, I might've been more able and willing to get on board. But you don't get points for beating me over the head with a metaphor, regardless of how effective it might or might not be, especially when the goal of the metaphor is as frustrating as the tired trope of "maybe my abusive parent wasn't all bad, after all."
Let's talk about the abusive parent angle, too, because I have beef. My patience for a "redemption" arc is very thin when it comes to this brand of parent-child relationship, so this book had an uphill struggle right out of the gate. But when your protagonist's father is as cruel as Mitt, you've already lost me. Krause's attempts at making him sympathetic are admirable, and some of them even struck a nerve, but Mitt is too vile a character for me to want to care about. I don't even like Jay as a protagonist, either! He's more shallow than not, and, as much as I hate to say it, he comes off as whiny. It doesn't help that the audiobook's narrator plays up Jay's youth, emphasizing the more annoying aspects of the characterization. There's little depth in the characters, either; all their backstory and drama are so predictable and one-note that they end up feeling more performative than anything.
The book isn't all bad, and I really wanted to like it, too, which is why it became increasingly frustrating to realize that I just didn't.
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Cancer, Gore, Suicide, Medical content, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Vomit and Pandemic/Epidemic
parchementhallucinations's review against another edition
- 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
2.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Chronic illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicide, Blood, Grief, and Death of parent
crykea's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicide and Terminal illness
rainstar's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Confinement, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
gardens_and_dragons's review against another edition
- 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
It was enjoyable for the most part, but I don’t think it was my cup of tea. I can see this really working for others; the writing was great, the descriptions vivid and visceral, the science was fascinating, and it had family drama to boot.
Whalefall is a “scientifically accurate thriller” about a scuba diver who’s been swallowed by a sperm whale and has only one hour to escape before his oxygen runs out. it’s claustrophobic and horrific. But in large part it’s about the relationship between a father/son, intolerable grief, forgiveness and survival.
For me: it sucked to listen to all of the abuse that was directed specifically at Jay from his father Mitt. It was textbook narcissistic behavior of singling someone out, and the rest of his community though Mitt was the greatest. While important for both the narrative/themes and people to read about… it’s usually something I avoid because it can be triggering.
I really dislike when stories take somewhat abusive/toxic people and try to redeem them in death.
Graphic: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicide, Terminal illness, and Vomit
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
hbic'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
4.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gore, Suicide, and Injury/Injury detail