Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young

36 reviews

shannon_magee's review

mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

2.75

This book was a bit of a struggle for me. I think I wanted to enjoy it more than I actually did, and I think it was hyped up so I expected more out of it than I actually received. Several things. First, the pace was very slow for me and the mystery was so shrouded that a) the plot felt very messy to follow and b) I felt like the characters were all set up to be suspicious or untrustworthy, in a way for the bulk of the story, that I couldn’t get into the headspace of supporting or enjoying any particular character. I didn’t get to fall in love with any of them the way I feel like I was supposed to (as suggested by the premise and the narrative itself). There was too much distance for me to feel close to any of the characters or invest in them, and in a story that is clearly about characterization and human connection, that felt like a bit of a flop to me. I’m disappointed because I wanted to enjoy this book more and I can see what the author was going for, but it was a miss for me. 

I will say, much respect to Adrienne Young for working out a very tangled plot, that’s a lot of mental acrobatics! And she did write a rich setting for these characters to play in. I just wish I’d had more space as a reader to sink into the story and feel the emotions with the characters instead of watching them suspiciously from afar. 

*Also want to note that the content warning options don’t include these but if topics of time and potential memory loss are a struggle for you (like me), take care of yourself as you read this one*

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Blood, and Death

Minor: Domestic abuse

missmoth's review

emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Murder

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Blood and Vomit

aklovekorn's review

emotional mysterious medium-paced

• 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

4.5

I really loved this! The writing and description of the setting is just so beautiful and magical and loved the concept and the woven timelines. If I had one complaint it would be that it just wrapped up a little too quickly - I would have loved it to be a little longer and just take a tiny bit more time getting through the ending!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Death, Grief, and Misogyny

whatmadsreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent, Blood, and Abandonment

Minor: Child death

firefly99's review

challenging emotional hopeful mysterious sad fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

This one was so confusing, which was actually fitting because it felt like you were reacting right along with the MC. Made my brain hurt, but in a good way. Part murder mystery, part time travel, very well written with a vivid setting and characters. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Murder, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Bullying, Death, Mental illness, and Pregnancy

Minor: Physical abuse, Abortion, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Sexual content, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Blood

mandi_lea's review

challenging reflective 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Stalking, Pregnancy, Death, Sexual content, Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Suicide, Grief, Murder, Mental illness, and Violence

whatbeccareadnext's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

Adrienne Young writes the most beautiful prose. I adored this novel. It was a little bit outside of my usual genre, but I was absolutely captivated by the mystery and magic of June's life. I read Adrienne's other adult novel 'Spells for Forgetting' when it came out last year and, although I did enjoy it, it wasn't something I found myself thinking about or wanting to read again. This story, however, had me hooked all the way through. It is relatively short, which helped keep the story moving at a good pace, and it is full of intrigue and mystery and just a dash of romance. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Blood

Moderate: Blood, Police brutality, Gun violence, Murder, Sexual content, Stalking, Death, Abandonment, and Death of parent

Minor: Pregnancy, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Gun violence, Police brutality, Gore, and Violence

veni_vidi_legi's review

emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Murder

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Blood, Cursing, and Abandonment

thesonnetsilence's review

emotional mysterious sad tense 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

I loved this book. It is a top 5 read of the year for me.

As a loving mother of a 4-year-old daughter and a wife of a dedicated husband, this book struck so many chords with me. I was sobbing by the end of it. 

The romance and love in the book felt so genuine and true to life for me. The setting of the book was breathtaking and so vividly written. And the writing in general was so beautiful, I didn’t want to stop reading.

I too was a tad confused with the time travel element, however I loved everything else about this book so much, I doesn’t even matter to me.  I’m so happy I was able to experience this story, and look forward to more from this author in the future. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent

Moderate: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Child death

theespressoedition's review

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death of parent, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Suicide, Sexual content, Stalking, and Gun violence