Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

Juniper & Thorn by Ava Reid

214 reviews

coffeepotoo's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-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

i've never fucking felt so goddamn seen by a characters (very mentally ill) thought process before. also wonderful usage of theming and prose and i read it all in one sitting and it was very excellent.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Incest, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, Xenophobia, Violence, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Sexism, Death, Body shaming, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, and Body horror

Moderate: Antisemitism, Classism, Adult/minor relationship, and Torture

currantcat's review

dark emotional medium-paced

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

3.5

This book is deeply embedded in the world of fairy tales, the dark ones that preceded the sanitized versions we learned as children. I liked the main character's comments on fairy tale "rules" and how the narrative ends up confirming or twisting them. The prose was probably one of my favorite parts of the book. Marlinchen, our narrator and point of view character was compelling, though a little frustrating at times. Though she was not nearly as infuriating as many other characters. There are heavy themes of abuse explored in this book, along with other things that may be disturbing to some readers. Check trigger warnings. Personally, the book being a horror did elicit a disturbed feeling from me while reading. So, if you want a fantasy horror that unnerves you slowly, this is it. Also, it is a fair bit hornier than I expected. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Cannibalism, Violence, Murder, and Death of parent

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Misogyny, and Body horror

Minor: Incest, Pedophilia, and Xenophobia

glass_carousel's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Eating disorder, Sexual harassment, Violence, Vomit, Antisemitism, Death, Xenophobia, Blood, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Classism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Murder, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Death of parent, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Adult/minor relationship

buud_w0rm's review

adventurous dark inspiring reflective tense 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

4.75

This is a really enjoyable read like everything about it I enjoyed. They’re so right about the TWs tho cuz wowwwww

When I found myself wishing for the MC to have more back bone, I realized I was mirroring her sisters. I also struggled with my emotions and opinions being silenced and demeaned growing up. I empathized  alot for Marlinchen and her mouselike demeanor. Mostly because I grew up w a narcissist in the house as well. Thankfully he didn’t have magic or else, I might’ve been as hateful and angry and undine or conniving as Rose.  Growing up in such an oppressive household, being verbally, emotionally and physically abused constantly, everyone berating your looks and comparing you to your sisters. No one is kind to you so you’re the kindest 💔💔💔 Marlinchen DOES deserve happiness. I’m so so so happy she and Sevas left to start a life far far away.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Xenophobia, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

Moderate: Blood, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Cannibalism, Confinement, Death of parent, Death, and Gaslighting

This was definitely dark. It fits October. AGAIN CHECK TWS I BEG

dixiecarroll's review against another edition

dark mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

This is a highly disturbing classic fairytale retelling and you should not read it if you are easily triggered or grossed out. I loved it - it made me incredibly uncomfortable, but I like it when fairytales are a little awful. It lost a star because I felt like it was missing something - I can’t quite tell what that was yet, but it could be the intentional feeling of blackouts that our narrator felt as well - unsure. Anyway this is great!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, and Vomit

nightmarebees's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense 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

4.25

NOT for the faint of heart, not a book for everyone, but wowie. this was hard to read at many points, and i still couldn’t put it down. the language is vivid and unsettling, the tastes and smells of this world are loud in your mind even when you wish they weren’t. reid writes about trauma and coping mechanisms in ways that don’t feel gratuitous or exploitative. it’s uncomfortable, certainly, but so is experiencing a major trauma. marlinchen and sevas are not made to suffer for the glorification of those traumas, but rather they choose to live on in spite of them. i’m gonna be thinking about this one for a while 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Eating disorder, Gore, and Violence

Moderate: Cannibalism, Sexual content, and Pedophilia

Minor: Sexism and Xenophobia

cameronreads's review against another edition

4.0

This book was so oddly compelling. The both the writing style and atmosphere were haunting and wonderfully gothic. I outwardly cringed in disgust multiple times. Even the main character, although you’re rooting for her, feels spooky somehow. Her point of view felt almost twisted, as she’s biased by living with her father. I thought it explored its themes so well, especially those of trauma, desire, and story. I felt a little detached from the characters, but I think this is personal preference whether you’d be bothered by this or not (in some ways it adds to the haunting atmosphere). This did extend to the romance as well; there were times when I wasn’t even sure whether we were supposed to be rooting for the couple, but I do like where they ended up. There was also a fair bit of repetition - especially the ‘I’m the third sister and my sisters are beautiful and clever and I’m plain and stupid’, but whilst this was annoying to read it also emphasised just how much Marlinchen’s been brain washed to think this way. Overall I really enjoyed this book. It was the creepy, atmospheric almost horror-esque fantasy I was looking for. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Xenophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Grief, and Antisemitism

Minor: Pedophilia

fiagarrod96's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Blood, Eating disorder, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Vomit, and Violence

Moderate: Pedophilia and Sexual assault

ferngreen's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Vomit, Animal death, Body horror, Pedophilia, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, and Death of parent

Moderate: Incest

vikie_vi's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

loved this to pieces!! The perfect read to get into the halloween spirit. Perfectly greusome without being overly scary. The story telling was amazing and the narrator Stina Neilsen did such a fantastic job. I have found 2 new favorites

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Vomit, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Gun violence, Bullying, Self harm, and Animal cruelty