Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

34 reviews

charlieash's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• 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

katsa and po brought a deranged energy to this book. tackling each other and grappling in a fountain and screaming and crying and holding each other ... that's love baby!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, Emotional abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Gaslighting, Torture, and Death of parent

Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Rape

alexander_pendragon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Self harm, Emotional abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Medical trauma, Torture, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Child death, Animal cruelty, and Alcoholism

sophiareadswaytoomuch's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

I loved this book the first time I read it (almost 10 years ago, when it came out in 2012) and I have to say it holds up. On a reread, it’s still one of the best stories I’ve ever read. The set up is a little slow, but the payoff is worth it. The mystery is well handled and intriguing, all the characters are well developed, and the plot itself really grabs hold of you and doesn’t let go. Cashore does a great job of building on the world and characters established in the earlier books. Bitterblue is one of my all time favourite characters. This book also has LGBT+ rep and it handles a bunch of mental health issues (resulting from trauma) in a way that feels realistic, sensitive, and nuanced. It explores the effects of a kingdom under the grip of a tyrant for five decades, and the lingering effects of that trauma. A fascinating and unique read. Could potentially be read as a stand alone, but the pay off is much better after reading the first two books in the series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Self harm, and Rape

strange's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

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

4.75

I never thought my love for a book could grow so much on re-read— a great start to the year and one I hope will be reflected throughout. (May be 5 stars but I want to let it sit a while before deciding)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, and Suicide

Moderate: Torture, Self harm, Rape, and Pedophilia