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acbrummitt's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Cannibalism, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
emudds's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Fatphobia and Car accident
savvylit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Summers is a modern master of metaphor and simile. There were so many occasions while reading in which I had to stop to marvel over an evocative turn of phrase. Here are just a few of my favorite examples:
"Then, he slid off his chair, smooth as a pat of butter oozing from a pile of hot flapjacks."
"As I stepped out into the gimlet dawn, sunlight was beginning to slip like white lies between the skyscrapers."
"Casimir wandering dazed as a startled possum."
"Flashes of the evening popped like firecrackers, while shards of conversation with Wasserman lacerated me."
Beyond Summers' delightful writing style, this book had many other strengths with which to cleanse the reader's palate between what were truly appalling descriptions of homicide and cannibalism. The scenery, setting, and characters of this book were so exaggerated as to become parodies. And in many ways, this book is satirical. A Certain Hunger is a satire of so much but especially of foodie culture, of obsession with serial killers, of societal pressures on womanhood, and of big agriculture. Ultimately I loved it all.
In creating Dorothy Daniels, Chelsea G. Summers has given the world an unforgettable, charming, and likable serial killer to join the ranks of Hannibal Lecter and Patrick Bateman. This book is certainly not for the faint-hearted, though, so avoid it if body horror and gore are too much for you to digest.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Infidelity, Sexual violence, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Rape
boglord's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Car accident, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Excrement, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Cancer, Incest, and Antisemitism
jolyne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Vomit, Stalking, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
lycheejelly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Biphobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Stalking, Outing, and Classism
jjreads331's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Gore, Rape, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Cursing, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Antisemitism, Medical content, Stalking, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug abuse and Drug use
arys_library's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I absolutely loved this book. I knew it would be graphic but it was beyond what I was thinking it would be. Everything was so graphic and detailed which made me read a bit slower than usual but the writing style was still amazing. At times I feel like the author was being too descriptive, she described everything in great detail but it got to the point where things were so repetitive and I had to take a break. But besides that, I absolutely loved it
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Car accident
Minor: Cursing and Vomit
kay_jax's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
the authors’ writing isn’t awful but i would say some of it was overwritten and too descriptive (like too many adjectives and metaphors strung together). another structural issue was the drawn out storyline. i think the plot line was very confusing/ too out of order to where it dragged by the first third. this probably would’ve worked a lot better if it was a short story or novella.
i cant explain how unbelievably unlikable the narrator was in this. the first characteristic i couldn’t endure was her pretentious fetishism of italian men and culture. her lust for italians was bordering offensive and intolerable, i understand having an affinity for a type of person but i thought the description of the narrators’ desire for italian men was disturbing.
(also i feel like the narrator is an elitists but my brainpower is too low to get into that)
the second characteristic i felt was unnecessary was her sex drive. i felt like i was actually reading a story about a nymphomaniac instead of a psychopath. the two aren’t related so why did i need a whole novel basically recounting her decades long trysts?
i’m not a prude but damn, i really wasn’t trying to get a full tour of this fictional characters vagina.
honestly i feel like i wasted my time reading this. it wasn’t awful but also wasn’t good…unremarkable, i guess?
Graphic: Body horror, Cancer, Confinement, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Cannibalism, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, and Murder
ahlove's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Gore, Sexual content, Blood, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Car accident