Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Les Apparences by Gillian Flynn

145 reviews

vangoghssunflowers's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• 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

5.0

loved it. everything i enjoyed about the movie was reflected tenfold here. obsessed with the character dynamics flynn presents and develops through the novel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Stalking, and Murder

wickedgrumpy's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

1.0

If you want to read a toxic sociopathic petty drama fest, this is the book for you.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

kamrynkoble's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

4.75

2024 reread (3rd time):

My cousin convinced me to do a buddy read while she read this for the first time, and I’m so glad I did it. I have to bump this to five stars. This book is a thriller master class. It breaks all the rules and is still somehow the best of the best. These characters are all awful yet still so engaging. The older I get, the more I catch. And it was so fascinating reading this now that I’m married myself and have spent more time engaging with true crime material. I think Flynn is a genius and I need her fourth book to come out yesterday. 

I listened on Spotify premium until my hours ran out, and then listened from the library. I read a bit on my kindle thanks to booksatrillion, and ended up finishing with my paperback. 

2021 reread (2nd time):

I really enjoyed this reread! The author is a master storyteller, and even though I already knew what happened I still found myself being surprise by the twists and turns. I see why this was such a bestseller, even though both Nick and Amy are the most awful people. Awful people, wonderful characters.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Vomit

Minor: Miscarriage and Pregnancy

aliceing's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

This is incredible dissection of a pair of people who are just so repellent for different and mutually-reinforcing ways. Like watching a train wreck, chilling and inevitable. I really really admire the strength of the plot, Flynn really keeps it all locked in.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault

maddierosen's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Cancer and Pregnancy

editorsansserif's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Dementia, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Pregnancy

deshanejt's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

3.5

Top notch thriller... Genuinely. Some thing I could have lived without were all the fat-phobic, ageist and sexist remarks; The overly redundant obsession with reminding the reader "men suck/women suck". 

Nick and Amy were genuinely raw and unfiltered, both awful people in their own respects- yet I found unnecessary observations made about people's bodies..... On one hand it did help grind home your loathing for Nick and Amy, but c'mon. The descriptions were a little borderline and niche for my taste, which is sus if you ask me. 🤔

So much of this book centered around the internal monologue of someone trying to convince the reader why the opposite gender is trash... After the first couple hundred pages of that- we get it, the characters are sexist a**holes, now you're beating a dead horse.

At any rate, a stellar plot/storyline, just a little too much humdrum for me. 😅 Oddly enough, I would still recommend it. 🥴🤷🏻‍♀️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Cancer, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Kidnapping, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Blood, Vomit, and Abortion

justwordsandink's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

bri_of_the_shire's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

A REALLY good book if you have the stomach for it, but also just incredible fucked up. The story changes perspective every other chapter, and I gotta say I wasn't super invested in the first half. Gillian's got a great hand for pacing and dramatic twists, and you spend the whole book not knowing what's coming next or who to sympathize with (the answer is no one, they're all pretty deplorable). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Murder, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

amanda_porfavor's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship