Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly

16 reviews

nicole1832's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-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? No

2.5

I'm having a hard time understanding why this book is so popular. It is simply not well-written. 

The three point of views interested me at first, but by the end of the book, I was only interested in one of them. Caroline's socialite life felt vapid compared to the hardships Kasia went through, and reading about Herta became uncomfortable by the latter part of the book. I had a hard time understanding how Caroline's and Herta's POVs justified their presence in the context of the overall story, which was at its heart really about Kasia.  (Side note: the cover of this book is *very* misleading. It implies that the three POV characters eventually become friends. That is very much not the case.) 

The book seems to want to be an examination of the emotions of these three women, but it always seemed to back away when things got most interesting. This was clearest in Herta's POV - she went from being horrified at what was happening at the camps to being complicit in it at what felt like breakneck speed. I understand not wanting to delve into a Nazi's POV, but if you're not going to fully explore it, why bother giving her a POV at all? 

Meanwhile, Caroline's behavior and attitudes toward her romance arc were hard to understand. Her arc became frustrating to read toward the end and ultimately felt unnecessary. And Kasia had problems with PTSD and anger later in life that were glossed over and ultimately resolved in a way that felt insultingly simplified.

On top of all that, the writing felt trite and amateurish, easy to read but ultimately failing to create any kind of mood. (And this book had some of the dullest hetero romances possible.) 

I was interested in the first half, simply because WWII stories, and stories about the horrors of the concentration camps, will always be powerful. But the importance of the historical subject matter is really all the book has going for it, in my opinion.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Medical trauma, Murder, Police brutality, Rape, Death, Death of parent, and Medical content

Moderate: Physical abuse, Torture, War, Body horror, Confinement, and Injury/Injury detail

lavenderlilacs1912's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.75

Lilac Girls tells the story of three women whose experiences become intertwined during the Second World War. From socialite Caroline Ferriday to Ravensbruck internee Kasia, Martha Hall Kelly's debut novel brings loss, trauma, and hope alive in this account based on a true story. 

Caroline Ferriday's former summer home is now a historic house museum, and my workplace. My rating comes from the fact that I read this for work, and while it was very well-written and a good read, it's not the type of book I'd normally go for. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Violence, and War

silversparkles50's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Genocide, Death, Confinement, Medical trauma, Gun violence, Grief, Murder, Violence, Racism, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Incest, and War

beabates's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Torture, Child death, Death of parent, Animal death, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Racial slurs, Murder, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Hate crime, Infertility, War, Xenophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Miscarriage, Death, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Cancer, Antisemitism, Grief, and Genocide

ginnygrde's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring sad 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: Antisemitism, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture

arachnophobia's review against another edition

dark inspiring sad slow-paced

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

2.0

I have read many a historic fiction and non-fiction on the Holocaust, in this book I found the historic details included were interesting, well-researched and unique compared to other novels but the characters were not complex enough to feel real. The book had rotating chapters between the three main characters and I found the chapters switched just as I was getting invested which was frustrating and sometimes confusing to follow. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Medical trauma, Antisemitism, Death, Child death, Death of parent, War, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Infertility