Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly

17 reviews

bethsbooketlist's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-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? N/A

5.0

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 - I needed a book to get me out this slump I have found myself in, and boy WHAT A BOOK! Devoured in 48 hours, I was hooked by this historical fiction epic circling around three women and their experiences of WW2 - two of them real people. Their stories could not be more different, and I was especially interested in the perspective of Herta Oberheuser, camp doctor of Ravensbrück. I have heard stories from many survivors but not from the other side, and her perspective just fascinated me in how she could show such plausible deniability. The writing was emotional and raw, and sucked me in completely from page one. The plot flicking between New York, Lublin and Ravensbrück kept you on your toes and added variety - I was intrigued how these stories would eventually connect but it was done incredibly well. Overall, I adored this book that's been on my TBR for so long, and I can't wait to read more from Kelly

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Violence, War, Genocide, Murder, and Slavery

Moderate: Cancer

lovleephtogrl's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, War, Physical abuse, and Medical trauma

beabates's review

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

curatedsymposium's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Violence, Terminal illness, Lesbophobia, Death, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Hate crime, Murder, Death of parent, Sexism, Antisemitism, War, Rape, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Homophobia, Emotional abuse, and Confinement

Moderate: Animal cruelty

claudiamacpherson's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad slow-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

3.5

Based on the true story of the “rabbits” of Ravensbruck, this book followed the alternately heartbreaking and inspiring story of three women during and after the Second World War. Caroline Farraday is a wealthy New York socialite working for the French embassy and dating a married French opera singer. Kasia Kuzmerick is a teenager in Poland who decides to join the Polish resistance movement. Herta Oberheuser is a rare female doctor, and when she struggles to find a practice willing to take on a woman, she decides to respond to a posting at a government facility—Ravensbruck. The lives of the three women weave together as the war puts them in situations they could never have imagined.

A few years ago, I visited Auschwitz, one of the largest concentration camps from WWII. It was not (and should not be) an enjoyable visit, but it feels important to go and witness the place where such atrocities were committed, to mourn those who suffered and were killed there. Similarly, this story felt important to read and understand. I have trouble reading stories with graphic violence and cruelty, but I am glad to know the story of the women upon whom the Nazis performed their experiments. It is not a story I have read about or seen in movies or TV shows before. One of the reasons I love historical fiction, particularly when it focuses on women’s lives, is because they are often overlooked or seen as less important in the face of other, “bigger” historical catastrophes. If you have any interest in this period of history, I think this book did a great job of telling the story, especially because it did not end with the end of the war but continued, following the journeys of the three women and how their lives were affected.

Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just the vibe of the ending): I don’t know that a story like this could ever be said to have a happy ending, but this ending is probably about as close as it gets. It was inspiring and, for the most part, very cathartic.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Antisemitism, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Torture, Violence, Vomit, and Xenophobia

Minor: Ableism, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Cancer, and Panic attacks/disorders

abbie_reads_books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Genocide, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault

soshereads_'s review against another edition

emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Torture, Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Antisemitism, Child death, Slavery, Sexual assault, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Physical abuse, Murder, Medical trauma, Medical content, Gun violence, and Genocide