Reviews

My Mother's House by Francesca Momplaisir

mygallaget's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

3.75

baileyxvx's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

2.0

rachaelwho's review

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

5.0

Trigger warning for pretty much everything you can think of- I don't think I would've read it if I'd known quite what I was getting into. Expertly written and very original approach to material we've seen before in different ways. That poor house broke my heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Dementia, Incest, Sexual violence, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Violence, Deportation, Suicide, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Mental illness, Torture, Animal cruelty, Classism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, and Rape

vtlism's review against another edition

Uncompelling. I don't care about any of the characters. It uses the sort of riddle construction that's supposed to be intriguing and make the reader guess or at least be interested, but which I just don't have energy to care about. 

harfro's review against another edition

5.0

Excellent book. Horrifying content. Trigger warning for many many kinds of trauma.

battlecat's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Very good writing. The whole story is incredibly dark. Would recommend to someone who likes getting in the head of a psychopathic criminal, but not to someone looking for something exciting or hopeful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Kidnapping, Self harm, and Infidelity

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Animal cruelty, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Incest, Cancer, Blood, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Death

kduhy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-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? Yes

4.0

Read this as part of reading around the world Haiti. Set in both Haiti and then America this tells the story of a man, his family, women and a house.  Its a very dark visceral book about the treatment of women, migration and trauma. However it,s a very interesting read and developed into a page turner towards the end. The writing is wonderful and  their house is a character who both narrates and watches. .

serendipitysbooks's review

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.0

 My Mother’s House is very hard to characterise - part literary thriller, part realistic fiction, part horror and more than a dash of magical realism. It’s the story of a Lucien, who migrated from Haiti with his wife and daughters and establishes a home in Queens which becomes a focal point for other Haitian migrants seeking help. Which sounds fine and good except Lucien is disturbed and abusive and does some truly dark, depraved things. So much so that the house, which is a character in its own right, commits suicide by bursting into flames. The writing is compelling, and the themes are undoubtedly important - generational trauma, migration, gentrification, race, class, the legacy of colonialism, the marginalisation of Black women and more. However, the content is such that this is a very uncomfortable read, unrelentingly grim and disturbing at times, which means it is definitely not a book for every reader. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Murder, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Addiction, and Animal cruelty

svoeti's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Murder, Mental illness, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Confinement, Animal death, Alcohol, Abandonment, Trafficking, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Stalking, Sexism, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Xenophobia, Violence, Torture, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Incest, Drug abuse, Death, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

cchartier's review against another edition

4.0

Absolutely terrifying.