Reviews tagging 'Classism'

Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll

5 reviews

ryleee's review

dark inspiring reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Grief, Stalking, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Eating disorder, Misogyny, Blood, Medical content, and Kidnapping

Minor: Classism

themis_biblos's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.25

 I have such mixed feelings about this. The idea, the writing, the discussions it provokes should all be five stars. However:
1. In the acknowledgements Knoll thanks Kathy Kleiner Rubin, giving the impression that Knoll spoke to her and had her permission to tell this, albeit fictional, story. I've since seen people allegedly close to Kathy saying that that never happened. I'm sceptical - if that's true, Rubin's name surely wouldn't have made it into the acknowledgements? I don't know.
2. I loved, loved, loved the way Knoll discusses what a pathetic man The Defendant in reality was - contrary to how he was and continues to be portrayed, what the women (both those who survived and those who didn't) went through - not just on the night it happened, but after in the news, in the courtroom, in the public. How they were judged, written and gossipped about without their consent or input. However - why then did Knoll choose to write about them yet again, even if in this case the focus was on the women? She could have made it entirely fictional and it still would have hit.
3. A minor detail: It drove me up the wall how Knoll had the characters speak through their body language, but then always explained what gestures meant in italics right after!

But all that said, I was still impressed and moved and sad. 

 "They just don't want her to get hysterical," I said in the family's defense. Tina scoffed. "And so? What's wrong with being hysterical? It's a hysterical thing that happened." 

 I'd been asked to go over it so many times already that I was starting to feel like certain aspects of my story were more hindrance than help, that I ought to simplify it. No one tells you that the truest stories are the messy, unwieldy ones, that you will be tempted to trim in the places that make people scratch their heads. It takes fortitude to remain a true and constant witness, and I did. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and Lesbophobia

Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Classism

abicaro17's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.25

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. On one hand, the story of a woman, traumatized by her best friends brutal murder, becoming a Colombia educated laywer and testifying against the man who brutalized her is so profoundly cool. On the other hand, this story lacks character. Pamela is a pretty flat character. She is organized and truth seeking but thats all she is and that never changes. Also this book did not need to be dual pov. Tina could have explained Ruths story and it could have been up to the readers to determine if she was telling the truth. The book spells out everything and anything thats a mystery. Also by writing a Ted Bundy book it just keeps his memory and crimes alive. I think the intention was the show that he wasn't clever just lucky thats everyone else was dumber but, it mostly just comes about like a retelling from fake pov. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

shesflippinpages's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Dementia and Classism

imstephtacular's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body shaming, Cursing, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Dementia, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Minor: Gun violence, Incest, Physical abuse, Racism, Vomit, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Stalking, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic