Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

74 reviews

juanat77's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Violence, Death, Murder, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Blood, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Vomit, Cursing, Grief, Sexism, Sexual content, Bullying, Medical content, Miscarriage, Rape, and Injury/Injury detail

sshinesea's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective slow-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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Violence, and Racism

Minor: Murder

lillypad827's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative mysterious slow-paced

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

3.75

I’d never heard of Martha Ballard before this book, but it’s so fascinating to me that we have historical records of people who lived so many centuries ago. This was an intricate historical fiction story. Slow-paced and LOTS of characters to keep track of, but kept my interest. My favorite part was when

Martha sliced off North’s dick.

JUSTICE! Overall, a good read, and I might check out some of the author’s other works. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Sexual assault, Rape, Child death, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, and Violence

sjmomaney's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Violence, Rape, Child death, and Murder

Moderate: Child death

thackerleah's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Sexual violence, and Rape

novellearts's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Medical trauma, Blood, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Rape, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Medical content, and Sexism

kateclancy's review against another edition

challenging inspiring medium-paced

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

4.5

I put it down a few times to finish other books because the early pacing was slow - I think the fact that I read it on audio helped propel me forward. Once I was in though I was IN. I found the author's note really helpful to contextualize her decisions around how she engaged with issues of race, colonialism, and the medical turn of birth.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Child death, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Murder, Animal cruelty, Rape, Vomit, Violence, Stalking, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Racism, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Medical trauma, and Grief

mlsmiley13's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

A great historical fiction loosely based on a midwife from the late 1700s, Martha Ballard. I really enjoyed the characters in this book, especially Martha. She doesn't take crap from anyone and does all she can to ensure that justice is served. There is a mystery element throughout the story which was engaging as well.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Violence, Miscarriage, Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Death, and Rape

ajdurner's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A fantastic historical fiction about a little known woman in American history. I found the descriptions of the legal process off the time prior to the revolutionary war interesting, and the legal system’s treatment toward women enraging. Lawhon did her homework and provides an insightful author’s note at the end of the book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, and Rape

Moderate: Murder and Racism

lsmith725's review against another edition

challenging dark informative slow-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

3.5

This is a historical fiction that takes place in Maine in the 1700s.  Our main character, Martha, is a midwife (the story is based on a real midwife's diary) who get tangled up in a murder case.  There is plenty of midwife and baby delivery content, but that is not the main focus.  Because she's a midwife, there is information that only she is privy to, and she has to make everyone believe her.  Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like that is likely.

I mostly enjoyed this, although there were parts where I felt lost.  There were a lot of characters, some of which weren't mentioned frequently enough for me to keep them straight (probably would've been avoided if I'd read a physical copy).  However, the way the author tied history and mystery together was brilliant and it truly felt like this book belonged fully in each genre.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy and Rape

Moderate: Violence and Murder