Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Evil Eye by Etaf Rum

149 reviews

nishath's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Xenophobia, and Islamophobia

Minor: Genocide and War

boop123's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring tense medium-paced

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

4.5

A very poignant read that touches on the intricacies and complexities of motherhood, intergenerational trauma, being a woman of color, and living with a family with conservative values. I highlighted so many quotes on here so you know it’s good! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent

Moderate: Deadnaming, Death, Genocide, Mental illness, and Colonisation

campisforever's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense 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? Yes

4.0

This book is a really, really difficult one in which to get immersed if you're not into internal or cerebral plots (like me). It's also an honest, raw look into generational trauma, complex PTSD (C-PTSD), depression, and suicidal ideation. That said, Evil Eye is gorgeously written and well worth it. It took me quite a while to get through (a few days over six months) because I had to pick it up and put it down several times. The only thing that really worked for me was transitioning to listening to it on Spotify and tracking the reading with the pages in my physical copy. Making this change helped me, as a highly visual person, take a small step back from having to experience the raw feelings of the novel and gave me breathing room to react. Once I was able to get that room, I appreciated the story much more. 

For the question about whether I found the characters loveable I said "It's complicated." Let me explain:

I love Yara deeply, I love Mira and Jude, and I love Silas and Josephine. I had strong reactions to Fadi, his family, and Yara's family in many ways, but to say they weren't "loveable" wouldn't necessarily be fair, since that's the point of the whole book. I think a fairer way to put it is that I was frustrated by how Fadi, etc., just wouldn't listen to Yara when Yara was working so hard on herself.

Also, if you're an academic, the first third might be frustrating, but it will pass, I promise. In general, I think that if you have the patience to give this book time, it will give what it needs to. In the end I was genuinely moved, but it's not something I would recommend blindly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Minor: Genocide, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, and Colonisation

Domestic and physical abuse situations are referenced in the past and somewhat "offscreen" but they're still present and visceral. Misogyny is inherent in various treatment of the main character. Suicidal ideation is present, but not violent necessarily--potentially passive ideation. References to Colonization and genocide are in the context of stories about the 1948 Nakba (forced dispossession and genocide of Palestinians perpetrated by Israel). Islamophobia and xenophobia are present in offhanded--but relevant--comments by others about the main character's "culture" (in scare quotes because how they treat it is a fundamental misunderstanding).

thunderling's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective 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

god, this book...i finished it in one day. this book made me feel everything. i was angry about 70% of the time because the gaslighting was doing my head in. but that's the sign of a good author because golly does she make you feel.

i'm not one for character-driven books because i find that the plot usually falls on the wayside but etaf rum does a wonderful job by exploring yara's journey. the writing is beautiful but not too flowery so it didn't fall flat. i was so invested in yara's journey and i didn't understand why people said it was boring. perhaps because i relate so heavily to yara's identity!

my one tiny critique is that i wish the whole situation about the trip was less insistent. i think if etaf rum had shown how

fadi isn't emotionally invested in his wife's interests some other way

that would have been more impactful. but honestly, it's not major that i would lessen my rating.

i also wish we got more of silas! i thoroughly enjoyed his friendship with yara.

it's definitely a book that will stay with me for a looong time. definitely gonna read a woman is no man next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Sexism, Gaslighting, and Colonisation

Moderate: Racism, Toxic relationship, and Grief

Minor: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent

lilawsahar's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

3.75

Yara’s story was really relatable as a second generation middle eastern immigrant. My family is also worried about reputation and remembering the privilege we have in America that my dad didn’t have. That pressure is a heavy burden to carry. This book made me feel seen. 

I’m glad Yara was able to get the help she needed and build the support system to leave her husband. She deserves to break the trauma cycle and be happy. 
<spoiler/>

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts

ktrainofthoughts's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness

aishallnot's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Mental illness, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent

Minor: Genocide

rivkah88's review against another edition

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

4.75

Whoa. This book was such a fantastic surprise. Incredible writing to reflect a Palestinian experience in America, but also so poignantly captures a woman’s battle in being a mother, daughter, wife, and her own person. One of the best books I’ve read this year. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Grief, and Death of parent

evanhope's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

i LOVED this book and will forever recommend this. i picked the book up at chapter 7 and didn’t put it down until i finished it (for reference, there’s around 45). yara’s growth throughout the book was so real to life and some passages hit closer to home than i had thought. beautiful prose and i can’t wait to read more of rum’s book.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Toxic relationship

Minor: Physical abuse

mrlsdevos's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting