Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

Nuestra parte de noche by Mariana Enríquez

58 reviews

oroseo's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

incredible. the way each section of the book can stand alone but also informs the reader's understanding of the others. the way

that the darkness parallels the horrors of the time. the way the darkness cannot let any of them go, once in its sight. the way that its claws mark a person deapite a lifetime of evasion.

the author writes with clearness, i found myself flinching as i read.

and there are such beautiful quotes. when you finally get to the part where a character says the title. when you reckon with how horribly disposable every body is. the ways that love is twisted and deployed, the ways love is manipulated and disparaged.

there is a slower section in this novel, one that feels odd but reveals itself as necessary later in the novel. it took me a while to get through that section, but i would recommend actively trying to connect some of the more mysterious things happening to what you've already learned.

i think also, there's plot reasons for this. for the reader to stumble around in this unknowlable universe like Gaspar is. For Juan to finally be protected from our knowling, now that he has closed himself off from the Order

also. AIDS? the horror of aids!!! didn't even expect that. do we call this genre historical horror? 

I am slightly convinced that Rosario's section was written from where she lives in the Darkness. Also, i guess more obviously, that Gaspar has fallen into the same madness fortold by everyone in the Order, because he can't let go of the deaths. the darkness uses Adela to hold him hostage, or something to that affect.

I think one thing i wish i understood more, one thing that maybe a lot of non-Argentine readers of the book might need, is a tad more context on the colonial/racial history of Argentina. anti-indigeneity comes across very clear, and not unexpected, but i guess i just need to read more about who colonized and when. shockingly, lack of Argentine political knowledge does not hold one back, despite the time of the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Suicide, Body horror, Murder, Medical trauma, Child abuse, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Violence, Racism, Vomit, Rape, and Police brutality

It is a dark book about a physically ill man being used by a cult, who abused many, many others. Would not recommend reading if you cannot handle graphic descriptions.

eelizard's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racism, Racial slurs, Self harm, Suicide, Vomit, Kidnapping, Terminal illness, Ableism, Animal death, Blood, Emotional abuse, Grief, War, Torture, Child abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Medical trauma, Medical content, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Slavery

ka_cam's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

A gripping horror read- fast because I didn’t want to put it down. Also, very dark. The setting and descriptions of time, place, energy and ethos of various setting was very well done, especially for translation. I appreciated how I really got a feel for how ‘normal’ the very traditionally abnormal (hyper-wealthy multigenerational death cult and spirits/spirit worlds) world was for various characters, and their distinct experiences of it as medium, clairvoyant child of medium, elder, child, follower, other etc added to the sense of reality. Went a bit on/could have been a bit shorter but a compelling read. Check the content warnings tho, not for the faint of heart!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Animal death, Body horror, Car accident, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Chronic illness, Classism, Colonisation, Cursing, Drug use, Medical content, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual violence, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Torture, and Violence

mynameisjobo's review against another edition

dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Chronic illness, Classism, Death, Gore, Medical content, Genocide, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Mental illness, Body horror, and Suicidal thoughts

arayo's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Medical content, Child abuse, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Gaslighting, Blood, Chronic illness, Gore, Child death, Grief, Terminal illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Murder, Death, and Body horror

Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Confinement, Suicide attempt, Kidnapping, Biphobia, Alcohol, and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Vomit, Cannibalism, Genocide, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Car accident, Infidelity, Drug use, Rape, Infertility, Police brutality, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy

georgiaaa's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Self harm, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Homophobia, Colonisation, Body horror, and Slavery

marianne_clh's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Dementia, Self harm, Body horror, Mental illness, Murder, Violence, Alcoholism, Gore, Grief, Terminal illness, Trafficking, Child abuse, Blood, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, War, Addiction, Drug abuse, Rape, Medical content, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Torture, and Suicide attempt

codysmovingcastle's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious 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

5.0

This one was slow-paced, unsatisfying by design, with hard-to-love characters. Still, this is easily a 5-star read. 

It's a tough novel to read; physically, with dense paragraphs and odd formatting with unclear quotations, and emotionally, with graphic depictions of abuse, violence, and body horror. I can see how this wouldn't appeal to a lot of people, and the payoff isn't like your typical book climax, but I don't think any characters have quite hit me like Juan and Gaspar have.

The novel is broken up into several (long) chapters that almost act as several novellas, each with a distinct tone, narrator, and writing style. Together, they tell a multi-generational story that meaningfully engages with more themes than I could count: Argentina's political landscape vs. the social elite, generational trauma, cult mentality, grief, polyamory, familial bonds, queer culture/queerness, colonialism, chronic illness and disability, slavery, and so on. 

The characters are where the story really hits though. Juan is horrible and I love him. Rosario is quite unlikeable, imperfect, and one of the best female characters I have ever read. And I've literally never had an ounce of maternal instinct until this book, but I would burn down the world for Gaspar.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Body horror, Death of parent, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, and Terminal illness

harperphillips96's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Holy moly on the content warnings, this one is ROUGH, but it was also so propulsive and fascinating and I didn’t want it to end. As absorbing a story as I’ve ever read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Body horror, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Torture, Kidnapping, and Violence

muertango's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Blood, Death, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Violence, Self harm, Torture, and Trafficking

Moderate: Terminal illness, Mental illness, and Car accident