Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Le Maître des illusions by Donna Tartt

307 reviews

marleysclassics's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.5

If you want to read this for the plot - don‘t. If you want to read it because of the characters … I would recommend this either. At least not, if you want to like them.
Because, though it might seem strange, in my opinion one of the best parts of this book was the developments of the characters in terms of likability. I liked all of them as I didn‘t know them at all and with every page I read I began to detest every one of them a little more. While I wouldn‘t call every single person of in this book a bad person, some certainly are. And I was so here for it, because it felt like hating them more meant understanding them more.

If you want to read this book because of the vibes - definitely. They‘re there, yet I wouldn‘t expect too much of the academia and a little more of the dark aspect. Not to say that academia isn‘t a reoccurring theme, because it is, but there really aren‘t that many lessons or anything. It‘s more about the whole setting, and the motives of the characters yet in a more abstract way.

I also loved the writing, because it is beautiful and meaningful and often SO pretentious - and it knows it is and it‘s okay because it romanticises and critiques its own style and contents at the same time. (I actually think that‘s the essence of the whole dark academia genre.) I flew through the pages, and especially the first part of the novel was SO addictive. You know what‘s going to happen from page one and still you become more interested with every page. And sometimes you can‘t even tell what draws you too the pages, yet there is something. Unfortunately, this lacked a bit in the second half. Especially towards the end, there were some parts which really grabbed me, but there were also long passages which I wasn‘t interested in. At some point, this narrative just turns into a fever dream/nightmare/sequence of drug abuse, and partly this became a tiring. But also not entirely.

I‘m not sure what to think about the ending. I think it‘s quite a realistic one (even though realistic might not 100% mean explainable), especially what is explained in the epilogue. Yet I‘m not really content with it, I would have hoped for something better for them, which is weird because I don‘t like them. But you can‘t just read 600 pages about those people and not foster a certain affection (I don‘t think that‘s the right word) for those horrible human beings. But yes, especially for Francis I just wished for something better. Mmh … But I don‘t think that‘s the book‘s fault.

In the end, I‘m pretty sure I‘ll have to read this again. 

P.S.: I never answered the question „Are the flaws of the main character(s) a main focus of the book?“ more confidently. 
And now I‘ll put this book in my shelf right next to The Picture of Dorian Gray 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gun violence, Hate crime, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide

Minor: Antisemitism, Blood, Car accident, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Animal death, Homophobia, Islamophobia, and Racism

misheel_bayasgalan's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

The story itself unfolds fast, but the narrator’s monotonous inner monologues are sometimes skippable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse and Murder

idiealittle's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

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

0.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Incest, Classism, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Bullying, Cursing, Drug abuse, and Emotional abuse

mmeschi's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Self harm, Alcohol, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Classism, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Gore and Cursing

Minor: Incest

gsantino32's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Homophobia, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Incest, Antisemitism, Drug use, Murder, and Suicide attempt

startjpw23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

In a preface to the book, we learn that a group of college students murdered a classmate. The main body of the book then starts during the previous year when Richard, a native Californian, who is the first-person narrator of the story, applies to get into a small Vermont college. More than anything, he wants to get away from California and his parents. He was previously in a college where one of the things he studied was the Greek language and literature (he didn't complete his studies there). He is accepted into the Vermont college for the fall semester. Shortly after arriving at the college, he learns that the college has a Greek study program. He becomes obsessed with getting into the program. He is initially refused by the professor in charge of the program. This professor has exacting standards about who can join. Richard eventually convinces the professor to let him join. There are only 5 other students. One of the students is the student who will later be killed. Richard and the other 4 students all have some involvement with the killing. The extent of their involvement is only revealed as the book progresses. All of the students in this Greek study program largely keep to themselves. The are pretty much only friends with each other. Everything I said above occurs very early in the book. The remainder is the events that led up to the killing and the aftermath where the students try not to get caught and them trying to deal with the knowledge that they killed someone. The story also deals with the dynamics of the group and how they interact with each other and how they interact with the professor of the Greek study program as well as other people. This is the first Dark Academia book I read. I liked it a lot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Homophobia, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Addiction, Blood, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Incest

Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death

Minor: Infidelity

calicornmoore's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Alcoholism

Moderate: Domestic abuse and Homophobia

caitlinomorrison's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.5

This book is so beautiful written. I love the juxtaposition of the relationships between the characters at the end of the first part with the end of the second. This book was a little slow at some points but overall was a book that i felt deeply involved in and loved.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Minor: Incest, Suicide attempt, and Domestic abuse

jkoncurat's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Incest, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Domestic abuse

pbeeandj's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Murder, Classism, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Suicide, Islamophobia, Homophobia, and Grief

Moderate: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Antisemitism, Vomit, Rape, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, and Sexism