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pagesforwings's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Child death, Gore, Hate crime, Murder, Racial slurs, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Vomit, Xenophobia, Animal death, Antisemitism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, Drug use, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Violence
amessina3399's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Ummm...wow. I'm not even sure where to begin. For context, I've never seen the movie, and I thought 'what the hey, I should read the book first'. Surprisingly, somehow, I really enjoyed it. This book is a really interesting satire of consumerism and elitism in such a capitalistic place as NYC, while also being a fascinating stream-of-consciousness look at the mind of an incredibly mentally ill individual. As a book, the narrative voice is far more interesting and important than the actual plot itself. That being said, I knew that this book was going to be dark and gross, but I was not prepared for HOW dark and gross. Most of the book is fine, but there are a handful of chapters that are extremely descriptive in the gore, and horrifically 'creative'. I have a pretty strong stomach, and multiple times I needed to take breathers from chapters being too intense for me. *If you choose to read the book and want to try and dodge the worst of it, the chapters titled 'Girl' or 'Girls' contain the worst of the worst*. Other than that, I thought it was a brilliant read and for the most part, incredibly well written. It would have had 5 stars from me if it weren't for a few things: 1) while some of the gore was appropriate, a good chunk of it was a bit too gratuitous, although it could be argued that it was necessary for the reader's understanding of the character, 2) it's a VERY slow read, and doesn't pick up much until the halfway point, 3) some motifs were very well-played, while others were a bit overused and overdone, 4) gonna be honest, not a fan of the ending. I somewhat understand what the point of the ending was supposed to mean, but I just think it fell a bit flat in its efficacy compared to the rest of the book. But other than that, if you're looking for a genuinely funny, dark, and macabre character study, I would recommend this book.
Graphic: Eating disorder, Rape, Sexual content, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Excrement, Vomit, Animal death, Racism, Blood, Child death, Classism, Cursing, Body horror, Death, Cannibalism, Animal cruelty, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Murder, Alcohol, Body shaming, Ableism, Fatphobia, Abortion, Antisemitism, Addiction, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Torture, and Violence
elsmith09's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Gaslighting, Hate crime, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, Sexism, Drug use, Gun violence, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Drug abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Torture, Addiction, Sexual violence, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Cannibalism, Sexual content, Cursing, Death, Gore, Violence, Kidnapping, Misogyny, and Physical abuse
nmarieguidroz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Graphic: Rape, Misogyny, Torture, Gore, Sexual content, Racism, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Antisemitism, Murder, Homophobia, and Blood
katherinestobbe's review against another edition
Graphic: Drug use, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Hate crime, Homophobia, Murder, Rape, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Sexual assault, and Violence
tadow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Classism, Racism, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Cannibalism, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Animal cruelty, Murder, Sexual content, and Torture
ervinrex's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I will say though, his perpetual fall in trying to understand himself is one that anyone in their 20s could empathise with…just maybe not in terms of killing people for fun.
Overtime, I just disliked the main character more and more, yes it’s fictional, yes I went in thinking I wanted to hear the crazy shit, but slowly it just got harder and harder to read. I didn’t care anymore about his thoughts, I didn’t care about anyone around him either but then I deeped that’s pretty much what the author wants me to feel (I hope). These people are pricks, everyone is fake and the only time you feel for anyone is the innocents that have no “character”. As in, they’re just random homeless people or escorts.
If that was the point, which again I assume it is, yeah, the author did a great job making me dislike everyone.
Anyways, 3 stars because when the story isn’t being slowed down by “lemme check my hair” or “this guy is wearing an Armani suit with…etc etc”, the feeling of a downward spiral does become clearer, and of course I am always going to love the detective scene and the lawyer scene at the end.
Otherwise, I think I am being a little generous with 3 stars, maybe the film is influencing that but either way. Good book, don’t recommend if you easily get bored or you don’t wanna read some actually horrifying shit.
Graphic: Sexism, Religious bigotry, Racial slurs, Violence, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Homophobia, Vomit, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Gore, Murder, Torture, Gun violence, and Misogyny
kyleighwhitsell's review against another edition
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cannibalism, Child death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Murder, Violence, Animal cruelty, Blood, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Torture, Sexual violence, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Antisemitism, Body horror, Drug use, Racism, and Sexual assault
Minor: Abortion
legitimatesalvage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Gore, Blood, Body horror, Gun violence, Murder, Racism, Child death, Torture, Animal death, Rape, Sexism, Violence, Homophobia, Hate crime, and Misogyny
menderash's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gaslighting, Gore, Sexual content, Torture, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual assault, Mass/school shootings, Sexism, Racism, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Rape, Car accident, Drug use, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Addiction, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Sexual violence, Child death, Classism, Cursing, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Fatphobia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Toxic relationship, and Vomit